New Years Baby | Newborn Photographer Virginia Beach

• January 12th, 2015 •

TECHNICALLY Little Johnny was born in 2014 but we didn’t photograph him until the new year, so he’s my first newborn in the new year making him my New Years Baby!!! Little Johnny (or JB3 as he is Johnny the third!) was about a month old when we did his portraits, as the fuss and bustle of the holidays didn’t allow us to do them sooner. He was a perfect gentleman and I had such a wonderful time photographing him for my longtime clients Jennifer and Johnny. I so love seeing my families grow and expand! Little Johnny has long been prayed for and I am honored and blessed to be a part of his life! Big sister Cheyenne is so in love and is already an amazing big sister!

Jennifer, you are doing a great job! Thanks for allowing me to be his first babysitter! 🙂

Enjoy the cuteness!

Xavier Senior Portraits | Virginia Beach HS Senior Portrait Photographer

• December 4th, 2014 •

I met Xavier for the first time right before our session and by the end we were fast friends! He knew right away what I meant by “Smize” (America’s Next Top Model) and was Ah- May- Zing to photograph!

We had a blast exploring First Landing State Park and I could have photographed him all night.

Thanks Xavier for trusting me with your portraits. Have a great Senior year, make it memorable!!!

The Businda Family | Family Portrait Photographer Hampton Roads

• December 4th, 2014 •

It’s hard when your kids grow up, move away and start a family in a city and state away from you! So when you get a chance to get all your kids together, you need to take advantage of it! I had a great time photographing the Businda Family while they were all here in Virginia Beach over Thanksgiving.

It was a VERY COLD saturday morning and little Charlie was NOT happy to be out in the cold, but we made it work! To all of you, I had a great time photographing you and hope you had a wonderful Thanksgiving and these portraits will be cherished for years to come!

Kaitlynn Senior Portraits | Senior Portrait Photographer Virginia Beach

• November 24th, 2014 •

Kaitlynn, I know you are going to great things and I am so glad I have gotten to know you over these past years! I have had a blast photographing you… Just for fun, let’s share some of the first images I took of you way back when! 🙂

Yep, you’ve always been amazing! 🙂

And now… Class of 2015!!!!! Wow!

I love photographing this girl. Of course, she is gorgeous and stunning in front of the camera, but she is also such a sweet girl! I love that next year she wants to do a year or two at a school close to home because she’s not ready to leave her mom! (Awww, all of us moms of teens are weeping right now!) Stay sweet K, thanks for always trusting me with your portraits. 🙂 <3

Jenn and Johnny are having a BABY!! | Maternity Photographer Virginia Beach

• October 28th, 2014 •

I LOVE this family! I have known Jennifer for years, in fact three years ago we served with each other on a missions trip in Colombia! She is such a sweet, genuine person. I was there to watch her fall in love with Johnny and become mom to the beautiful Cheyenne!

A year ago, they suffered heartbreak when they miscarried their first baby. We were all devastated but knew, somehow, God would heal their hearts and their dreams for growing their family would come true. And then, seven months ago, they DID! I was SO EXCITED to hear Jennifer and Johnny were expecting a baby boy and was honored they chose me to capture this amazing time of carrying him!

Since it’s October, we decided a pumpkin patch was the PERFECT place to start their photo shoot. Jennifer was the most beautiful I have ever seen her and she glowed throughout her session. I loved the vintage pram they brought that they will use with Baby Johnny, and it made for a perfect prop when we moved the session to the woods. Cheyenne did great too and was jumping for JOY as she waits to meet her baby brother!

Thanks Bradley’s for allowing me to capture this extra special time in your lives. I can’t wait to photograph your little man in just a few months!

