Posts
Imagine the pathway you create as you live your life. It follows a straight course for awhile, and then you find it making switchbacks as you head up a hilly stretch before you head down a slope and make more zigzags to keep from descending too quickly. Now think about the pattern all our combined trails would make if we'd put them on some kind of a map!
Here's the story of Susan Schumann of Schugirl Photography. She's a new member of the POE and fairly new to Etsy. Sue's path is most definitely an interesting one --
Sue: I'm pretty new to photography -- about 8 years, but I think I've photographed for my whole life, just without the equipment. I can remember sitting in the back seat on long rides and just watching as the composition outside my window changed as the car moved. I still do this today. I also remember watching the neighborhood change as the lighting changed. As a child, my favorite time of day was 7 p.m. in the summertime. The sun casts such beautiful shadows of the trees onto the streets where I played. I'm actually sort of glad I didn't have a camera back then. I think it helped to develop my eye before I could rely on the camera to frame shots.
I was always interested in art, too. After teaching four years of elementary education in southern California, I became disillusioned that my expectations for my career and success were drastically different from reality. So my husband, a graphic designer, and I decided to move back East to be closer to family. I took a job teaching 7th and 8th graders English as a second language in an urban setting. I enjoyed the older kids more, but something was still missing. My husband has always been supportive of my exploring the arts. So I enrolled at the Rhode Island School of Design for advertising and print design, in an 18-class program I finished in three years. One of the classes was a black & white photography class with a darkroom lab. I was hooked. I especially loved the darkroom.
My friends and family started asking me to shoot special occasions, and I also began doing freelance graphic design. I like to shoot anything. I especially look for interesting patterns and textures, dramatic lighting situations and strange angles. I think my portraiture is my strongest subject, and you can see some of my portraits in my shop at 1000markets.
A: What's it like to go out taking photographs with you?
S: When I shoot, I like to go to a location and explore. Sometimes I spend hours photographing the strangest things and people look at me weirdly, especially when I shoot macro. I haven't quite gotten over that. I do like to shoot with other photographers -- the energy is really great. There's something about having a few creatives in close proximity that makes for awesomeness (or at least a Zen-like experience when shooting)!
A: What post-editing programs to you use to edit your digital photography?
A: What are your photographic plans for the summer?
A: Your portraits of Peruvians are very beautiful and very intimate. What was it like taking their portraits? What's your back story?
A world traveler and self-taught photographer, look for Ann wandering around city streets and tromping through woods and hiking trails with her camera. After owning an international transportation business for many years, Ann has found her creative spirit again through the lens. See more at Ann's shop and her website, and say hello to her on her blog too.
