Between school, internships, and being a bonafide Insta-celebrity, it’s hard to imagine that Lucy VanEllis even has time to sleep. This year, the senior photography major at Tyler School of Art added another item to her busy schedule: LHBlog.
Lucy of font-family:”Times New Roman”,serif;color:navy”>Lucy Helena Photography uses LHBlog as an outlet to write about fashion, photography, and her life. Lucy became a Style Guru with CollegeFashionista when she was a sophomore and enjoyed writing weekly articles about the fashion trends she saw on campus. The following year, CollegeFashionista invited her to be a Social Media Intern, putting her in charge of social media and brand partnerships.
“I kind of missed writing,” Lucy said, “but I knew if I was going to write again I wanted it to be for me and something I would like to read.” Therefore, LHBlog was born.
“It hasn’t been around that long,” Lucy said of her blog, “but I love writing for it and maintaining it. I think starting my blog has been one of the most exciting things for me this year.”
Lucy’s internships and online presence have opened up invaluable opportunities with companies, other photographers, and various bloggers, YouTubers, and entreprenuers. Lucy has worked with companies and brands including: Daniel Wellington, Teen Vogue, Lilly Pulitzer, MTV, BooHoo.com, Dove and American Eagle. Recently, she hosted a discussion for Dove’s #SelfEsteemProject at Caffenation, a Philly coffee shop, and got to spend an evening talking about self esteem and empowerment. Without help from her internships, blog, and Instagram, Lucy wouldn’t have been extended these opportunities.
“I love social media because of the pace at which things can change, how versatile it can be and how accessible it makes everyone,” she said. “Social media gives you the ability to reach out to people around the world who you would have never known about unless you were fortunate enough to be constantly traveling. It lets you have a place to be yourself, look at photos you like, discover artists, brands and recipes from all over the world. Social media is essentially a ticket to anything you can dream up.”
As for Lucy, she is using her blog, Instagram, and photography to dream up her own future projects. She is constantly inspired by the people and brands she has worked with, including her subjects.
“I think what I love most about what I do and the reason I keep going is the people. I live for that moment when my subject smiles and says, ‘Ahhh I love it!’ Until I get that reaction, I won’t be satisfied with my work.”
For now, she continues to put her energy into creating content for her blog and Instagram, and interacting with her audience and other potential collaborators.
“I think I just want my viewers to be happy,” she said. “Happy with themselves and to always enjoy the little things… Oh, and to be inspired!”
Follow along with Lucy at Lucy Helena Photography, LHBlog, and on font-family:”Times New Roman”,serif;color:navy”>Instagram @LucyHelenaa.