Sedale: Class of 2015 | Virginia Beach Senior Portrait Photographer

• October 13th, 2014 •

What an honor it was to photograph Sedale. I have been facebook friends with his mom, Ellen, for many years. She and I were first “introduced” when I was in my first year of business almost five years ago! She had seen some portraits I did for a friend of hers, and she told me way back then that I would photograph her family someday! She doesn’t live in Hampton Roads though, so we knew it might be a while til we could manage the logistics. It is such an honor when people drive such a long distance just to have their portraits made by me so my heart was overflowing when we finally made it work! <3

I was able to photograph her son Sedale, a high school senior this year! (We also did some family portraits but we’re saving those images for Christmas cards so no sharing!) Sedale rocked his session and we had a blast. We had a great sunset and a perfect shoot!

Congratulations Sedale. Have a great Senior year. Kick some butt on the ball field and I can’t wait to hear what college I need to root for next year! Thanks so much Ellen for staying such a fan of my work. It truly was a blessing meeting you and capturing these portraits for your family!

Senior Rep Crew: Stephanie | Senior Portrait Photographer Virginia Beach

• October 8th, 2014 •

I LOVE my Crew Members who help me spread the word about my High School Senior Portrait business to their peers. I am working hard to grow that part of Devon Shanor Photography and my Crew Members are working hard to earn some great benefits too! My Crew Members get two portrait sessions. One is a model session, where I plan the session so we can use the images for their marketing materials and the second is their regular senior portrait session. I will be sharing each of my Crew Members Model Sessions this month as well as doing a small interview with them so you, too, can get to know them! Our 2015 Seniors are so amazing with such talent and inspiration. I would love for you to get to know them a little and keep them in your thoughts/prayers as they work through this last year of school and prepare for chasing all their dreams after high school!

Meet Stephanie K. Help her earn benefits (even a college scholarship) and contact me for your own Senior Portrait/Family session! Just tell me she referred you!

What school do you attend?

I am a senior at Hickory High School and a 4-year at The Governors School for the Arts in the Musical Theatre Department.

What are you enjoying most about being a Senior?

Even though senior year is stressful with college apps and scholarships, its just really a really exciting time. Your life is changing in such a big way, but even the small things like getting to drive my car to school are exciting!

Describe yourself in 10 words or less.

This is going to be hard, so I got a little help from my friends! Sassy, funny, loving, smart, powerful, creative, unique, ambitious, artistic and independent.

What activities are you involved in?

I go to a perfoming arts high school, which I’m very involved in. Last year I was on prom committee, I am a performance intern with Virginia Musical Theatre, I am a member of OperationSmile, National Honor Society and The National Society of High School Scholars.

Where Was your Session?

My model session was in downtown Ghent and Hague Lock Bridge.

Tell everyone a little about your session.

My session was definitely memorable! Because we were on the bridge, many people walked by and were really intrigued by what was going on, but none more than a few skateboarders who actually ended up IN one of my shots! It was spontaneous but it ended came out so cool looking!

What did you think of your portraits?

I ADORE my portraits! It was actually hard narrowing them down, but I loved the portraits with my blue guitar in the sunset, they came out incredible.

How was it working with Devon?

Devon made me feel so at ease the entire session. Nothing was ever uncomfortable or awkward, it felt really natural and fun. She kept things really upbeat the entire time.

What did your friends think about your portraits?

My friends keep asking me how Devon got the shot with my guitar above my head! I was actually up on a bench with a light behind me, but none of them could tell! My friends have been so sweet about my pictures, I think they love them just as much as I do!

Tell everyone about being a Crew Member.

Being a Crew Member for Devon has been awesome! I am loving it so far, and I’m so glad Devon is giving me this opportunity. I always wanted a little something different for my senior pictures, and thats exactly whats happening, so I’m ecstatic.

What ideas do you have in mind for your full senior session?

I am SO hype for my for my full session! I’m very open to ideas, but so far I would love to do an edgy, urban session, or an autumnal session when fall is in full swing!

It’s time to think about Christmas Cards | Virginia Beach Family Photographer

• October 8th, 2014 •

It’s Christmas card time! You all know you love all the GOOD mail you get every November/December. Seeing how much your nieces and nephews have grown and matured, seeing how much weight (and hair?) your brother is steadily losing, and how stunning Aunt Emily still looks. It’s all there to see in their yearly Christmas card which you proudly display on your wall, mantle or refrigerator!

