.....hello.....
Welcome to the :e: picture journal. Within these walls you'll find a mix of commissioned and personal work so feel free to subscribe or to just swing by whenever you're seeking... [hint: click on a big image and then use the L and R arrows on your keyboard to navigate through the rest]
When I started shooting, I didn't really know what to do. I was almost 100% self taught and and knew that documenting celebrations of love felt right, but I couldn't really articulate why. It was a calling that I answered but lacking effective language for communication, just had to sit back and listen. I had been shooting for a little while, floundering around without any clear direction and then I found the Roots Workshop - my entire life and career changed [read about my experience HERE]
At its core, Roots is a storytelling workshop lead by some of the most incredible teachers in the country. It will challenge the way you think, see, and document and blow every single one of your assumptions out of the water while at the same time meet you exactly where you are and start from there. In one year at this workshop there have been participants who have been shooting for 6 months and others that have been shooting for 13 years and each grew leaps and bounds from where they started from - largely due to the ridiculous 2-1 student to staff ratio. There isn't any other experience around that has seasoned journalists accompany you into the field to mentor, critique, and instruct you on site, and then sit down with you back at home base and walk through that day's images - learning how to view and edit your own work is, I believe, the single most uncultivated skill in the field of storytelling today. Also, we have one frickin hell of a good time.
Roots is not about the business of running a studio, but I would be remiss if I did not mention that by employing the new way of thinking and seeing that I learned there, my business exploded. I finally discovered my vision and how to articulate what was important to me while documenting weddings. It's funny, because there is actually no real discussion at all about running a photography business but this workshop was hands down the best investment for my business I've ever made [and I have made a crapton, seriously.] In a recent blog post, Roots founder Emilie talks about spending at least one wedding's income on education each year. I will tell you right here that I spend almost 45% of my income on professional development every year. I owe it to myself and to my clients to keep challenging myself and pushing/honing my craft as much as I possibly can. I hope it's obvious that I just adore what I do but don't take it lightly. How many times in your life are you surrounded by all your friends and family in one place? When I am presented with the task of documenting the memories being made that day I know that I have put in the time and I can do it confidently.
Roots launched me on the path that I'm on now and I am very proud and excited to now be an instructor/mentor there so I may give back and help you to sharpen your skills and see the world in a better way. This is one of the only workshops that I teach at [and trust me, all the other instructors there put me to serious shame...] so if you are interested in learning from me and an absolutely mind blowing group of mentors, I urge you very strongly to take the leap. It will change your life and you will wonder what on earth you were taking pictures of before. Hands down. It changed my life in ways I am still discovering. Read about my experience as a student here: Caged Birds.
seek the joy... and see you on the Cape :] You can inquire HERE [yes, that's me with the mussels]
eric
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