Where did Swell get its swell name from? The name swell was inspired by the notes written on the inside of my grandfather's high school yearbooks.
I spent some time trying to come up with the right name for my business and I knew that I wanted to tie my grandfather to it as he was the one that got me interested in photography. I thought J&M for Jack and Melissa but that was taken. I knew he was on the tumbling team in high school and joined the Navy after graduating. He loved to take bike trips whether it was on his bicycle or motorcycle. Nothing really jumped out at me.
As I read through the notes in his yearbook I took note of how many people called him a 'swell' guy. His friend Margaret wrote "Jack, to a swell boy I know in algebra" and Elaine wrote, "Best of luck to a swell kid in my Lit II class and I hope that you are in some more of my classes soon." I decided to look at the history of the word swell. Swell became a popular term in the 1930s and is defined as something that is excellent or very good and it is a great word to describe my grandfather.
Jack was an excellent grandfather, photographer, and inspiration for me. He took the time to read his camera's manuals which I faithfully continue to do - you find lots of good information in there you know.... And so Swell Lens Photography was made.
Thank you, Grandpa - Love, Melissa
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