This week, I added a new fun fact to my “Meet Hannah” page online. It’s something only those incredibly close to me know, and if we are being honest, it really accurately portrays who I am down to the core. [Uninhibited, effervescent and maybe even a little silly]

When I launched my new website at the beginning of the year, I made the decision to be more transparent and real than ever before. For so long, I strived to be this cookie-cutter photographer that everyone desired to work with. I wanted my images to do all the talking for me, so I could hide out in this alternate reality where I didn’t have to be vulnerable with the world. One huge flaw in this plan: my work quickly became the assessor of  my personal value.

Whether I liked it or not, my business’s brand revolved heavily around who I was as a person. By reversing the roles and allowing only my work to market for me, I then enabled every shortcoming to become a direct definition of who I was. If an image was less than perfect, I was less than perfect. When a client chose another photographer instead of me, I was, in correlation, a complete failure. It was only when others complimented or liked my work, that I discovered worth or purpose in myself. Has anyone else been there?

Let me begin with this reminder: YOU ARE MORE THAN WHAT OTHERS THINK OF YOU

Annnnnd one more time for the people in the back: you. are. more. than. what. others. think. of. you. I needed to say that, because for so long… it’s exactly what I needed to hear. As creatives, we allow our work and what others think about it to define us, rather than letting it simply be an expression of who we are. We get caught up in the never-ending cycle of comparison and tear ourselves down because of it. My brand is not solely what I create. It is also not exclusively who I am as a human. It’s a sweet little mix of the two- working together in perfect harmony to create art, serve others and love the heck out of them in the process!

Personally, I think others can relate to a girl with an unprecedented ability to memorize early 2000’s pop music, that sporadically dances in the grocery aisle and eats unsurmountable amounts of Chick-fil-A… far better than they can to a wedding photographer who simply takes pretty pictures. So here I am y’all: the silly, crazy, not-so-pretty, quirky and even imperfect parts of me and all!

I hope you learn to fall in love with yourself, embrace the mess & celebrate who you are. I really believe that even the flaws and inadequacies are worth celebrating. In a world that wants us to be perfect, it’s incredibly freeing to be content with the fact that you are not.

You are unique. You are beautiful. You are defined by far more than your work. YOU are worth celebrating.