ELEVATED PHOTOGRAPHY FOR MODERN WOMEN BY WOMEN

Sure, being green is trendy now and there is a whole new movement to be green. But there is a difference between just being green because of the trend and being green as a lifestyle. We firmly believe in being green as a committed member of the Greener Photography community and highly encourage other photographers to make this switch. How did we make the move to be more green? We moved to a more digital studio, we got rid of as much paper products as we could and switched to online bookkeeping and business systems. Cutting out film in our photography decisions means that we are producing less toxic output. Few people truly understand just how toxic film processing is. And while we greatly love and admire the look of film (we started with film years ago), we believe that the enviromental concerns greatly outweigh the aesthetics. We made 4×6 print proofs an optional choice instead of including it in our packages. We would rather our clients only print the photos that they want and conserve paper and energy usage. For the same reason, we cut out proofbooks and offer online file proofing and individual digital file downloads. We deliver all our contracts and communications online instead of by mail and cutting down on marketing kits, print marketing and focusing on online marketing such as our blog. This not only reduces paper usage but also reduces carbon output produced by shipping and transportation. The paper we do use is recycled; it is important to adopt a recycling program. All of our packaging revolves around recyclable materials as much as we can.

We try to source businesses that are local to us, or use energy as efficiently as possible. But remember, an internet based company across the country might be using less energy than a local company. Don’t be afraid to ask your vendors where they source their materials. Remember that it’s not just about being enviromentally green but being ethical in production. In the same vein, we have also sourced green wedding albums and green wedding album vendors who have similar beliefs. There are other numerous personal lifestyle changes you can adopt to be more green. This has been a long time passion of mine, from buying locally to sustainable farming and etc. As a personal decision, I have stopped eating beef and pork a long time ago; but did you know that not eating beef cuts down your carbon footprint more than if you stopped driving? I kid you not; there are various articles online for this if you do not belive me.

Most of all I would like to say that being green or moving towards a greener photography studio should be a lifestyle and ethical decision and not just for a business/marketing decision so you can hope to get more clients.

Some methods you can adopt as a photographer:

• recycle your electronical equipment,
• cut down on your ac, use fans and open windows
• use rechargable batteries
• unplug unused equipment and appliances
• limit frivolous packaging extras
• buy used items
• go to a library to check out magazines
• group ingoing and outgoing deliveries
• use energy efficient computers
• opt out of printed catalogs
• use a personal water bottle or water purification system
• program your computers and monitors to sleep or turn them off
• shoot with natural light as much as possible versus studio lights

It is always nice for us to work with like-minded couples, but how do you have a greener wedding? Lucky for you, Style Unveiled put together an awesome guide on 101 ways to make a wedding eco-chic. So be sure to check it out, they did it much better than we could ever have.

Style Unveiled is also looking for green wedding stories, so be sure to send them yours!