Shelby Swann was born and raised in Baltimore, MD, and currently works throughout Baltimore and Washington, DC. Swann's work explores the beauty and complexities of Black culture. Her upbringing influences her work - producing a street aesthetic highlighting Black neighborhoods and the inner city. Through photography, her work aims to amplify community voices and empower contemporary lives. As a self-taught photographer, her work intends to challenge the perspective that Street photography differs from Fine Art photography. 

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Swann's work has been featured in group exhibitions that documented the civil unrest of 2020, some being Focus on the Story's Rise Up exhibition, Dupont Underground Rise Up BLM, and Mosely Gallery "We Protest." Swann debuted her first solo exhibition at Higgins Gallery, titled "Black In America: New Battle Same War." Two of her photographs were published in The Afro Newspaper. Swann is a member of Authority Collective, Black Women Photographers, and Women Photojournalists of Washington (WPOW). 

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