It's been a year, already?

When I was washing my dishes this morning it dawned on me that yesterday was the official start date of my business. It was the day that everything fell into place and I was able to announce that Shannon May Photography was in business. It also marked for me the beginning of a crazy ride that I still can't believe I had the courage to go on.

I look back through the year and examine my successes and my failures and the many times I wanted to jump off of the roller coaster and slink off to find something less risky. But the only thing that seems to make me want to get out of bed in the morning and commit my working time to is photography, and the various responsibilities it encompasses. I have been editing through Michelle and Brandon's wedding photo highlights these past two days so they are ready to show their guests at their Ottawa reception this weekend, and have found it difficult to wipe the smile from my face... especially when I come across a photo of them looking at each other. My job surrounds me with love, so seriously, what could be better than that?

I still have a lot to learn. I am no where close to where I would like to be as a photographer and as a business person but I am taking strides everyday, some bigger than others, and with each step I come closer to realizing my goals. And though I have moments where the roller coaster seems daunting, I am more and more committed to staying in my seat and letting go of the handle bars so I can freely enjoy the ride joy rather than be gripped with terror. 

I am grateful for every person who has encouraged me, inspired me, worked with me, constructively criticized me, trusted me and had coffee with me. Without each of you I could not and would not be pursuing my happiness. Without you I would not have experienced one of the best years of my life. Without you, my life would be less beautiful and there would be less love and sunshine each day. And because of this, I consider it a real privilege to be invited into your lives when you ask me to be your photographer. 

With a grateful heart I say Thank You.

Love & Sunshine,

Shannon-May

Here are some photos of a few of the people who have made my life beautiful this past year.

  

{BUSINESS} What I've been up to lately!

Wedding season is fast approaching for me. In less than two weeks I get to shoot my first wedding of the season!! And I am so excited... but also so very nervous!!

I have been busy studying my images from last year, looking at my successes and my failures (aka: what shots worked and what didn't so much) and I have been studying the images of photographers I look up to and asking myself "how did they get that shot?" or "what did they do that made this shot so successful?" The answer... in most cases the shots that I love the most and quality I continually strive to produce are achieved by taking one's time and finding the best light (indirect window light is my bff). I continue to push myself to get things right in camera rather than relying on photoshop to fix my mistakes!

I have been learning how to better communicate with my clients and how to manage their expectations so that I can confidently take control of situations during the wedding day in effort to provide my bride's and groom's with images are the very best they can be and tell the story of their wedding day!! As I grow as a business person and a photographer it is reinforced over and over again to me that there is never too much communication and the more I know going into a situation the more successful it will be!!

I have been practicing. Yesterday I spent an hour practicing taking jewelry and shoe shots, followed by two hours spent on Pinterest looking for inspiration and writing out copious amounts of notes of things to think about so that I can get some killer detail and getting ready shots this year. And now that the sunshine is here (hopefully to stay awhile) I am setting up a photo shoot for midday - the worst time of day to shoot in- so that I can practice shooting under these conditions! I have a lot of control over shooting times for engagement (and other) photos shoots, but weddings are a totally different story and i want to be confident in all lighting conditions so I am delivering consistently great results!!

I have been praying. I really do believe that the more in-tune with God I am, the more confident I am, which means the more successful I am in meeting my bride's and groom's needs and expectations, and i meeting my goals as an artist! I also pray that no matter what, I will always place the needs of my clients over the my own goals.

I have also, finally, decided upon and ordered all the supplies I need for my packaging and stationary suite for this year's weddings, which I am going to write more about when it all arrives and I can share some images with you!! But what I will say is that I have spent four (yes FOUR) months searching on line for ideas and suppliers and I think I finally came up with something so perfectly suitable for Shannon May Photography!!

Happy Monday!

Love & Sunshine,
Shannon-May

{GROWTH} The Cost of Being Stretched

2011 was a very stretching year for me as I stepped out in faith towards something that had long been a shelved idea: being a working photographer. Granted, this wasn't the first time I made a major life-altering decision that scared me to bits. Quitting a career job and moving across the country to attend university at an age when all your friends are getting married, buying houses and getting promotions is not an easy thing to do. In both cases, I have no regrets (most of the time anyway... there are always the lingering what-if's, but they are very quiet in comparison to the what-if's I would have heard had I not made the choices I made!).

This year will be even more stretching. There is an ever-growing lists of personal and professional goals that I make for myself. The hard decisions I am becoming more and more accustomed to making in order to achieve these has me well on my way to reaching my goals for this year, some of which are:

1> Book and shoot 14 weddings (more than halfway there).

2> Get published.

3> Officially launch High School Senior Portrait website and Spokesmodel program. I am so excited about working with High Schoolers in Charlotte County!! AND, next week I meet with my first two Spokesmodels!!

4> Develop client gift program (Oh boy! I have some wonderful treats in the works!).

5> Make more photographer friends. The new relationships have been endless, and this is in part to the awesome online community of Showiteers (the gaggle of photographers and designers who subscribe to the same website builder that do... seriously in love with these people!!).

6> Grow as a business women. This is happening everyday, and I am so thrilled to be going to Boston next week (along with fellow New Brunswick photog friends Randi, Carla and Jen, to learn from one of the industry bests, Jasmine Star. 

7> Grow as an artist. I am consistently looking for inspiration as an artist, seeking to develop my skill levels, and striving to improve the quality of my work. Thus, I am over the moon excited and feel so privileged to be one of only fifteen photographers to be spending two full days with International Wedding Photographer Clayton Austinin his Austin, Texas studio this June.

8> Encourage, support and promote other local businesses and artists (My Passing on the Love interview series is helping me get started with this!).

9> Develop a "Client Lounge" website for my brides and grooms and pepper it with all sorts of tidbits that will help make their wedding planning and wedding photography absolutely perfect (I started working on this last night!!!).

10> Learn to love like Jesus, more and more.

Wow. Writing those out is an encouraging exercise! But also makes me realize how much work I still have to do! And, the cost of allowing myself to be stretched and grow towards fully achieving my goals? Letting go of the belief that I can't do it.

Love & Sunshine,

Shannon-May