Daughter, sister, wife, mother, cancer survivor, and award-winning portrait photographer. These words offer a glimpse into the amazing life of Shannon Beauclair. In short, her story is one of loss, grit, sacrifice, and determination combined with character, passion, grace, and love for creativity resulting in stunning portraits of beauty, strength, and elegance.
Shannon is one of four daughters who lost their mother to breast cancer when she was three years old. Regardless of this tragedy, her personality proved to be well suited for recognizing what excellence looked like, and as a result, she quickly excelled in school, dance, and gymnastics.
Throughout her youth storytelling was a gift given to Shannon by her father. Starting with her grandmother, capturing memories in photographs has a long history with Shannon and allowed her to remain connected to the memory of her mom. Throughout her early years, her dad and close family members would give photographs of Shannon’s mom to her and her sisters on special occasions and these became “prized possessions”. Later in life, Shannon watched as her dad was always the one with the camera, capturing his daughters as they were growing up, participating in their sporting events, not knowing fully the influence he was having on Shannon. These special photographs along with the influence of her dad remain beloved artifacts and provide the inspiration for the art which now emanates from Shannon Beauclair Portrait Photography.
Her early career choices led to roles as a salesperson, operations specialist, project manager, and ultimately a corporate aeronautics and technology component buyer, a position traditionally held by men. Within companies mainly comprised of bright and highly educated engineers, Shannon excelled because she was willing to employ the same ethic she learned as a youngster - work harder, longer, and more efficiently than anyone else to earn the respect and trust of those more senior and experienced than she was. “I would literally work a full day, go home, take the kids to ballet, cook dinner, help them with homework and then I would drive back to the office and work until midnight…,” said Shannon. Not getting the job done or offering excuses was not part of her DNA and that remains the case even today.
Married to executive chef, Marcel Beauclair, Shannon is the mother of two children and passionate about family, friends, and creating images that reflect the beauty that lies within each person. Her own life experiences have provided a backdrop for such work, and she is intent on making her clients feel beautiful, worthy, and graceful when they otherwise may not. While she specializes in portrait photography, delivering exceptional headshots, senior class photos, and sittings for families, Shannon is equally capable of capturing whatever imagery is needed and her work has been featured on the cover of numerous magazines including several editions of this publication. As recently as 2023, Shannon was recognized by the international photography organization, ICON for excellence in several categories including Grand Champion in the Portrait division.
Given the numerous awards, cover photos, and international accolades, it would be easy to assume Shannon became the decorated photographer that she is naturally or is simply gifted. In fact, her tenacious desire for excellence, regardless of what she is doing, has been the common thread since her youth. One could use many adjectives to describe Shannon including driven, persistent, and ambitious but satisfied will not be among them. While she is confident and content in her demeanor, Shannon is always setting new goals for herself, and that part of her personality has resulted in well-deserved recognition.
Though celebrated and successful, Shannon Beauclair has not escaped her share of challenges and hardship. Among these is she is a cancer survivor herself. Having recovered and considered in remission, Shannon knows intimately how difficulty and circumstances can make a person feel. “I want to normalize having beautifully curated photos, it’s part of leaving a legacy”. One of her clients had lost a child many years ago and cherished every photograph she had of her daughter. Shannon offered to take portraits of her, knowing they too would be cherished by her family one day. “I want to create portraits that you want on your wall, not hidden in your phone, I want you to be able to share it.”
While Shannon Beauclair captures the essence of each client, it is the person behind the lens that is extraordinary. She sees the light that shines within the human being in front of her and she insists on reflecting that in her work, gifting them with a stunning result, and allowing their legacy to endure.
“I want to normalize having beautifully curated photos, it’s part of leaving a legacy.”