Shelly Swanger is a music, event, travel and fine art photographer. When she’s not on the road she splits her time between Nashville, TN and Santa Rosa Beach, FL. Originally from Memphis, she’s always been a dreamer who fell in love with music, photography and travel at an early age. She received a camera as a gift from her grandparents at the age of fourteen and never looked back. Self-taught until returning to school to earn a degree in photography in her late thirties, Shelly has always been drawn to the storytelling aspect of the image, drawing inspiration from photographers like William Eggleston, Diane Arbus, Stephen Shore and Josef Hoflehner, she finds beauty in the ordinary, the forgotten and the left behind. Her work has been described as vibrant, emotional and personal.

In 2010, Shelly combined her love for music and photography and slowly built a reputation as one of the most sought-after tour photographers in the southeast. She has documented tours for GRAMMY winners as well as serving as in the in-house photographer for the EMMY nominated “Bluegrass Underground” and “Music City Roots” as well as the award winning 30A Songwriters Festival and many others. Her music and travel photography have appeared in The New York times, USA Today, Southern Living, VIE Magazine, Emerald Coast Magazine, American Songwriter, The Fretboard Journal and many other local, national and international publications. Shelly was also honored to have been named “Best Photographer” by Visit South Walton in 2015 and again in 2018 as well as “Hottest Local Photographer” in 2015 and 2016 by 30A.com

When not working or on assignment, Shelly can usually be found wandering the backroads of America looking for the next image. Thank you for taking the time to enjoy her work.