“I want people to look at their photos and really remember how they felt at their wedding, not just how they looked.” Hannah has the creative ability to capture candid moments and beautifully display them through her photography. Her talent caught out eye in the way that she photographed the 2nd Nashville NotWedding back in June and we are pleased to feature Hannah Elaine Photography as our Vendor of the Week.
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Describe your photography style.
My style is a mixture of photojournalism and creative portraiture. My overall goal is always to capture real moments with people. Even when doing the posed or staged photos in a wedding I’m always looking for that moment in between the “cheeses,” when a couple exhales, they look at each other, giggle at something somebody said. I studied in a documentary photography program in Amsterdam and, though I wasn’t planning on getting into wedding photography at the time, the candid, in-the-moment approach I learned there has really served me well in my approach to weddings. I want people to look at their photos and really remember how they felt at their wedding, not just how they looked.
What do you enjoy doing in your spare time?
Every minute I can spend on the road traveling is a minute well spent. I have a perpetual travel bug and, luckily for me, my job affords me a lot of out of town work. I’m shooting my first international wedding this year and I absolutely cannot wait and hope that leads to more work of its kind. Another little known fact, I kind of have a super hero power: I can read books at super-human speeds. I will absolutely devour a good story and am always reading at least four books at a time. It is one of my all-time favorite things.
List three of your favorite small businesses and why they are on your list.
Amazig Leather Goods: Amazig buys insanely beautiful handmade leather bags and accessories direct from the North African artisans who craft them, and then sells and distributes them here in the US. I have personally spent a lot of time in Morocco so this business is near and dear to my heart. In addition to creating a fair market place for the Imazighen people to sell their goods, Amazig Leather also reinvests a portion of their profits back into the community through economic initiative programs and providing their artisans with small business loans to allow them to further develop their businesses. Rad!
Batch Nashville: They have been so phenomenal working with me to come up with perfect gift packages for my clients, which are scoring me some serious brownie points. They make me look way cooler than I actually am. Aside from that, they’re doing a really cool thing by getting locally-made artisan products from all over the south out to the masses. If you ever need to buy a gift for someone who already has everything, look no further.
Parnassus Books: I don’t know if this exactly counts as a small business, but Parnassus is Nashville’s extremely successful independently owned bookstore. As I mentioned, I’m obsessed with books so you can imagine the appeal here. Shopping at Parnassus is always such a positive experience. Every employee is so kind and knowledgeable. Their blog, “Musing,” has been pure fuel for the fire of my book addiction with their constant stream of incredible reading recommendations. They know how to run a business right!
How do you find balance in your personal and professional life?
My husband and I can both work from anywhere and we both travel a lot for our jobs. The combination of those two factors allows us a lot of flexibility. If he’s got a gig in Seattle, or I have a wedding on the beach, we just pack up the computers and go together. We don’t have kids yet so believe me when I say we are taking full advantage of this set up.
What is your favorite part of The NotWedding experience?
I loved every part of being a NotWedding vendor. However, hands down, the best part of my experience is all of the “friendors” I made. There were so many high-quality Nashville wedding professionals involved in the event and I was able to spend time and work with so many of them. Since the event, several of us got together over cocktails and are making plans to stay connected, keep working together, and keep everyone on each other’s radar. I think I’ve made some long-term connections and there is no price tag on that kind of value.
Photo Credits:
Maile Lani Photography (Headshot) | Hannah Elaine Photography
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