Meet Eley | Lead Photographer & Owner

We had the good fortune of connecting with Eley and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Eley, what habits do you feel play an important role in your life?
Setting goals. Regardless of how unrealistic they may have felt or seemed. Setting the goal of what my dreams are allowed me to figure out ways and be guided by the universe to exactly that. Persistence and perseverance. both are very important in having a freelance business. You cannot allow yourself to fall shy of a challenge. Financial Tracking. If doing it yourself or hiring someone to support your early business finances I have found this to be an extremely important habit to stick to. This allowed me to see growth, track income, and understand how to live within my means.

Can you open up a bit about your work and career? We’re big fans and we’d love for our community to learn more about your work.
A staple of my work is the content I create for humanity by bringing awareness to socio-political issues within our community. I am invested in creating visual platforms to nurture conversations about subcultures such as: the visually impaired, African-American’s, and women’s rights. Photography is not just my professional career. It is my passion. In fact, my personal goal is to keep the fun, curiosity, and adventure of photography alive on set. My style of photography depicts the magnificence that exists in everyone’s lives. This work presents the boldness, the expressiveness, and the real identity of each life captured. Because while photography is a storytelling medium, I hold tight to the notion that this art offers the world more by revealing life.

If you had a friend visiting you, what are some of the local spots you’d want to take them around to?

• Jeju’s – Korean Bathhouse – pamper yourself after your travels to ATL with a 24-hour full of relaxations space
• The Beltline- art installations, great eats, active space Cycling the silver comet- great active, scenic experience take your from GA to Alabama
• My place- where we could spend endless hours creating and vibing Sweetwater state park
• Kennesaw Mountian – beautiful hiking spaces EAV + Edgewood Bar Hopping- fun hip eclectic spaces that offer the diversity and culture in Atlanta
• Tough Love Yoga – great Friday classes with Greg Tinkle to ease you into the weekend Atlanta Botanical Gardens- a nice reflective space to wind down your trip

Shoutout is all about shouting out others who you feel deserve additional recognition and exposure. Who would you like to shoutout?
I’m always going to give the most credit to my family. I’ve been blessed to come from a holistic and humanitarian family that encouraged me to follow my dreams. Furthermore, I extend a deep thank you to my parents Howard and Dianne Eley for this and neer pressuring me to be anything that I am not. Jarrett Christian and Oktawian Otlewski. Two very good friends who encouraged me through my college and grad school days. They spent endless hours and late-nights with me nurturing conversations about what I was creating and dreaming about where we would land as creatives. These two played a huge part in helping me to launch my freelance career in Georgia. Thank you for being my rock. And to Lauren Driskell, for always reminding me to think of myself within my career. Encouraging growth on both ends of the spectrum for balance and evolution. A special thanks to the professors at Old Dominion and SCAD that supported me through my personal growth and creative transitions. And I most certainly thank my clients for trusting in me to bring their vision to life!

Website: http://eleyphoto.com/
Instagram: @eley_photo
Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/stephanie-eley-4955a667/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/eleyphoto
Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC8GEIhFqmXOjHOgs3LaUnlg?view_as=subscriber
Other: Communication Arts: https://www.commarts.com/fresh/eley