Shannon Sewell » mentoring

‘take me to another place, take me to another land’

SS — Fri, 04 May 2012 21:12:48 +0000

I just spent the last week in Tennessee. We went from Nashville (the perfect combination of yummy food, fantastic live music & great company) up to Gatlinburg (an amazing lodge retreat in the middle of the Smokey Mountains). Spending the day in the mountain air with a group of amazing women (the babbling creek and campfire made it almost surreal) was just what the doctor ordered. I can’t thank Misty enough for having me out or Jen for being the perfect travel companion…

and, of course, our adorable little models…

gatlinburg | TN

‘but for now heaven is in new york’

SS — Thu, 26 Apr 2012 02:21:40 +0000

I am spoiled. Kim & Alyssa came again to help me out with a shoot (I don’t know what I will do with myself on my own again!). If you love the props, be sure to check out the Prop Shop (Kim’s new baby where she will be selling all of her amazing creations), they’ll be there.

Jenn Davenport drove up from Kalama to hang out for the day. I just love when you meet someone that you instantly connect with (even better when they live on my side of the country!). She was an absolute delight and we had such a fun day hanging out, talking shop & playing in the studio. Thank you for coming and I can’t wait until we can do it again… :)

styling: Kim Adams from The Prop Shop Market

hair & make up: Alyssa Underwood

‘two drifters off to see the world, there is such a lot of world to see’

SS — Thu, 12 Apr 2012 16:22:48 +0000

Where do I start? I am so excited to share this shoot with you. You remember my little Frida girl? Well, her big sister is a HUGE Audrey Hepburn fan. Just a couple of weeks ago I had mentioned it to my amazing cohort, Kim and (of course) she finds a whole slew of Audrey inspired goodies within a week. It just happened to coincide with Denise flying in from Japan for her mentoring day with me so… it was a date! Denise and I have been talking forever about getting together. The distance between here and Japan was a bit of a hurdle though so as soon as she found out they were moving back to the states we HAD to get it on the calendar (she will be moving to Vegas for anyone interested in a session with her!). So, we got our gorgeous model (I adore working with this family) and had an Audrey extravaganza! Didn’t Alyssa do an amazing job on hair/make-up? So perfectly Audrey :)

styling: kim adams

hair & make-up: alyssa underwood

vancouver | WA

PS… the winner of the Vol. 25 give away is Jessica from Refuge Photography!!! :)

‘but you have got something they don’t, yeah you have got something they don’t’

SS — Thu, 05 Apr 2012 17:46:32 +0000

I am back to share my second shoot while I was in Kansas City. There is something so genuinely uplifting about spending time with like minded souls. It is so easy to go day to day in the ‘real world’… superficial interactions, niceties with acquaintences, being the ‘public’ you and keeping the ‘real’ you to yourself. For the first time in 22 years of being a vegetarian, I sat at a table full of people and could eat every single dish served (yes- even living in the crunchy NW, not a group meal goes by that I don’t get asked about my veggie ways as I snack on the side dishes- haha), I watched parents interacting with their kids just like I do and listened to chitchat about lifestyles that sounded just like mine. And I sit here reflecting on how lucky we are- lucky that we are business owners and employees that pick our own co-workers and associates, lucky that we choose our own business models and rules to live by, lucky that we dictate how our day to day will go and can surround ourselves with people that get us and encourage us to be who we are meant to be. Embrace that… don’t let it go unnoticed or fail to use up every lit bit of it you can ;)

I spent my second afternoon with Heather Roth. We chatted about artistic endeavors (the girl has it running through her veins) and goals in our photography. We had a set of adorable twins to model for our shoot for The Measure (they were super shy & unsure but way too cute for the camera not to love every minute with them) ;) I couldn’t have thought up a better way to wrap up my visit…

I will be in Gatlinburg TN next month at this glorious retreat in the Smokey Mountains. So much good stuff planned!!! Come join me here :)

wardrobe: The Measure Designs

kansas city | MO

‘if I could escape and recreate a place that is my own world’

SS — Tue, 03 Apr 2012 05:31:28 +0000

I just got back today from a little escape to warm sunshine and good friends. I spent the weekend in Kansas City with my friends, The Solars (if you’ve read my blog then you know them from their amazing Road Trip in a Box and Indoor Adventure Guide that I’ve swooned over). I am home feeling exhausted and happy… late night conversations with true friends and fabulous days spent with other photographers left me with sore cheeks, a couple extra smiles lines and a full heart (not to mention some fun images of adorable little girls in crazy beautiful dresses). I want to thank each and every one of you that came for the day. It was a perfect group full of talent and humor… I couldn’t have asked for better!

I wish you could see these dresses in person… oh. my. They are hand painted, mixed media and sooooo gorgeous (ZozoBugBaby showing off her art skills & beyond!)…

wardrobe: ZozoBugBaby

kansas city | MO

‘if we could sit together a moment and talk forever just to pass the time’

SS — Fri, 30 Mar 2012 14:43:06 +0000

We have a winner!!!

number 28 is… Heather Stockett!! Heather email me and we will set things up!! :)

I cannot thank all of you enough. I received the most amazing emails, FB messages, comments… you are all the most giving, lovely people!! It seems every time I choose to give I get so much more back… feels kinda like I am cheating!! I feel so blessed to be amongst a group like you. Thank you :)

‘just giving to get something, always wanting something back’

SS — Mon, 26 Mar 2012 20:00:33 +0000

I don’t normally use my blog to offer my opinion or go beyond the realm of sharing shoots and what they entail. Just the facts, ma’am… just the facts ;) A couple of things happened yesterday that got me thinking though. The kind of thinking that keeps you up til the wee hours and makes you really look at what you are doing.

