Growing up, Holly Page’s family rarely took professional family photos. Instead, they focused more on videography and candid photos.

“Getting a yearly family picture was never really something we did,” Page said. “The importance of professional photography was not driven, but the importance of capturing life’s moments were.”

Page was raised in Alden. She recently moved back to Freeborn County after moving to the Twin Cities five years ago. During her last year in the metro area, Page started her own photography business, Timeless Photog.

Earlier this year, Page attended a photography workshop in Duluth with a friend and fellow photographer. The workshop focused on marketing and branding photography businesses. A speaker asked the crowd to imagine their perfect client. Page realized she wanted her focus to be on boudoir and wedding photography.

“Personally, what gets me excited are those two things,” Page said.

Although Page found her passion lying in two specific areas of photography, she still does other kinds. Because family photography is what got her going in business, she keeps her family portrait rates affordable.

At the same workshop, a speaker talked about keeping photography a craft, and not just a job. Page realized she wanted to do a project that was for her, not just what people asked of her. “Ink Stories” is a series of photos featuring tattoos which Page just recently started. The idea was born from a struggle which hits Page close to home — tattoos in the workplace. Her current employer, a restaurant marketing firm, accepts her tattoos, but she has had issues with her ink and other jobs in the past.

“I am the same person whether I wear a short-sleeve or long-sleeve shirt,” Page said.

Page got her first tattoo on her 18th birthday: the word “dance” in script on her foot. Out of all of her tattoos, she has found it to be the most motivating. Page grew up dancing, and when she took a seven-year break from it, seeing her tattoo reminded her of the importance. She now instructs dance at Echo Step in Albert Lea.

“I want to expose the honesty to why people get tattoos,” Page said. “What kind of people get them are not as black and white as some critics would like to say.”

The project is open to anyone willing to submit their tattoos. Page then reviews submissions and picks from ones which have a story that she finds intriguing to share. Page also said tattoos being submitted don’t need to be elaborate or new. Her fiance, Brian, even brought up the idea of photographing an elderly Marine Corps veteran who has ink.

“I’m good with prison tattoos,” Page said with a chuckle. “They don’t need to be pretty. I’m looking for the story.”

Page understood that her responsibility of the project was more than just to expose the types of people that get tattoos after receiving a message from a woman wanting to submit her tattoo late one night. Page described the message as very emotional. She wants people to know this project is to be able to tell the stories that go along with the ink that is on a person’s body, which often has much more meaning than what meets the eye.

Page has reached out to followers on Facebook to spread the word of her project. Anyone is welcome to submit their tattoos and the stories that come along with them. There is no cost to be a part of the series. Page plans to shoot photos of submissions she chooses over the course of the summer. After the series is complete, she wants to find a public place to display her work and potentially publish it into a book.

To submit tattoos to “Ink Stories,” photos and details about the tattoo being submitted can be sent to holly@timelessphotog.com.

 

Holly Page 

Age: 26

Address: 1009 Columbus Ave. Albert Lea

Family: fiance, Brian, and his son; mother, Cindy; father, Rick; sister, Ivy; brother, Shane; a niece and a nephew

Livelihood: photographer

Interesting fact: She has a caricature tattoo of her dog.