Why En To Phos?

I have a black-paged wire-bound artist book that I bought at Hobby Lobby seven years ago.  This was going to be my fancy, tangible, portfolio that I handed to potential photography clients when they sit down with me and make the decision to book a session with me or not.  It's full of printed 4x6 images from when I first started taking photographs on a DSLR camera I got for Christmas.  It's still on my shelf and the $2.99 stickers on the cover read EN TO PHOS.

My firstborn's face after asking if we could be done taking photos for the day.

It may be silly that I put so much thought into the name of my photography business because it's literally one of thousands of photography businesses in the city of Omaha, Nebraska.  And I really like my name, so Kat Hannemann Photography got the job done for quite a while.  But every photographer has a unique perspective and I have wanted to communicate more through my business name.  Not to be too dramatic but sharing my perspective in the images I take for family, friends and my extended family of photography clients show a little piece of how I view the world, which is an intimate thing.  It's a tad nerve-wracking to share it all.  

Over the course of the past seven years, since the first time I held my own DSLR in my hands, I have been on this journey of discovering what kind of photographer I want to be.  At first I thought that was just about what types of photography I want to take in: wedding, family, newborn, etc.  But in the last year, I have realized that the question had more to do with the story of who I am and my personal connection to telling the stories of others.  That distinction redirected and clarified many things: who, what, when, where, and so on.  I want to be a teller of stories.  I want to use all the beautiful light.

"Light makes photography. Embrace light. Admire it. Love it. But above all, know light. Know it for all you are worth, and you will know the key to photography." - George Eastman

George Eastman is kind of a big name in the history of photography - look him up on a google search.  His quote speaks to my passion of photography.  I will always be mesmerized by the different kinds of light and how to use it to tell stories of my own family, person and clients.

My firstborn last fall, a little bigger and helping me document his childhood and love of light.

So finally, why En To Phos for my business name?

I am the blessed wife of a theologian; stick with me and my husband in a conversation for five minutes, and you'll smile at that statement.  I asked my beloved what he thought I should name my business and after a few days of thought and some wisecracks at names I immediately rejected, he threw "En To Phos" into the mix.  In Greek, En To Phos means "In The Light."  I loved it and have been waiting for the right time to put it to use.  I am a beautiful-light seeking, sunset chasing, visual story-telling, natural-light photographer.  So now you know; thanks for joining me on my artistic journey!