I'm SO Excited

I've been reading the Cowbelly Pet Photography blog for quite a while now. I love her style of photography. If you've never visited her blog, check it out - you won't be disappointed.

Anyway, last year she offered a dog photography workshop in Seattle. I really wanted to go but felt I couldn't justify the expense. She then announced that she would be putting on a travelling roadshow and that Edmonton was going to be one of the stops. I was so excited and couldn't wait to sign up.

And then came the bad news... She didn't have enough interest in the Edmonton workshop and crossing the border was going to be no end of hassles. I was very disappointed. She is still offering workshops in various places in the states but it seemed so far away.

After a very long conversation with Marlin, I've decided to go - to LA! How fun is that!?

I haven't decided if I am going to branch into dog photography as part of the business yet, but I am definitely leaning that way. At the very least the workshop will help me improve the photos I take at the daycare and for the rescue pups. I'm still on the fence for offering it as an actual service for a few reasons.

1. The time it takes. I really don't want to work weekends again. Especially in the summer. Most people work during the week and taking the day off for dog photos is probably not high on their priority list.
2. The skills needed. I think I can learn the technical stuff but I'm quite worried about the creative side of things. While I do "crafty" stuff, I've never thought of myself as creative. My best photos seem to be the ones that I take while not looking - what does that say?
3. The pressure. There are days when I can't seem to take a decent photo to save my life. What if I have an entire photo shoot of crap?
4. Editing. I don't usually do anything to the photos I take. I do the occasional cropping and sometimes I'll lighten up a few shadows but that is it. Learning the editing software that turns good photos into great ones is a whole other skill that I don't currently possess.

I am not going to decide what to do until after the course. But if I do decide to go forward, it will be quickly so that the summer isn't wasted. The course is in mid-June on possibly the worst weekend that could have been chosen for the whole summer but we are going to make it work!

I'm also taking a course here in Lethbridge starting in late April which will also help expand my skills. It should be a photography filled summer. I can't wait!