Hello and I'm very glad you stopped by. I'll tell you a little about me and this blog.
I grew up in NYC and went to an art school, however I was a vocal major (pretty ironic for what has happened later in my life). Fast forward a few years and I am now a mom of two active boys (what boys are not?), have a wonderful, patient husband and live in Allen, Texas.
A few years ago, our little family moved into a pretty big house with a lot of walls. (Well, for Texas standards, the house is not that large, but for me, who grew up in an apartment in NYC, it's very big). I like to have beauty surround me, therefore a lot of walls meant a lot of artwork, and a lot of money!!!!
Doing research on pieces that I found to be pretty, I kind of got that 'I can do that myself' idea (as many of you do I know). I got some canvasses, some paint, and other things that I considered to be pretty and put them together and up on the walls.
Well, some friends came over and raved about these pieces (that I had no idea if they were any good or not). To make a long story short - People started buying, pieces got put in Art Galleries and some local stores and then I got an agent (quite by accident) and that's when business really took off. My dear friend Amy and I went into business together creating pieces for stores throughout Texas, Louisianna, and Oklahoma via our Agent.
As my boys got older, and I got more busy, it has occurred to me that I don't have enough documentation of their lives, and they are only getting bigger. It's going too fast! And to boot - any photo I did have of them was quite plainly, crap!
I started researching photographers, and again - got that 'I think I can do that myself' mentality, so I got a 'fancy camera'. Ok - Again - Fast Forward - Implementing that idea was soooo much more difficult and involved than starting my art business! Loads of equipment, workshop after workshop, software and more software, computers and learning more 'techie' stuff, learning about the internet, SEO, Developing your style, Learning how to use the camera correctly, studio equipment, props, learning about light, backgrounds, composition, calibration, printers, marketing, networking, processing, working with children, forums, graphics, different personality types, off camera lighting, location scouting, .....Have a headache yet? I can keep going if you want. Yep - not as easy as picking up that paintbrush and mixing paint (that's not easy either - just different).
Looking back, although I knew I was embarking onto something difficult, I don't think I was fully aware of the immensity of the learning curve, I still wouldn't have changed a thing. I did it for my kids, and I still do it for my kids, my heart, soul, and my sanity. I crave photography, I crave making art and capturing the beauty in everyday moments. A ton to learn and am still learning, forever learning, but that makes it fun.
I really wish I didn't have to do it as a business. If you actually read the paragraph with all that's necessary to create a 'decent' photo, or something that won't get thrown in the 'snapshot' pile from the masters, there is a lot more involved than just buying that fancy camera. Therefore I do need to charge what my time, effort, and cost of doing business is worth.
Well, learning so much in a relatively short amount of time, and I focused soooo much on the craft, my marketing has been lacking. I have a website. I have clients, and most importantly I have a family that takes up my time and they will ALWAYS come first. I don't have business cards yet, (they are actually in the mail) and just now I've got this thing called a 'blog' that I'm working on. You may (and certainly may not) notice that all the posts so far started in January, 2011. That's when I finally got this 'blog' that apparently I'm 'supposed' to have to be any sort of 'photographer'.
So - I'm uploading images from the last few years, while learning the craft, developing, working on my style, processing and most importantly, documenting my family. Wish I started this much earlier - but am glad that I 'started'. Will continue to treat this as a 'blog' as we move forward, uploading sessions as they happen and posting possibly blog worthy news and photos.
Thank you for reading, and feel free to leave some 'blog love' if you see fit!
Warmly,
Mary Schannen
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