featuringthe wonderful

Shannon Sewellof Shannon Sewell

Photography

PlusThe Latest News &

Announcements,Workshops, Updates

and much more!

NEWSLETTERnapcp JA N UA RY 2 0 1 4

a special look at Vendor Partner Farmwood Press

Inside

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Ready, set…go 2014! Now that the hustle and bustle of the holidays has settled down,

we’re gearing up for a fresh start! We love the beginning of a new year – it’s a time to

refresh, rejuvenate and refocus. This year, we’ve resolved to setting new goals that will take

this community to a new level. We hope you’ll join us in setting some amazing New Year’s

resolutions of your own – and, of course, sticking to them!

Our Featured Photographer for this month is sure to inspire imagination and cre-

ativity for the New Year. A woman who believes the most important things in life are to love

and to be kind, Shannon Sewell has made a career out of creating children’s photographs

influenced by this belief. Her sessions are original, whimsical and out-of-the-box in the best

way possible. She’s a trend-setter in her own right, and we admire the way she lets us see the

world through her photographs.

New Year…great time to invest in new custom stationary and business cards! Let us

introduce you to our Featured Vendor this month: we’re quite impressed with Farmwood

Press. The company combines the classic art of letterpress with designs of today, allowing

you to customize a project that perfectly reflects your studio’s personality and style.

Last but certainly not least, the NAPCP January 2014 Image Competition is in full

swing! Be sure to submit your photos by Thursday, February 13…we can’t wait to see what

you’ve been up to! We’ve got good things in store for the NAPCP community this year…and

we’re excited to share them with you! Stay tuned - and Happy New Year from us to all of you!

Hello friends!

SincerelyThe NAPCP Team

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TABLE OF CONTENTS

Pg. 5.........Featured Photographer: Shannon Sewell

Pg. 21 ........................................Behind The Scenes

Pg. 23 .................Featured Vendor: Farmwood Press

Pg. 25 ............................................Video Resources

Pg. 26 ................................. Apply For Membership

Pg. 3 .......................................Image Competition

Pg. 4 ................................News & Announcements

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COMPETITION NOW OPEN

The January 2014 NAPCP International Image Competition opened last

Wednesday and will close at 11:59PM EST February 13th, 2014. The purpose of

NAPCP’s Image Competitions is to recognize the accomplishments and creative

excellence of our members, rewarding their talent with medallions, priority list-

ing on our directory, vendor endorsements, member points, titles and profes-

sional recognition. Members each receive a total of 2 Competition Credits per

Competition with their Membership. We cannot wait to see what you submit!

See the full competition details here!

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NEWS & ANNOUNCEMENTS

We hope that everyone will continue

to partake in our NAPCP Facebook

Community page! Join now and get

involved with the latest discussions,

trending topics, news and updates,

and much more! Click here to

request to join today!

Facebook Community

Join Tamara Lackey in her studio in

Durham, North Carolina May 20 - 22 for

an intense, 3-day shooting-focused work-

shop, which includes an in-depth shooting

clinic, lighting configuration instruction,

post-processing and business training. This

highly interactive and hands-on shooting

clinic will help you to master your tech-

nical skills behind the camera, as well as

teach you how to set up and work with

existing and additional light sources -

and better utilize natural light in a more

controlled fashion.

Upcoming Workshops

Images by Shannon Sewell of Shannon Sewell Photography

FEATUREDPHOTOGRAPHERS H A N N O N S E W E L L

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lease meet Shannon. A self-described “hippy soul,” she

has made a career out of tapping deep into the imagination, playing

dress up with her children and taking pictures! These impromptu

photography sessions struck a chord with Shannon and opened up

a new world for her. With her children as her mini muses, she was

inspired to start taking pictures of others’ little ones. As seen in

InStyle, Baby Couture Magazine and Urban Outfitters, her world is

just full of imagination. Please, come on in!

P

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Tell us your story. How you started and how your photography, brand, and

business transformed over the last few years? I think I have a pretty typical

start... I had kids, starting taking pictures of them, wanted to take better pic-

tures so started studying/reading/learning. I got good enough that friends and

family started asking me to do their photos and the rest is history! I started in

portraits- family, children, seniors, newborns... even a couple of weddings! I

found my love in commercial work though and transitioned to a point that

most of my work is either editorial or commercial (with the occasionalportrait

session thrown in).

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You inspire our community with your ability to create magic from your

styled sessions. Tell us what goes into piecing everything together for

your shoots? Wow- thank you! Most of my shoots begin with a piece of in-

spiration- meaning I usually find the thing or things I am going to style with

first. I always try to use those little pieces in a way that compliments the

model... a way that helps tell their story. I absolutely love the imagination of

kids, it makes it so easy to style these sessions and create something that is

fun for the kids, fun for me... I think just staying true to kids and would be a

part of their world makes the viewer enjoy it, too. I basically just start with

that inspiration piece and build on what would naturally go with it.

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Who or what inspires you and your work? How?

I think it may be easier to list the things that don't inspire me. I find inspiration

in movies, books, wardrobe or accessories, personalities, colors, locations, mood,

light... any little thing that catches my attention will usually turn itself into a de-

sire to capture it in a picture. I am an introvert and a thinker. When I start think-

ing about something, I find it easiest to move on to the next thing once I've made

a plan to turn it into something tangible.

