We had the good fortune of connecting with Shannon Christy and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Shannon, what principle do you value most?
Practicing and choosing authenticity for myself while doing my best to empower others to do the same. To be more specific, love and authenticity. To be true to ourselves and to love that person. Without first being honest with ourselves, we cannot expect our character to grow. I think it is so important to not + Add New Category just survive (which is all that some days feel like), but to truly live.

What is a meaningful life if we are not authentic with each other? Who are we living for? How will we find the people we are meant to love and keep close to us if we don’t show up in a genuine way?

I choose authenticity because without that and the vulnerability that comes with it, there is no true joy, true love, true belonging, trust, empathy, innovation….

In fact, this is so important to me that I included it in my vows to my husband last April.
I’ve decided to share a section here because I feel this does a better job expressing what I mean in a more personal, open way and that’s what this is all about, right?

“The secure environment that you’ve created for, and with, me from the beginning of our relationship has given me the ability to open myself up to deeper introspection and self understanding. There was never any judgment, only love and support. For the first time in my life, you’ve shown me what it’s like to feel so incredibly safe in openness and vulnerability. The amount of growth that I’ve experienced over the past 7 years with you feels immeasurable. You’ve been an integral part of my personal development and for that I am incredibly grateful. You continue to bring out the best in me.”

What a guy, am I right?

The most meaningful parts of my life have come from places of vulnerability. We deserve to not waste any of our time or energy holding up a pretense for the sake of what others might think.

While we’re on the topic of my wedding (which I’m already insecure about bringing up again since it was a party all about me and my husband), and this might sound silly, but something that was scary for me at first was reaching out to and investing in my DREAM wedding photographers. When I say “DREAM” I mean I would look at their website and when I imagined having photos like that of me with my favorite people, it would literally make me cry. Having two people that I’ve admired so greatly since I got into photography hang out with and document me for 15+ hours straight during very intimate moments was scary. What if they hate me? What if they think I am so completely weird and off putting? Would they see my work and think “oh man, she sucks”? The scariest thought though, was letting my wedding day go by without hiring photographers that I trusted 100% to immortalize it. I had to reflect and ask myself if they’ve ever given me a reason to think they would dislike me and figure out where this thought even came from. Surprise, it came from my own insecurity. Turns out the thought wasn’t helpful OR based in truth. There was no worth in letting a thought like that hold me back from the pure joy I felt from having them with me on my wedding day (absolutely wonderful people to be around) and the pure joy I’ll feel reliving the day over and over again when I look through the photos.

Practicing authenticity is a way to give ourselves permission to not let fear influence our lives in a way that will hold us back. It is certainly not an easy task and I’m still working on it. I expect I’ll be working on it for the rest of my life. That’s the point of a value vs. a goal though, I can’t check “be authentic” off of a list, I need to choose to live authentically every day.

Let’s talk shop? Tell us more about your career, what can you share with our community?
I was motivated to get into photography once Ian was accepted to grad school in Sweden. I invested in my first DSLR in June of 2016 with the intention of documenting life abroad. I photographed everything- landscapes, lifestyle, nature, but was mostly drawn to the raw, unposed moments I sought out in street photography.

Once I (accidentally) discovered documentary family photography, my mind exploded in a massive epiphany. It brought me back to my favorite images of my dad and I, who passed a month before my tenth birthday. I’ve looked through old photos hoping to reignite memories of our life together and who he was, but I can only learn so much from a photo of me and him smiling for the camera. I want to remember so much more than what he looked like. My favorite photo of us is a real, shared moment that immortalizes what it felt like to be with him.

Too many of my firsthand memories have unfortunately faded and these types of images help me stay connected to who my father was and how much he loved me. I knew immediately that this is what I needed to do with my life. That I needed to photograph more than just what people looked like, but who they are and how they love each other.

To really give this business everything I have, I had to do so much work exploring why documentary photography is so paramount to me. By rummaging around in trauma and working the lessons out of my complicated grief, I was able to truly understand the meaning of my work and gain the ability to have deep intention in my artistic process while creating for my clients. This process was, at times, debilitatingly challenging but absolutely worth it.

My approach is focused on artistically representing real life, meaning a “session” with me is really just a day that you have to be present with your family and enjoy each other’s company. There is no pose or prompt to try to “nail” but the freedom to go about as you are and know that I have the rest taken care of. Each image is a tangible representation of an organic memory that immortalizes what a day in your life feels like. Being able to create time-capsule stories of real-life for my clients is therapeutic, wildly important, and a responsibility I do not take lightly. I believe that everyone has a beautiful story worth telling.