Guess what? YOU can be that awesome family member too! Send out your own amazing Christmas cards this year! It’s time for some amazing family portraits anyway! The kids are growing up and when was the last time you captured the WHOLE family and all that awesomeness in one portrait?? Be the cool family member who “has- it -all- together- she- even- sent- out- these- cool- Christmas- cards!” as well as FINALLY create and hang that amazing wall canvas of your family you have been dying to do for years!

Contact me today to book your family portraits before Dec. 10th and I will throw in 25 FREE Christmas cards! Here a few samples with some of my awesome current clients!

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Senior Portraits: Joshee | Senior Portrait Photographer Hampton Roads

• September 24th, 2014 •

I think it was a Thursday when I received a call from John, Joshee’s Dad saying he had found me on google (I love when that happens!) and wanted to book me for Senior Portraits on Saturday! They were in town from the Eastern Shore, and Joshee wanted to have his portraits taken while they were here. It just so happened I had a slot open so I was more than happy to meet and photograph him!

What a BLAST we had! Joshee is half Korean, so we started at Red Wing Park and incorporated some of the Oriental Gardens. We got some great shots with the bridge, bamboo and pagoda. It had rained earlier and was looking a little gloomy, but we headed to the beach anyway, hoping for a decent sunset. When we arrived the sun was trying to peek through and I was satisfied with a little color. Then, a few minutes after the sun actually set, the sky went CRAZY! We got the most amazing colors and clouds. I shot for almost a half hour after sunset, making sure I got as much of the amazing sky as possible!

Joshee was awesome. Cool and laid back, willing to climb trees and sand dunes, even be a little silly when I asked! He was a blast to photograph and I hope someday, I get to photograph him and his family again!

P.S. I LOVE photographing High School Seniors. It is one of my very favorite sessions. If you know a High School Senior, or a parent of a Senior, please give them this link http://issuu.com/devonshanor/docs/complete_senior_magazine to check out my Senior Magazine, explaining everything there is to know about Senior Portraits with Devon Shanor Photography!

Rick and Diana Hocker: 25 Year Celebration

• September 24th, 2014 •

In case, you haven’t heard me say it before, I love my church, Freedom Fellowship!!! Our pastors and leaders, Rick and Diana Hocker, are a big reason why. They have been our Senior Pastors for TWENTY FIVE YEARS!

I have been a member of Freedom for almost eight years, the entire time we have lived in Virginia Beach. When we adopted our son Messay, from Ethiopia, Pastor Rick and Freedom rallied behind us and helped us raise the thousands of dollars we needed to bring him home. When my marriage was failing, Pastor Rick and Diana were instrumental in supporting us and helping us get back on track. When finances were tough, the amazing food pantry at Freedom allowed to know our family wouldn’t go hungry. My children learn about God at home, but on Sundays they also find out God isn’t BORING and they can have FUN during worship and in learning about Him. Freedom is a big a part of our lives and school and work. It’s home.

We have Rick and Diana to thank for the amazing church Freedom Fellowship has become. I could go on and on about how they have impacted our life and I know about 600 other people who could do the same. We love our church and for the past 25 years, Rick and Diana have led us. They have sacrificed and shared so much of themselves. They are a wonderful example of Pastoral love and we are so blessed to have them STILL serving, sacrificing and loving us.

I was honored and blessed to attend their 25 year Service Celebration this past weekend. So many came out to celebrate and share. We laughed at some of the old stories and pictures, we reminisced about the “way things used to be” and we talked about the amazing vision God has for our future. Thank you Rick and Diana for your quarter of a century of service. I hope to photograph the 50th anniversary as well! Here are a few highlights from the evening. If you want to see to see all the images from the night, just click on this link, http://devonshanorphotography.smugmug.com/Freedom-Fellowship-1/25-Year-Celebration .