We love what you've created with Dreamer Journal. Can you share with us a

little bit about this project, your collaboration with other artists, and what

you envision for future issues. Dreamer was started out of a conversation about

wanting to 'collect' all these artists that inspired me in one place. My friend, Julie

Martin, and I were talking about how cool it would be to create a place that just

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allowed artists to do their thing- no interference or influence by us- and put it all

into a place that it could inspire others. We reach out to artists we love (or they

find us) and we just tell them to surprise us... give us something from the heart. It

is like Christmas morning every time we get one back. We do a lot of interviews...

I love hearing what goes through their minds, what inspires them... Our goal with

Dreamer is just to reach more and more audience. We are so proud of our contrib-

utors, we just want to share them with others!

Who are your favorite vendors?

Embarrassingly, I am not savvy at all on vendors. I am always behind on the lat-

est and greatest. I kind of stay in my own bubble and use the same things that I

have used for years. My go to is my Canon gear with Black Rapid Straps in my Kelly

Moore Bag (the Mimi is my fave). I have used Flourish Actions for years. My two

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new faves are Artifact Uprising (I print all of my books and several Dreamer Maga-

zines through them) and Lensbaby (the Edge 80 is such a fun lens).

How do you balance photography, your beautiful family, and your teaching? I

never agree to anything until I am sitting with my calendar. I've learned over the

years that reschedules and surprises are very common (and always happen when

you don't have time for them) so I basically double book everything... if I have a

one day job, I clear two. I still get busier than I would like sometimes but it has

gotten rid of the constant struggle to stay on top of it.

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What advice can you give to those starting out?

Follow your gut, just because others do it a certain way doesn't mean it is your

way. Talk to and learn from as many different people as you can. Remember what

made you fall in love with photography in the first place and hold on to that.

How has your business changed over the last few years? Tell us your daily

schedule and how you manage to make it all work! My business has become al-

most exclusively editorial and commercial work. Those type of jobs are much

different than portraits in that there is a lot more planning and preparation in-

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volved. Most of my days consist of at least two hours of email in the morning

(which I tackle alongside the kids while they do their schoolwork) and prep work

or editing if I have it and afternoons are errands and the kids'activities. I usu-

ally only shoot about once a week which means about a day of editing per week,

as well. Some days are crazy and hectic trying to fit it all in but most days have a

good flow...

Where do you see your life 5 years from now?

I always have such a hard time with this question... is it bad to say pretty similar

to where I am now? I would love to have more travel experiences and new clients

to look back on but, really, I love what I do now and would love to still be doing it!

To see more of Shannon's work, please visit her site here!

Thank you so much Shannon!

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1. Look for inspiration outside of the photo community.

2. Let the client (in my case, kids) be involved in the planning. They are more

creative than me most of the time!

TIP OF THE MONTH

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by Shannon Sewell

5 TIPS FOR CONCEPTUALIZING SESSIONS OUTSIDE OF THE BOX

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3. Collaborate with other artists. It will take your ideas further.

4. Force yourself to vary where you shoot, time of day, etc. Putting yourself in

new situations forces you to get creative.

5. Don't live by the labels of your style or work... we may have 'specialities' but

we are all capable of so much more- let whatever inspires you help you create!

BEHIND SCENESWe asked Shannon to give us a peak into her busy day to day life with a few of her favorite Instagram captures. Enjoy a behind the scenes look at some of her favorite moments!

BEHIND SCENESWe asked Shannon to give us a peak into her busy day to day life with a few of her favorite Instagram captures. Enjoy a behind the scenes look at some of her favorite moments!

WITHSHANNON

SEWELL

W W W . F A R M W O O D P R E S S . C O M

Farmwood Press was born out of a desire to create something of quality and beauty, using one

of the oldest forms of modern day printing. Professional Photographers, Chris and Katie Tor-

res of 6 of Four Photography, established Farmwood Press in 2010 after they saw the value of

sharing their cohesive brand with letterpress business cards and stationery.

Many take the slow season of the winter months to focus on their branding. This is the time

to reflect on your business. Soon, your competition's websites, blogs, logos, stationeries, cli-

ent gifts and calling cards will be fresh and new. Will you be ready to offer your clients an un-

paralleled experience? You are faced with the question "How can I add value for my client?"

Letterpress can do this. Farmwood Press would love to help.

I N F O @ F A R M W O O D P R E S S . C O M

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WORKSHOPS

NAPCP’s July 2012 International Image Com-

petition opened on Monday! The purpose of

NAPCP’s Image Competitions is to recognize the

accomplishments and creative excellence of our

members, rewarding their talent with medal-

lions, priority listing on our directory, vendor

endorsements, member points, titles and pro-

fessional recognition. Members each receive

a total of 2 Competition Credits per Competi-

tion with their Membership. Details are online!

They say a picture is worth a thousand words

… and yours may be featured in our next press

release. For the past two International Im-

age Competitions, the winners announcement

highlighted the names of the competition win-

ners and received great exposure – collecting

thousands of views, postings to other websites,

and search index hits. Wouldn’t you like to see

your name and photo sent over the wire too?

Members, you can start submitting your best

images here!

Start Submitting Now!

WORKSHOPS

please visit napcp.com or email us at info@napcp.com with questions or inquiries.

MembershipInterested in applying for

membership? Learn more

about the benefits of a NAPCP

membership on our site!

Directory

Looking for a photographer in

your area? Visit our exclusive

NAPCP Member Directory on

the site today!

DIRECTORYAPPLY NOW

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