This year for our On The House campaign, I will be announcing our talented and incredibly generous partners, who are coming along side us to help ignite the Atlanta Union Mission brand, which leads me to my conversation with the talented Mr. Stephen Hunton...

Blake- Hello, Stephen. How are things? And more importantly, how did you get a shot of you and I sparing in Judo class (with me in the blue obviously)?

Stephen- Ha. Things are good. Actually, that's a shot for Home Depot in an '08 olympics TV campaign.

Blake- Oh, right- I was confused, sorry about that. Lets get started. Why don't you share a bit with how you got started in photography?

Stephen- I first got into photography back in High School.  It was awesome because we got to work in a darkroom, which I thought was super cool.  I loved trying different things with the chemicals which today would look a lot like post-processing digitally.  But, my camera broke in college and I was too lazy to save up the money to fix it, so I literally just fell away from photography all together.  Then, 3 or 4 years later, in October of 2006 we found out we were having our first baby and I knew the point-and-shoot cameras wouldn't do the trick.  Thankfully, my parents bought me my first Digital SLR camera a month before he was born and I got sucked in.  I was terrible though.  It was like I'd forgotten everything, but I was so hungry to get better that I just kept snapping away, trying new things and learning how to make an image. That's the best thing about digital photography… you can mess up over and over and over, for FREE!

Blake- That's cool, Sounds like you've worked hard to get better (and it worked, cause you're pretty freaking talented), Why did you decide to partner with OTH and give away your "hard-earned" craft?

Stephen- I love that Matchstic puts an emphasis on pro-bono work.  I just believe that we all have talents and time to give to the needy, whether it's a physical person or an organization.  Last year, when I started this journey as a "professional" I got hooked up with Atlanta Union Mission and made them my ‘pro-bono' Client in Atlanta.  I just felt that I could give back through this craft of mine to help an awesome organization build their brand.  It was amazing, and extremely eye-opening to walk around the AUM facilities and meet people who had found hope and were overcoming huge obstacles in their lives. So, when you shot me an email to see if I'd be interesting in partnering with them through OTH, it was a honor and quick "yes" because I'm excited to see how working with Matchstic can take Atlanta Union Mission in a whole new direction creatively and strategically.

Blake- Yeah, It was a natural fit since you already have a heart for the mission and have done so much for them. Last question, What role do you think photography plays in building a charismatic brand? More specifically how will if effect the new AUM Brand?

Stephen- I think photography can play a huge role in building a brand.  It has the power to tell stories without words and create emotions within viewers that speak exactly in the voice you're trying to give a brand.  More specifically, with Atlanta Union Mission, photography has the ability to portray the hope that AUM can provide to the homeless in Atlanta.  Homelessness, is such a serious issue here, and a lot of times we see images of people laying in the street or standing under a bridge holding a sign asking for money.  They get objectified too easily and people forget that a homeless person is, before anything else, a person.  Photography can put a more "human face" on the homeless in Atlanta, and hopefully make the issue more relatable to a city full of busy people who don't always have the opportunity to see it as a serious issue.

Blake- That is so true, great point. Well, on behalf of everyone at Matchstic, thank you for partnering with us on this endeavor, and we can't wait to get started.

Stephen- Absolutely. Thanks again for considering me for this.  It's going to be alot of fun.

For more on Stephen Hunton photography click here

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