I believe it is deeply important to redefine the image of the “perfect” family by empowering my clients to embrace themselves exactly as they are, imperfectly perfect and full of personality. This is everything we will want to remember as our lives and relationships rapidly evolve.

Documentary photography models to our children that “perfection” is not the expectation. They are loved for what makes them uniquely themselves. They are worthy of art and celebration without having to conform to a prompt that dictates how they should act and feel before they are considered “worthy”. Once my clients understand this for their children, I want them to be able to embrace the same message for themselves as well.

I believe nothing compares to real life and I can’t think of anything more significant to immortalize than who we are and how we love each other.

These images will only become more meaningful over time. They will be invaluable for those we leave behind, as they will always have part of us to hold onto.

Any places to eat or things to do that you can share with our readers? If they have a friend visiting town, what are some spots they could take them to?
When having guests, I typically like to throw some options/day plans together, arrange the information based on location, and let them choose their favorites!

Since my home base is in La Jolla, let’s start there. We get to go swimming with leopard sharks during the warmer months, snorkel in the underwater garden by the cove, visit the seals and sea lions who are just as adorable as they are smelly, check out marine life in the tide pools (best in the winter), and take a tour or rent a kayak to explore the La Jolla Sea Caves (as long as the conditions are right!). For lunch I recommend stopping at Puesto for some amazing tacos, or, if we’re looking to dine with an ocean view, we’ll make a reservation at Georges at the Cove for some modern rooftop dining. While waiting for our table to open up (or if we want to go for a nice walk after a lovely feast) there are plenty of wonderful art galleries in the area to explore. For dinner I’m going to recommend what may be my favorite restaurant in the area, Himitsu, for nigiri sushi & Japanese small plates. So. Good. It’s an intimate dining spot and the fish is always superb. Whenever Ian and I go we order the chef’s choice sashimi plate along with a few other small plates, some of their specialty rolls, and I always like to finish the meal with some green tea ice cream. The chances of me dancing in my chair during the meal is high here. That’s what happens with me and good food.

During the visit we’ll have to spend some time at the San Diego Zoo, of course, and we won’t leave without a bag of cotton candy. Balboa park is right next to the zoo and I can’t not take my guests there, the architecture is beautiful and there is so much to enjoy. The Spanish Village is delightful and my favorite section to check out is the Sculptors Guild. I’m also a member of the Comic-Con Museum and love spending a bit of time there. For dinner in the area I’m going to recommend another taco place (surprise), Lola 55. It’s casual and delicious, a perfect stop after a day at the Zoo.

Everyone loves Olive and, since San Diego is very dog friendly, we love being able to include her in our plans. I always love a trip to Del Mar Dog Beach, where you can feel the wind in your hair and the hair in your wind. If we’re looking for a more “dry” experience we’ll head to Mt. Laguna for a hike in the woods. We also love to get cozy at Mission Bay near a fire pit, make some smores for us, roast some vegetables for Olive (which she LOVES), and screen a movie on the beach with our projector when it gets dark. And, finally, if we REALLY want to show our guests a good time (which we always do), Ian and I will cook for them. I usually spend the time leading up to having company by making a menu and prepping as much of the food as I can. We love making meals an experience and hosting our friends!

Who else deserves some credit and recognition?
I talked so lovingly about my wedding photographers and I would love to include them in this. Not only for all they did for my wedding but for also being my incredible mentors and changing my life and photography in such a positive way. Thank you, thank you, thank you, to Erika & Lanny of Two Mann Studios for all you’ve done and continue to do.

I also want to thank my husband, Ian, for being the raddest and most supportive person since day one.

AND another huge thank you to all of the families that have welcomed me into their homes and lives to document the beauty and vulnerability in their everyday. I am, and will always be, incredibly grateful.

My Mom is pretty cool too, and I could go on, but I’m starting to feel like I’m accepting an Oscar and I’m not sure how hard I’m supposed to go with this.

Website: https://shannonchristy.com/

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/shannonchristyphoto/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/ShannonChristyPhotography

Other: https://www.documentaryfamilyawards.com/photographers/shannon-christy/

Image Credits
Two Mann Studios (for the wedding photo/personal photo) Shannon Christy Photography (for all additional photos)