“Sometimes, you will never know the value of a moment, until it becomes a memory.” ~ Dr. Seuss

I often hear photographers talk about how much your images will mean to you when your children’s children look at your wedding album or about how quickly your newborn baby will grow. And I believe every word of it. But as a boudoir / fashion photographer, I sometimes find myself feeling a little….well….if I’m being honest here…superficial.

There, I said it.

I mean, I know what I do is important. I know I’m meant to do this work. I’m good at it, and I absolutely LOVE helping women celebrate themselves as they are! But does it really compare to the newborn photographs of your children?!

And then, I opened my inbox this morning.

Wow! I will print this out as a daily reminder that what I do has significant impact. I am so inspired by this woman and I am honored that she trusted with me with creating such intimate images for her, that now hold so much meaning. I am reminded that I don’t need to compare with other life moments; because this moment is equally as great!

Please enjoy her letter below and let her inspire you to celebrate yourself today. Not in 6 months, not in 10lbs…today.

You are loved. You deserve to be celebrated. 

CLICK HERE FOR BOUDOIR PHOTOS

HAIR / MAKE UP FOR CLIENT “J” WAS CREATED BY KRISANN KILEY.

This letter reads:

Hello Shannon,

I’ve been meaning to write and thank you for some time, but better late than never. In the summer of 2013 I got a boudoir shoot, in anticipation of my husband’s 40th birthday. When I came to the studio, I had just had a biopsy and was waiting for the results; I found out later that I had breast cancer, and several months later had a mastectomy. I really appreciated the opportunity to be playful and sexy and forget about what was going on during the shoot, and I’m very grateful to have some beautiful images of my pre-cancer body. I just wanted you to know how much those photos have meant to me.

J.

“A completely modern twist on traditional lingerie.”

That’s what I saw when I came across Black Lace Skin Jewelry. We met up in NYC during Mercedes Benz Fashion Week where I was shooting show after show and Black Lace Skin Jewelry was the featured accessory for the talented fashion designer, Malan Breton. After settling down from the hustle and bustle of fashion week (check out behind the scenes coverage from their runway show), we met one rainy morning to discuss how we could best work together (p.s. when I was offered champagne first thing in the morning, I knew we would get along just fine!). Thankfully, founders Mary Anne Richman and Bonny Katzman turned out to be so cool and excited to create a custom bra for  a shoot together. Enjoy a few of our favs from the day and make sure to watch the video HERE.

Custom lingerie and featured accessories: Black Lace Skin Jewelry

Models: Hailey Welsh of Dynasty Models, Simone of Dynasty Models & Darcy of Dynasty Models

Hair / Make Up: Lynne Avellone

Photos: Shannon Michelle Photography

Assistant: Jaclyn Lombardo

FOR BOOKINGS OR INQUIRIES: info@shannon-michelle.com

What’s your biggest fear about gifting your man a boudoir album on your wedding day? When we chatted it up with our brides (and once we got past the typical answers like my thighs and stomach) we quickly realized it was the fear of coordinating a secret, covert mission to deliver the album to your groom and just your groom! Flashes of your 12 year old nephew getting a hold of it and saying ‘What’s this?!’ as he opens to a full page spread of you wearing not much more than a smile typically sets of heart palpitations right away. Or worse, your dad!!

The fear of standing across from your significant other and wondering who else saw my boudoir pictures is not something you want to experience on your wedding day. We get it! So, we’ve got an app for that!!

O yes! Your boudoir album on your very own personal app is the safest way to get your intimate images in the hands of your man without a drunken, joke-playing groomsman finding and sharing them with anyone and everyone.

Imagine the love of your life, just a few hours from becoming your husband or wife, getting a text from you that contains the password to the app (NO PEAKING) that you so sneakily downloaded onto his/her phone the evening before. Even if he noticed the app, it says “No Peaking” and if he is like most men and can’t keep his hands off it, he can’t get into the app without the password anyway.

Problem solved! Images delivered! No nosy groomsman or flaky bridesmaid dropping off a book for just anyone to pick up. But wait, there is a book of course! Hand deliver your custom designed album on your wedding night and get to watch his reaction first hand to the beautiful images you’ve created for him. Then…reap the rewards of course!

Happy Wedding Night

P.S. For even more of teaser, we’ll be happy to put just a few select images into your app, leaving the album to be the big surprise. The last photo in the app can even read “more tonight…” or something similar.

Click HERE to read why I don’t photograph weddings.

FOR BOOKINGS OR INQUIRIES: info@shannon-michelle.com

It’s a perfect fall evening, the air is crisp but not cold. The distinct sound of the street performer playing drums on his plastic buckets is one that is almost as much of a staple to Lansdowne St. as is the smell of piping hot sausages, peppers and onions along with the yelling of excited (and a bit crazed), lifelong Redsox fans. This is Fenway Park!

