This is a new feature of Hello Lello Wellies- a featured photographer of the week!

 If you'd like to be featured, send an email to jbutterfieldphotography@gmail.com and I will send over a list of fun questions to help us all get to know you!

This week's photographer is Shannon Chad of What the Focus Photography. She's a regular contributor to Hello Lello Wellies and I always love to see what she posts- she's never ordinary, that's for sure! 

Tell us about yourself: family, kids, fur-babies?!

Hi, I’m Shannon, wife of one Luke and daughter of one Lydia.  Lydia and I have plans to add a bunny to the mix should Daddy ever deploy or go on a long mission, but let’s keep that between friends. ;) 

How long have you been in business?  

I’ve been in business for just over a year.  Opened up shop last June on a whim. 

What inspires you?

Cake.  And the innocence of youth.  But mostly cake. ;)

What do you struggle with, and how do you push to overcome it?

I struggle with posing, and I’m currently pushing posing out of the equation.  I’d much rather set up a more natural situation than to pose people. If you had to completely specialise, what would you choose? I actually do want to specialize in children’s portraiture!  Whenever my session’s sole focus is on a child or children, I don’t feel like I’m working at all, I have so much fun!

What's your session pet peeve?

Other than poor lighting conditions, hm… I hate when I forget to end a session near the gelato shop because then I have to make the difficult decision of whether I want to trek back all that way to get gelato or just go home.  Other than that, I’d have to say when a parent is trying to stop their kiddos from being themselves during a session.  I make it a point to tell them that much better pictures can be had from a child who is having fun than a child who is stiffly posed, looking straight at the camera with a fake smile. :)

Best Business Advice ever received?

To try a little bit of everything, and then only do what you really enjoy.

Favourite Movie or Book and why?

Donnie Darko!  I love movies like that, the type of movies you have to watch a few times to take everything in and figure out what all happened.  And everything about it was perfect, from the campy Christian self-help movie to the song at the end, I love every second of that movie.

I hope you enjoyed our interview with Shannon- like I said, she's amazing! Check out her work and make sure to follow her on Facebook! If you have any other questions you'd like to see answered in a future interview, let me know!