Meet Sharon McClung

Every artist has a unique story. Can you briefly walk us through yours?
I always remember having a camera, even as a young child! But I honestly don’t remember if I ever actually took pictures or, if I did, if my parents ever had anything developed! But I know my parents took lots of photos of me as I was growing up. I still have a few left, but we lost most of them in a flood in 1972. That loss of my pictorial history    has been the biggest materialistic loss of my life.

Through high school and college, I took pictures but nothing professional, just a lot of photos, creating memories. It wasn’t until        around 2000-2001 that photography began to shape my life. I was in my scrap booking phase and needed more photos than what was available to me. So, I started learning about my (very early) digital camera and enjoyed every moment of it. But it wasn’t until I took a trip through 11 states with a friend in 2003, that I finally realized I knew nothing about creating serious photography. And I wanted to learn.

I then joined several photo clubs in the Houston area, bought myself a DSLR, and finally started learning how to use my camera more professionally. At the end of 2004 I applied for my      dba and started my business, initially as a stock photographer. It wasn’t until a friend in my church asked me to photograph their parents’ 50th anniversary that I had my first taste of photographing people. And I fell in love with photographing people and never looked back!

I began to take classes, locally and by attending the Texas School of Professional Photography, a week-long intensive school every spring dedicated to a specific topic of my choice. I joined Professional Photographers of America and Texas Professional Photographers Association. I am also a member of Houston Professional Photographers Guild, the Houston Northwest Chamber of Commerce and the Spring Klein Chamber of Commerce.

Until the fall of 2016, I conducted my business as a part time photographer while I continued to work full time as a paralegal. My 28-year paralegal career ended in 2016, and about 6 months later I took my business full time.

Every step along the way has been a dedication to serving past, present, and future clients to the best of my ability by keeping up to date with new trends and products, and developing my art to a higher level along the way.

Please tell us about your art.
My photography over the years has been mainly offering prints to my clients, but I also offer a full line of photography-based products, including wall portraits, canvas wall hangings, metal prints, slideshows and albums/books. I also offer for sale some of my stock photography and other products such as photos on tiles, greeting cards, ornaments, accordion mini-books, and banners. I sometimes create special pieces on different templates, so it becomes a step above the print.

I mainly focus on families, pets and commercial development/ head shot photography in and around the Greater Houston Metropolitan Area and surrounding counties. I also photograph children, newborns, seniors and real estate, and I offer coverage for parties and other events. I do not have a studio, so I am an on-location photographer. I can also offer restoration photography through an online partner. And free consultation sessions are available with my sessions.

I try to instill a love of photography to my clients, and to impress upon anyone, the importance of preserving the family heritage through print media. I share about losing my own family’s heritage in a flood, and how devastating that was to me. I have had clients request my services when a family member was diagnosed as terminal. I have had pet owners want professional prints of their aging/ailing pet so they would have the memories when their beloved fur baby was no longer with them. Numerous times I have had people say they hadn’t had family photos made since their children were little, and talked about getting up dated photos, only to lose a family member before that could be done. And I have had families comeback and tell me how happy they were that they made their memories before it was too late.

Photography, to me, is about preserving the family heritage and for businesses to take their products or services to another level. I want to help families memorialize their heritage for enjoyment now and for future generations. I want bussinesses to attract more customers through professional head shots and product development photos.  I encourage print media – hanging that photo on a wall, having a booklet or album on the coffee table, because in the grand scheme of things, print media is what lasts.

My photography business has also spilled over to my originally created cards via cardsbysammie, a recent development in 2018. Most of my cards do and will feature my photography collection. I have a Facebook business page for this business, as well as an etsy site, and a website for this sidelong business is coming in 2019.

What do you think is the biggest challenge facing artists today?
I think in today’s world, it is not necessarily easier or harder, but more challenging. Advances in technology and in photography seem to happen almost daily! And I think everyone in the world has a camera phone. Which has become a great way to take and share pictures!  I believe that all creative people need to nurse and promote their talents, no matter the competition. As a photographer, I remember when I was younger, there was no internet to share photos on, so we printed, we created slides and movies, and we shared that print media. Although internet and social media are wonderful ways to keep in touch so much easier, they should not be the only ways. Having a photo on the wall just gives that warm fuzzy feeling from the memory that was createdon the day it was made.  In the long run I believe it is imperative to never lose your dream, whatever it may be.

How or where can people see your work? How can people support your work?
My work is in a constant state of updating on my website at www.sharonmcclungphotography.com, keeping my family, friends, clients and others up to date with current photos and offers. My website is the best source of up-to-date information. I post on social media – primarily Facebook Business, Google for Business and LinkedIn, but I do have accounts with Pinterest, Twitter and Instagram. People can also visit me at my home, where I have many of my portraits hanging in my home office (formerly known as my dining room!)

My greeting card business and my craft creations is still in its early development stage but much can be found on my Facebook Business Page – cardsbysammie and on my etsy site, as mentioned above.

Early in my career, I had taken part in, and won several photo competitions, and I have been published. My most recent publications were in Voyage Houston online magazine (a pet photo) and the cover of WOAMTEC’s September 2018 Confident Woman magazine, which also included some head shots of three very successful ladies in the body of the magazine.

People can support me by sharing our sessions, liking me in social media and referring me to other family and friends. I am open to meeting with individuals and families to discuss the importance of photography in their day to day life and in their business goals. And I am always available to answer questions that anyone might have.

1 Comment

1. 

   Sharon Calvert

   December 12, 2018 at 10:11 pm

   Sharon, all of the photography is beautiful and so personal to the person to whom it belongs. Love family photos. No other can replace them as you can pass them down through the years and have memories forever. Your story is beautiful. Will definitely refer you to my family and friends. I feel very fortunate to have met you and felt an immediate liking to you. See you soon.

   Reply