Introducing: Cohesion

13 and a half years ago, I sat on the couch with my laptop and my camera, and decided to open a photography business. It was December 2010, I had exactly zero experience or knowledge about running a business, nor any money to hire anyone to help me. I made a lot of mistakes along the way (including not starting as an LLC right from the beginning), and learned as I went along.

My website had Flash built into it. My portfolio was all over the place, and included weddings, families, maternity, babies, seniors, couples, anyone who was willing to step in front of my camera. My logo was born in Photoshop, with my initials in AR Berkley font.

My logo is the only thing that hasn’t changed from its original form. It has lived like that until now, only changing colors a couple of times from blue to more of a teal last year.

This is the blue version.

I was getting restless with my branding but knew I needed help instead of simply changing the colors based on a whim. I needed a professional.

I reached out to the amazing and incomparable Rachel Dangerfield this spring with the hope that she’d help me create a whole new feel for Allison Patel Photography, with new colors, new fonts, and new modern logos.

I wanted something that wouldn’t age quickly (my previous logo lasted 13 years, after all), and I needed something with a cohesive feel that conveyed what APP was really about. So the AP initials are sticking around, getting a sprinkle of modern design, and including an oval ring that feels like the lap of a runners’ track and the number of miles APP has come already, and the number of miles it has left to go (so many miles).

This is the back of my new business card.

Did I need new branding to succeed in this business? No. But working with Rachel helped me solidify what I've been trying to communicate with my photography for so long. She helped me put thoughts and ideas into words and visuals and build it into something solid.

After our discovery call and I delivered my assigned homework, she worked to put something together for me, and it was clear she had been paying attention. "Not fussy, but lovely and special" is everything I've been trying to say for the last 13 years, and it was so gratifying to hear someone else say it.

After looking through your work, I noticed you seem to have an organic, unfussy approach that results in beautifully captured real-life moments. I wanted your branding to reflect that feeling as well. Not too fussy, but lovely and special. I used tree rings to [reflect] that. They're not perfect, they've got a roughness to them, BUT they also give feelings of warmth, nature, and growth. I also love the juxtaposition of trees and "family tree." Tree rings capture a tree's history, just like you're doing with family photography.

I could just cry. I've never felt more seen. Of course, my true hope with the new branding is not to make myself feel good (though, excellent by- product), but to help visitors here - you - grasp why I do what I do with photography, and how I want you to feel when we work together. “Not too fussy, but lovely and special.” 

I love the tree-ring metaphor too - each family session is as unique as the family in front of the camera. No two are exactly alike, and there is no “perfect” tree, just like there's no perfect family. Each one is beautiful, has its own quirks, and grows in its own way.

So you’ll see a lot more tree rings around here, as I decide where to place them without overdoing it. I have a permanent tree ring in my footer below.

And you’ll see a lot more green - various shades of moss, evergreen, and a special green she named after me - and some light touches of Rainy Sky (blue), Goosefeather (cream) and Golden Hour (gold/brown) to round out my very natural-feeling colors and to help it all come together in a cohesive feel.

You might also see something on my website where the colors don’t work - either the text is too light or too dark or the pale blue is too much or the brown is overwhelming. I’m still experimenting with what should go where, but feel free to leave me feedback in a DM if you feel strongly about it.

Even the smallest trees have beautiful rings.