Angelia | Shannon Hemauer Photography

Boudoir | Shannon Hemauer Photography Mechanicsburg, PA

Originally posted on September 29, 2017.  Last month I shot my final session at the Carlisle studio, and I thought I would take a walk down memory lane and look at the very first session I shot at that location. Angelia will always hold a special place in my heart for being the first woman I photographed on Pomfret Street. Below is Angelia’s client interview—please take a moment to read over her thoughts, enjoy her photos, and then contact me today to discuss how you want to be photographed.  I’m always amazed that so many of my clients don’t realize how beautiful they are, that somehow a bit of  baby weight, or stretch marks, or scars, or cellulite makes them not worthy to feel pretty. Which is one of the reasons I love what I do—I get to show my clients they ARE beautiful regardless of all of those things. Angelia is one such client. She booked me because she was getting married and wanted to do bridal boudoir portraits her now-husband but she was hesitant because she hadn’t lost the baby weight from having their one-year-old son. As I always do with my clients, I assured her that between clothing that fits well, professional hair/makeup, and especially proper posing, she will look—and feel—amazing. Please read her client interview below, because you may just find you can relate. How long have you been wanting to do a boudoir/contemporary glamour session and what made you decide now was the time to do one? I have been wanting to do one for quite some time but I never really thought I could look that good doing one. Boy, did Shannon prove me wrong! I was in need of a wedding present for my husband and since I gave birth to our son I have

Military-Inspired Boudoir

Carlisle PA Boudoir Photographer Shannon Hemauer

For this week’s blog post, let’s go waaaaay back, to Jun 2014, when I was brand-spanking new to shooting boudoir and I really didn’t know what I was doing with posing and lighting… I see so many rookie photographer mistakes in these photos of Tara, but ya know what? I still love ’em (especially the image of Tara in the white shirt)! We all have to start somewhere! I’m back to shooting next month since being on a COVID-19 break… I am so excited to get in the studio again. Military-Inspired Boudoir with Model Tara Edwards I love working with models because not only do I get to be creative and try new photography techniques, but I also know going into the session I’ll be able to share their images publicly (something I don’t ask of my clients). Tara is a local model who found me on Model Mayhem (MM), which is a world-wide resource for models, photographers, hair stylists, and makeup artists to all find one another. Tara came across my MM portfolio and took the time to tell me she was a fan of my work—we quickly set up a session date. I take the time to get to know the personalities of the models I work with—their likes, dislikes, what’s important to them in their lives. Tara mentioned how proud she was of her husband serving in the PA Army National Guard and we quickly agreed a military-inspired theme was what we’d do. The only concern I had, though, was how to make the Army Camouflage Uniform (ACU) top actually look flattering on a woman. I put on my thinking cap and decided a few strands of pearls and a wide belt to make a cute-and-oh-so-short dress would do the trick. Yeah, I think we got this one.   Tara mentioned that

Every Woman Needs to Know This One Thing | Boudoir Central PA | Shannon Hemauer

Every Woman Needs to Know This One Thing | Boudoir Central PA | Shannon Hemauer

Originally posted June 23, 2017. I want to tell you something: every woman—regardless of her age, size, shape, or beliefs—needs to understand she is perfectly un-perfect right now. That’s it. That’s what I feel every woman needs to know. Because it is amazing at how many don’t realize they are perfectly un-perfect as they are. Those arms of yours that you feel are flabby—they are perfectly un-perfect, as those arms let you hug the ones you love. Those thighs that touch when you walk—they are perfectly un-perfect, for they take you place to place in life. That smile that is a bit crooked—well, you know what I’m going to say—it’s perfectly un-perfect, because that smile lights up your entire face! The small chest you don’t like—it’s perfectly un-perfect because you’re able to wear styles that others cannot and still look amazing! Those curves you have—who says they cannot look fabulous at your current weight? I selected before & after photos for a reason for this blog—I wanted to show you I shoot “everyday” women—they are not models, and many have the same perfectly un-perfect concerns as you. And don’t think for a moment, ‘Well, they are just brave,’ because you know I don’t believe that for a moment! Or, are you thinking you want to lose weight before you reach out to me to shoot a boudoir session? Take a look through the blog I did on Tiffany and tell me if you still feel you need to lose weight first. I think Alisha the Assistant sums it up nicely in her interview from last year: “Still have doubts? I get it. I hear the reasons over and over. I’ve been on the other side, as a client. I’ve had them myself. I Even had them this time! (can you believe

How Did You Get into Boudoir? | Boudoir Carlisle PA | Shannon Hemauer

Boudoir Photographer Shannon Hemauer Photography near Reading PA Shannon Hemauer

Originally posted July 07, 2017 I don’t talk often about myself on my social media, but I wanted to share with you how I got into photography because it’s a question I’m asked often. In 2013 I asked my husband for a “nice camera” because I wanted to take better pictures of our two boys. I’ll explain further down why I put “nice camera” in quotes. So, my sweet husband bought me a Nikon D3200, which is an entry-level DSLR. Armed with the kit lenses, I set out to start taking pictures of our boys—I had a lot of fun playing around! After having the camera for a week or two, I decided to challenge myself and learn how to shoot manual—I recommend Click it Up a Notch, which is the site I went to learn the basics! The site’s owner, Courtney, has a wonderful way of explaining the exposure triangle, what metering means, how to Back Button Focus (BBF), etc. It’s a great beginning resource for anyone just starting out. Armed with the exposure cheat sheets to help me figure out what shutter speed, ISO (how much light gets to the sensor), and aperture (how much is in focus) I needed, I set out to tell the camera what to do. But, my then-2-year-old and 9-month-old boys wouldn’t sit still long enough for me to think through my settings (they still don’t sit still to be honest), so I reached out to a friend to see if she’d let me photograph her older kids, which I can happily say she did. This lead me to deciding I was going to challenge myself to shoot a different genre each month for the rest of 2013, so one month I shot a maternity session, the next a lifestyle newborn (meaning the

2016 Client Interview: Jess | Carlisle PA Boudoir Photography | Shannon Hemauer

Lancaster PA Contemporary Glamour | Shannon Hemauer Photography

Originally posted April 18, 2016. Session done at my then home-studio. Client Interview: Jess As an incentive/reward for reaching her goal weight, Jess shot a boudoir session with me—she chats about her experience in this client interview. How long have you been waiting to do a boudoir/contemporary glamour session and what made you decide now was the time to do one? I waited several months due to wanting to reach a weight loss goal prior to doing one! I wanted to do the photoshoot to capture the hard work that I did to get that far!!! What made you decide I was the photographer to work with to do your boudoir/contemporary glamour session? I did research on the internet and found your site. Your portfolio was wonderful and all of the [testimonials] had nothing but great things to say. Once meeting with you over Skype I knew you’d be the perfect match! What was your favorite part out of the entire experience? The planning, the session, the reveal? The whole thing was my favorite part!!! From Skyping, to picking out the dress, to the entire session, and of course the reveal!!!!! What did you think when you saw that first image of yourself? Wow! I can’t believe how far I have come! You captured exactly what I had hoped you would! How did shooting this session with me change your outlook on yourself? Are you more confident? Absolutely. You can look at yourself every day in the mirror with clothes and think you look one way, but until you see yourself in photographs like that you don’t realize how truly beautiful you are! Before this experience, did you feel you were photogenic? If no, do you feel you are photogenic now? I had been in pageants my whole life so being