"Hello, my name is ..." is nowadays an often used sticker or tag seen all over the world in all kinds of situations, especially in the art & design industry.
In my case I would say:

"Hello, my name is Jannis"

The next thing is usually someone trying to repeat the name they just heard me say and mispronouncing it completely. Followed by the question, interesting name.. So where are you from?
My answer would be: "I was born and raised in Hamburg, Germany and only recently (12/2005) moved to Auckland, New Zealand."

Next would be something like: "Wow, New Zealand, it must be so beautiful down there."

To which I would reply: "Well.. Let's put it this way, the nature over here is spectacular but the cities are dirty, full of tourists and bad architecture."

A quick pause as a reaction to the unexpected answer I just gave them would result in the question: "So why did you decide to live in New Zealand?"

I would then say: "Well first off, you have to know that the German school/university system is pretty bad. So either a private university or a university in a different country are the best options to a quality education."

Then I would tell them that I finished my secondary school in New Zealand, after coming to the country as part of a 'study abroad' programme I decided to do when I was 16. And that I intended only to stay 1 year but that I, after 1 year in New Zealand, decided to stay another year and finish school over here.

Next up would be that I am doing a Bachelor in Graphic Design degree at the Auckland University of Technology (AUT) which is a lot of fun but that my passion is and always has been photography, which I now try to incorporate into my designs wherever possible.

My gallery here will therefore include a variety of shots, from the scenic New Zealand landscape to distilled close ups of minimalist graphic scenes. I am also heavily involved with macro/close up photography hence a lot of botanical, yet artistic, shots will eventually be uploaded here.

-So how did I get into photography you ask?

Well,.. I first picked up a camera when I was 15 or so years old. And that coming from a family that always encouraged me to experiment with new things and always supported my ideas of what I wanted to do helped me get into art and design as I got to go to lots of countries and art galleries all over the world. I also took art courses in and outside of school out of interests I picked up while browsing through the rooms of the "Hamburger Kunsthalle" (Hamburg Art Gallery). One of my favorite painters is 'Joan Miró' with its very graphic and bold, yet refined, use of shapes and color.
In the end my interests however always brought me back to the purest form of art. Photography. My passion.