Meet Beth and Chis Shedd

Meet Your Neighbor: Beth And Chris Shedd

by Rama K. Ramaswamy

Philosopher Amelie Rorty once said, “humans are just the sort of organisms that interpret and modify their agency through their conception of themselves”. Photographers are a unique breed of people who use the camera to breakdown barriers between themselves, their subjects and viewers. They tend to express their passionate voices, as they often inform us, to capture time so to speak, inspire, amaze us and sometimes unknown to themselves, place our world within the frames of a broader historical context. Often, for Beth, it’s all the above but it especially comes down to the people in her photographs. In 2019 Beth created a fifteen-month portfolio of her photographs, titled ‘Wellesley Wednesdays’. The Series (also on Instagram, Facebook) was featured at the Wellesley Free Library during the month of October. Beth said, “the closet photojournalist in me loves peeling back the layers on why people do what they do and teasing out the kernels of joy that are often at the center. The goal of that series was to connect my social media followers (and anyone who saw my exhibit) to many of the interesting people who make our town the special place that it is. From teachers and crossing guards to business owners and police chiefs, we are all connected in some way, and that is where my joy is- sharing and spreading the connection that we all have” (watch the event courtesy of Wellesley Media: https://youtu.be/2AjmA1P1Weo).

In 2020 she created her ‘Wellesley Home Days’ series (from the March onset of the Covid-19 Quarantine) “to bring joy and connection to our community. I am focusing my lens (and my interviews) on silver linings and looking for the sometimes-unexpected joys to be found in this crisis. I started the series with Wellesley families and have now expanded to include Wellesley businesses and non-profits”. Recently, Beth teamed-up with local business Isabel Harvey, for a Trunk Show for her work. She said, “I sold packs of my photo notecards, my 4x4” acrylic photo blocks and 16x20 and 20x30” metal photo wall art. I also took numerous custom orders for my photography art on metal, paper and acrylic” (watch here courtesy of Wellesley Media: https://youtu.be/MDBtdgVbwAs). About the event Beth said, “it surpassed my expectations. I sent an invite to all my friends and customers and SO many of them came to wish me well, peruse my offerings and purchase a gift for themselves or someone they love”. Beth added, “I love my daily portrait business and how it brings me close to so many wonderful people. I am also so grateful for people's appreciation of my art, and I love that during this busy season so many of them took the time to come visit and shop with me! Buying local has never been more appreciated and important. I hope people will also continue to enjoy my (almost) daily “#whyitooktheshot” posts on FB and Instagram. My website is www.BethShedd.com. I see beauty everywhere and love connecting people to what I see”.

Beth’s husband Chris is a Mortgage Broker and the owner of Mortgage Resources, Inc. (established 1991) in Needham. Chris loves biking, softball, golf, history and travel. They have two daughters, Katie, 26 lives in Chicago, teaching 3rd grade for her 4th year at Moving Everest Charter School. Katie has a brand new black-lab puppy and loves dog training, baking, reading, traveling and spending time with her friends and family. Emily, 22 is a senior at UVM majoring in Psychology. Emily loves school, hiking, painting, thrifting, photography and spending time with her friends and family. As a family they love doing “puzzles, traveling and cooking together…and (sometimes) assembling for family photos!” When asked which charities Beth supports, she said, “I’m on the board of The Community Fund for Wellesley and working on the grants team for their Covid-19 Relief Fund. I am also a member of the Wellesley Gardeners’ Guild and a sustaining member of the Wellesley Service League”.