So up until this year, my business partner and I have been operating as separate photographers and just subcontracting to each other (to be able to split the tax write-offs). So I have been Kevan Wilkie Photography and he has been Duane Clemens Photography.

Obviously, this has been a little less than ideal and a touch confusing for our clients so we have decided to incorporate and just have one entity from here on in.

The process of choosing a name has been very painful for us so far, but the one that we have tentatively up with is: 6:8 Photography. The name is based on Micah 6:8 out of the Old Testament, and we are perfectly happy to explain the meaning to anyone who inquires.

The question remains though - what do you think of the name itself? Any thoughts would be greatly appreciated!

PS - Dumb question alert: how do I get my picture to show up on the left when I post?

I think the name is fine, however i think people will just call you 68 photography rather than 6:8 photography.

why dont you explain why you chose the verse? then osp can help more:)

Couple ideas :
M68 Photography
Studio 68
Duke Studio or Duke Photography
DU: Duane ; KE: Kevan

To change your avatar picture choose My Control from the top bar - and you'll see an option on the right of you control panel that says personal profile - 4th from the top of that section is edit avatar settings.

-e

Duke is sweet! My day job is with Duke Realty and I love our name! Has a strong feeling but sort of a warmth to it. Very clever too how it incorporates both of their first names!

Enoch you may have to go into advertising friend !

+1 to the Duke

Enoch! Where were you when we were agonizing over all this!? I like all of your ideas! Duke is especially clever though!

Ross - the verse is as follows:

He has told you, O mortal, what is good; and what does the Lord require of you but to do justice, and to love kindness, and to walk humbly with your God? - Micah 6:8

For us it sums up how we want to treat everybody that we come into contact, as well as reminding us of the broader context.

Alot of wisdom in that verse.

Let us know what you decide with the name!!

Don't mention it... that's what we're all here for...
- follow up and let us know what you've decided... i'm sure others will chime in...

So by way of follow up: We decided that we needed to do a bit of market research so we used some highly unscientific methodology. We posted it as discussion question on our facebook group!

We listed the options and the rationale behind each one and asked for feedback. Duke Photography is out based on the response - I personally like it btw - they felt that it didn't really communicate anything.

I was surprised that 6:8 photography received a positive reaction even from those people that I know are not coming from a Christian perspective. This was my biggest hesitation - while I am not ashamed of my faith by any stretch, I don't want my business name to be something that alienates people. That doesn't make sense from a business or faith perspective.

Naming a business is not an easy task and you certainly should give it a lot of effort and attention.

My 2 cents worth...

6:8 will mean nothing to people who do not read the bible or who are unfamiliar with this type of chapter:verse symbol. My first thought went to the type of screen I use and wondered if you were referring to some kind of technology - and I'm a christian.

Quoting chapter and verse speaks to a very traditional form of Christianity. While there's nothing wrong with traditional approaches, you need to be certain that you're comfortable with being specifically targeted to that market. You will alienate people outside that market - yes, that includes Christians. Religion, like politics is most often best left out of business... unless your business is one of those.

I find it a little bit odd to tie god & the bible to a commercial venture...

The values and the sentiment in the quoted verse are wonderful and that's where I'd start looking for a name. If you can tie something of the "humble, kindness, justice" ideas into your name then you will MOST DEFINITELY be speaking to a broader audience - you won't offend and you'll get your personalities across.

Hi Glenn,

Thanks for the thoughtful response. I am aware that the 6:8 will mean nothing to most people and I think that I am okay with that. It does sound a bit like an aspect ratio doesn't it?

My question then would be: how often do you think that we will actually get queried about our name? I know that it will happen from time to time, and I am confident that I can explain in such a way that brings out the humanist elements (mercy, justice, humility etc...) We played around with some of the concepts like you suggested but we couldn't come up with anything that didn't sound arrogant or cheesy.

Now don't get me wrong - I don't plan on using my business as a platform to share my faith - I think that would be inappropriate. I recognize that most people are not looking for the photographer to solve life's mysteries for them.

Your concern that we would be limited to one specific segment of the market does concern me obviously. If the only way that would know what the name means is when they ask directly, do you still think that we will alienate an entire market segment? And I ask that honestly, not rhetorically!

Anyway, this is turning into a novel, so I will stop now... Anybody else care to wade in on this one?

~kevan~

Hi there! Well, I am bummed that Duke is out hahaha! I liked it but I was biased since I work for a company named Duke;)

Just wanted to mention this.. I don't even really think of a bible verse when I see 6:8 typed out. (and I'm a Christian) Of course it is one way to view that format but I think it just looks nice and clean. I think it looks really good and you could even do something like 6|8 and make it look very linear and whatnot. then when people as you get to tell them what it means

I do not think it will limit you in any way since you are not planning on running around saying "hey guess what our name means... go on...guess!" HA

Just my couple of pennies

Ashley

No judgment here... just trying to offer a little advice based on my years of being in business. I can't say "how often" you'd be asked about your name. But that's not really the issue. A name needs to be something that people can recognize, distinguish from the competition and associate with you. While the ratio aspect is different, I'm not sure that it's all that memorable, nor does it mean anything unless you explain it. Thus, I'd have to say it's not going to do the job. YMMV

As for market segments, I notice that you're in Calgary and from what I know of that area of Canada (lots of Canadian relatives ) is that you're in a boom era and people are moving there from all over the country, so perhaps you're in a less homogenous area than before... just a guess on my part.

It's one thing to be niche and chose to go after those with a more traditional religious bent, that could work for you if you've got a large enough traditional religious community. I don't know your area well enough to say if you can survive in what would be a very narrow market here.

i like the name.
my doctor is of a different religion than i am. i still go to him. if they like your work, they will use you whatever your business name is or religion.
i think if you explain the meaning of why you choose it when asked, you'd get good response. good luck with whatever you go with

my .02

Hi everybody,

So we decided to stick with 6:8 photography! We put a lot of thought into it, but ultimately decided that we are comfortable with the name.

So... we have been working with a local designer on some different logos - and have tentatively narrowed it down to 3. Anybody care to offer some feedback on which one you like? (If you like any of them that is!)

So by way of update... to anyone who is interested.

This is the logo that we have decided on:



We will be launching the new site shortly! We are pretty stoked! Thanks so much to everyone for their feedback!