Pushing through the crowds, we ascend up a dark, narrow, concrete path that leads to an opening where upon exit you are almost blinded from all the lights. Then, the most exciting thing happens. As your eyes adjust, you take in place so saturated in color, a place so rich in history and just like that you are staring at the oldest ballpark in America! A place where since 1912, generation upon generation of die hard fans have been cheering on loyally; rain or shine, win or lose. The place where JFK’s grandfather threw the out the “first pitch,” where fans have stuck it out since 1918, just before Babe Ruth was sold to the Yankees, until 2004 when the “Curse was Reversed.” You can’t avoid the excitement of such a place. And Tuesday night was just that exciting! It was my husband’s birthday and what better place to celebrate than out for a night of baseball with friends?! Cold beer, popcorn, the loud and vulgar heckler attacking player #9 on the Tampa Rays inning after inning (I’ll come back to that later), all added to the experience. “NOW, BATTING FOR THE BOSTON REDSOX, DESIGNATED HITTER DAVID ORTIZ!” Designated hitter huh? My husband so lovingly explained that his only job is to hit the ball. Although Ortiz does occasionally cover first base, designated hitters are not required to play offense and will often bat in the lineup for pitchers. “The pitcher’s don’t know how to hit?” I asked. He just kinda laughed it off and said they may know how to hit but it’s not worth taking the risk that they may get hurt during a play. As the evening went on, I noticed the pitcher warming up for the next inning. Then another. And another. How many pitchers does one team need?! LOL. Well, turns out there are opening pitchers, relief pitchers, closing pitchers etc. As you can probably by now tell, I’m not the most educated sports person there is but it got me thinking, these ball players are professionals. Their leagues are professionals, their coaches, managers, owners, all professionals. Yes, they love the game but let’s face it, baseball is a business. They are there to make money. If they don’t make money, they can’t continue to do what they love. Without making a profit, they don’t play ball. I’m sure that the pitcher for the Boston Redsox can hit a baseball and I’m sure the designated hitter can catch one. But to run this team like a professional business, they let each player do exactly what he is best at. And that is his only job. He is just expected to hit the ball. He is just expected to pitch the closing inning.

I often hear “You don’t photograph weddings? You don’t photograph families? Kids? What do you photograph?! What’s left?” I always find that a bit funny. It’s as if there are only weddings, families and kids as a career option for photographers. I guess that’s a little like me saying a baseball player catches, runs and hits. It’s the very broad, general idea but not at all how a professional team actually works. And it’s not how I work either. In answer to your question about what else is there to photograph, there are photographers who just photograph food, there are advertising photographers, photographers who just photograph pets or landscapes. There are some photographers who just photograph fashion, editorial, runway, red carpet, lifestyle, a day in the life of…I could go on and on. But I create fashion inspired portraits for women. And do you want to know my answer to why I only create fashion inspired portraits for women? It’s because I’m really, really good at it. Plain and simple. Yes, just like a hitter can also catch a ball, I can also photograph a wedding or a family portrait. But just like the professional leagues, I leave that up to someone else on my team…and by team, I mean colleagues. I don’t need to be the opening pitcher, relief pitcher and closing pitcher. Could I do it? Probably. But wouldn’t I be exhausted?! And I wouldn’t be able to give the best of me at all times. I want you to have the best of the photographer you chose. Getting married? Hire someone who specializes in weddings. Expecting a baby? Contact someone who just does newborns. Your family is growing? Time to book a family portrait photographer. Need a grooms gift (boudoir) or really feel the need to be pampered and celebrated? Then I’m your girl! I’m really good at what I do. And that is to pose people from their nose right down to their toes, to make them feel comfortable and to connect with them in a way that creates a portrait like no other. I understand there is a lot of emotion and urgency that goes into buying the services of a wedding photographer or newborn. But what is more urgent than having a portrait of yourself that you are proud of? One where you feel beautiful and comfortable? If you wait until you are perfectly happy with your body or the way you look, will your children’s children ever have an amazing portrait of you? Since your little girl learns from what you believe, not what you tell her, will she ever know what it’s like to accept herself? To think of herself as a beautiful, strong woman who deserves to be celebrated? Do you remember when you would watch your mother get ready for an evening out? You thought she was the most beautiful thing you’ve ever seen. You watched her apply her lipstick and maybe even helped with her pearls. You watched as dad lovingly kissed her shoulder and zipped up her dress on the way out the door. You have beautiful portraits of her because she was confident. She didn’t hide from the camera. What will your loved ones have?

Now, about that loud and vulgar heckler….yea, that was my husband. LOL.

FOR BOOKINGS OR INQUIRIES: info@shannon-michelle.com

Shopping for boudoir accessories can be quite a challenge. So can finding the perfect set of lingerie. What if I told you, we combined the two? Well, we didn’t…but Black Lace Skin Jewelry sure did! We’re are always looking for new and creative things for our clients and this totally tops our list this month! Jewelry designer Mary Ann Richman, and graphic designer Bonny Katzman (both Boston locals),  have teamed up to launch Black Lace Skin Jewelry. And when we heard they were joining us this year at NY Mercedes Benz Fashion Week, we jumped at the chance to photograph their work on the runway. Check out the photographs of the Malan Breton fashion show featuring Black Lace Skin Jewelry. Imagine the look on your hubby’s face when he sees you wearing nothing but these one of a kind works of art. Boudoir just got a little bit hotter!!

Check out the Boudoir Video & Photo Shoot featuring accessories and one of a kind lingerie by Black Lace Skin Jewelry.

  Photos by Shannon Michelle Photography
FOR BOOKINGS OR INQUIRIES: info@shannon-michelle.com