I have been photographed all my life since before I was even born! (See me above in the womb) My dad is an amazing photographer (www.garyschapman.com) and I feel so privileged to be called his daughter (I’m a big fan in case you can’ttell.) Although I grew up with a camera always in my face and I had the natural photography talent flowing through my veins (and a lot of humility to go with it) I didn’t know I would choose it as a career.
Actually, I first wanted to be a veterinarian. That dream quickly died when I realized I would be looking into a kitten’s eyes, stick a huge needle in its haunches, and wait for its meows to haunt my dreams. I didn’t want to have any part of that! My dream morphed into being an animal photographer. That idea died even faster when I found out that patience is a key element to the job description. Oh, and I’m also allergic to a lot of furry animals. I needed to find a passion that didn’t include lots of sneezing. I soon found out that the passion I was looking for was telling stories. I’ve always had a really vivid imagination. Growing up, I would see pictures of people in magazine ads or in books and I would create an entire story for them in my head. Call me weird, but it kept me entertained for hours. It was almost as if the people in the pictures were pleading me to tell their stories. I soon fell in love with writing. The stories in my head found a place on paper. Then I began looking around. Everyone has a story. A photographer has that unique ability to capture moments in someone’s life story and make them last forever. That’s when I found it. My true passion was revealed. I’m a story teller. My tools are my camera and the keys on this computer. The images that move me the most are the ones that tell a story.
As a wedding photographer, capturing the moments that tell a story for the bride and groom is my main objective. Just recently, I assisted a good friend, photographer, Ronnie Owings of Pro Studio for a wedding.
When I was editing my work, I found an image that I really liked. It took me a second to realize why I liked it so much. I figured it out. It’s all in the bride’s eye. Sure, most of her face is covered by her mom’s arm, but the way her eyes are looking at her mom show that she is beaming with happiness. Some may not see anything in this image, but I see a story. It’s a story with a happy ending. It’s a story of a little girl who looks up to her mommy. A mommy that kissed away every boo boo and French-braided that little girl’s hair. In this photo mommy is doing it again. She is helping her little girl on her most important day. And those eyes say it all.
