I love photography. I love talking about photography. My husband & family don’t necessarily love hearing about all that. If you’ve ever had your spouse’s eyes glaze over as you wax on about your thoughts on composition & light, you might know what I mean.

One of my favorite things about attending the photography retreat was, I was meeting my people. We all had our cameras out. We all compared gear. We all took a million shots of dinner, held things for each other like cups or reflectors & chatted for long evenings about composition, editing & light. And no one got even a teeny bit irritated when one person held up the group because they were so enthralled in a tiny patch of light.

Maybe you consider yourself a quite seasoned photographer but I’m willing to bet there’s something you don’t know. I feel like photography is one of those areas where there’s always something new for you to learn, whether it’s a technique or a tip. Part of the beauty of meeting new people is that everyone does things a little different.

Maybe you’re hoping to learn something specific from the person hosting the workshop. Personally, when I attended my workshop, I wanted to see how our hosts approached a shoot, how they styled & how they maintained a cohesive editing style. I knew exactly what I hoped to learn but even if you aren’t as specific, just being open to a new opportunity will definitely teach you something. Being able to ask questions from the source of someone you admire is priceless!

As a bonus, super fun thing, at the workshop I attended we were actually taught natural, indigo dying & weaving from the glorious Maggie Pate (photographed above).

While I definitely wasn’t a beginner when I attended the workshop, instead of sticking to my normal shooting routine, I decided to try some new challenges like manual focus! I was totally amazed at how that changed everything & got me completely out of my comfort zone. I’m not shooting everything on manual focus now but it was really fun to try something that challenged & pushed me to think & be more present & intentional when I was shooting. I would have never even considered manual focus if I hadn’t been introduced to it at the workshop.

So even if you’re convinced that you’re completely comfortable shooting the way you do things, I bet it’s worth it to challenge yourself with something you’ve never considered before!

It’s safe to say I feel pretty confident shooting food. Even on my worst, most frustrating days I can typically pull a shot out that I’m happy with. But I did have this fear of – can I photography anything else? Honestly, I was worried. I didn’t know if I could.

Attending the workshop gave me so many new opportunities I wouldn’t have had in the comfort of my own home. I was able to shoot people, landscape, street scenes. Not only was it a fun exercise but it was also a boost of confidence to know that I can in fact, take great images of other things! Go figure!

If you’re a portrait photographer, consider a food photography workshop! If you’re a food photographer, consider a workshop where you’ll have other subjects to focus on as well.