I take great pride and joy in what I do. I worked very hard to get to where I am and count my blessings daily that I am able to excel in what I love to do. I still strive to always learn & do better as well! The world is constantly changing and while I love capturing moments before they pass, I have to learn and evolve as an artist, too! There's so many phenomenal portrait artists to learn and work with and I am blessed to be able to work in Charleston, SC and still learn right here!!!!!
I have achieved every degree a Photographer & Artist Can in my industry! Achieving these degrees is not as easy as taking a class or a test! Its a combination of many many hours and years of entering competitions, getting published and also giving back by teaching the artist community nation wide! Its a labor of love which I have spent the last 17 years honing in on! Up until Covid-19 hit, traveled quite a bit to teach other artists - everything on how to run a succesful photography/art studio - to how to create these pieces you see! Many people ask me what my degrees are and what all those letters behind my name stand for..... Maria Sampaio, M.Photog.M.Artist.Cr. .....
So, here is the breakdown of the letter that follow my name :)
M. Photog. - this means I am a Master Photographer. This degree took me many years to achieve and was a combination to entering and winning awards, getting published and educating others. This category is for Photographic pieces only and has many stipulations to follow.
M. Artist - this means I am a Master Artist. This degree was much harder and took me many years to achieve as well! It was a combination to entering and winning awards, getting published and educating others. This category is for Artist pieces, which falls under many classifications. The entire process is incredibly interesting an I'm not going to lie, difficult. I won most of my "merits" and publications under this degree with... wait for it... DOGS! :)
Cr. - This degree is the first degree I got and It stands for "Craftsman" - this was an incredible amount of hours teaching, helping organize and judge local competitions and holding up the standards to always help other artists.
Below are some award winning portraits & paintings from the past with their titles . . .
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