I remember when I first decided to dust off my camera again. My family and I were living in Portland, OR and not knowing where to start, I signed up for a photography class through a local college to brush up on my skills. While it was a good refresher course, the photographer who taught the class was not a teacher…and it showed. He knew his stuff…just presenting it to the class in an interesting and interactive way was not his forte. I stuck with it though for 3 hours a week for 8 weeks, complete with homework and field trips.
Maybe the best thing that happened to me in that class is that I met someone. A fellow class member, who only came to the class once, volunteered at OHSU’s neonatal unit. She told me all about it, gave me a contact at OHSU and the very next week I went in to interview. For the next year I had the privilege of volunteering once a week in the neonatal unit, photographing precious, often very sick babies.
Because the majority of these babies have to stay in the neonatal for an extended period, many parents are not able to be at the hospital every day. As volunteer photographers, our job was to document their time and their progress. Sometimes the pictures weren’t very pretty, because it’s not a very pretty sight to see a tiny baby swaddled in tubes.
About a year after I began volunteering, my husband was transferred to Southern California. After we moved, I decided it would be fun to start a little photography business. But again, where to start? I did a lot of googling and decided to attend a workshop in Dallas, TX. While not inexpensive, it was worth every penny. I walked away more confident, with a better view of the business side of things, and with a handful of photographer friends who lived all over the country.
The one downside to workshops in my opinion is that they are a prepared presentation. All 40 of you in the same room get the same information. Some attendees are going to make sure they get their money’s worth…and they monopolize conversations, discussions, and shoots. Time is often wasted with information that isn’t pertinent to you and your business. It’s not personal.
In retrospect, what I would have loved was a mentor — someone I could sit down with one-on-one and ask all MY questions. I could have avoided a lot of frustration and time-consuming mistakes I made starting out on my own. A friend in the business would have been invaluable.
So, I’m now offering what I wished I had. I’m opening up a few mentoring sessions a month…just for you.
Half-Day Session: $500
4 hours, lunch included.
I’ll bring me and my computer. You bring you and all your questions.
Full-Day Session: $800
8 hours, lunch and photo shoot.
The bonus to this session is that I will round up models and we’ll practice what we’ve talked about.
Then we’ll open up Photoshop and talk post-processing.
You’ll walk away with beautiful images for your portfolio!
Mentoring sessions are without a doubt the best way to get the most bang for your buck. Don’t miss out — if you are interested (or know someone who is) shoot me an email at lori@lorihull.com.
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