I had a shoot yesterday with an amazing woman. She was there to ‘assist’ me (though I am not sure that is an accurate description when I was merely capturing all the amazingness she laid out in front of me). She is young, she had a thriving photography business, she has more talent in her pinky than I will ever have and she has chosen to use it all to help others. She could be keeping it all to herself: designing, creating, shooting amazing scenes, making a name for herself and catapulting to stardom… but she isn’t. Why? Well, she has decided to put her family first (Amen.) and she realizes the ego & energy & sacrifices it would take. So, she has decided that she will use her passion to create to help others fulfill their dreams. As she said “This is my time to help others, when I am ready to do it for myself, all this good will come back to me.” Ya know what though, I don’t even think she would care if it did. She is what is a truly and genuinely giving person (it isn’t a loan until you can give back… it is selfless).

She got me thinking. Thank you’s and giving shout outs to those that help you is all nice and well but if you aren’t using what is being giving you to make something bigger and help others… what is the point? There is only so much one person can store, only so far they can go… why keep it all to yourself? There is no legacy there… pay it forward, give it back… multiply it.

I don’t know exactly how this will play out or how I will do it right. I do know that I don’t want to die with my legacy being “She was a great photographer.” I want it to be the lives I touched, the differences in other peoples’ lives I made.

So I was thinking… maybe, instead of planning our acceptance speech and the list of people to thank, we should be trying to figure out how many people we can get up on the stage with us.

In light of trying to come up with some little small token this morning, I have decided to give away a spot at one of my workshops. Or, if you can’t make it to a workshop, a phone call-skype-session-coffee date- whatever! I definitely don’t have all the answer but I do have a few resources that might help one or two of you ;) You can see all the cities I am coming to here or if you want to stay in the comfort of you own home and chat, I’m totally down for that as well. Just leave me a comment or email or send me a FB message… tell me who you are, where you want to meet me and any ideas you have for giving back (there is this great blog but I’d love to hear your ideas as well!) I will throw everyone’s name in a hat and let you know by Friday (just in case you want in to Kansas City).

Let’s do it.

santa cruz | CA (ahh… blue skies and beach time right about now sounds pretty darn amazing)

‘the best is upon us. its a finicky muse with only potential’

SS — Fri, 10 Feb 2012 17:58:21 +0000

This is the second shoot of my mentoring day with Kristen and Kristi. Leading up to our day, Kristen and I were texting quite a bit back & forth… one night she was showing me her new website background. She was doing this amazing watercolor inspired color splash. I am a sucker for watercolor (see here) and Ritchie Rags had already sent me an amazing outfit so I was already on the ‘keeping it simple’ train of thought sooo… we grabbed some paint, some seamless, a couple of paintbrushes and went to town!

wardrobe: Ritchie Rags

accessories: Lisa’s Mini Mad Hattery

portland | OR

‘the time to hesitate is through, no time to wallow in the mire’

SS — Thu, 09 Feb 2012 03:45:08 +0000

I am an idea collector. I store them everywhere… my computer, my phone, post-its, binders, notebooks. I can’t remember the last time a day went by that I didn’t jot something down somewhere. Needless to say, I have a backlog of things that I would love to accomplish, do, shoot… most days I am just looking for the excuse (and time) to jump in. So when Kristen texted and asked about flying out and doing a couple of concept shoots together I was all over it.

We did two sets during our day. The first set was something that I had just been waiting for the time to do and the second was inspired by Kristen herself (I’ll show off that one in the next post) ;)

I have always been a fan of The Doors. Their music reminds me of my childhood (my mom was a fan)… I’ve always been drawn to musicians/poets (if I could pick a talent it would definitely be songwriter. amazing songwriter.) So when I happened upon their documentary on Netflix, I dug right in and the wheels started turning. I find Jim Morrison completely mesmerizing. He is beautiful… the way he speaks, moves his body… and there is something about an artistic genius that completely owns it that I find fascinating. I just kept thinking what a fantastic photographic subject he would be. So… what’s a girl to do but decide I would try to whip up my own little (more tame & lovable) Doors inspired shoot. I called up my friend that has both a daughter that knows how to channel her inner rock star and a mean talent with the sewing machine (why did everyone around me get that gene but I got skipped??) to collaborate with. We threw in some glitter (thank you Kristen) and some guitar (thank you Kristi) and had some fun in the studio…

portland | OR

‘just follow my yellow light and ignore all those big warning signs’

SS — Wed, 08 Feb 2012 03:54:10 +0000

I met Kristen last year at my workshop in Virginia. We totally hit it off. Not only is she a fabulous photographer (the girl’s use of color makes me drool), she is a total inspiration. She is young but has already managed to create an amazing business, develop beautiful style and have it all together before most of us have even graduated college. She texted me recently and asked about coming out to do a couple of shoots together. Just a day in the studio of styling, playing and shooting (can’t really think of a better way to spend a day). She convinced her friend, Kristi, to come too (yay!!) and we just had a fun girls day of doing what we do best!

Before we get into all that fun though… Kristen jumped in front of my camera for a bit (I do have to mention the girl is a ROCKSTAR.. It was freeeeezing outside and she played it like a total pro). Totally intimidating to shoot another photographer but when you have a subject like this, hard to go wrong ;)

portland | OR