Rewind [Joyce]

Last year we all had the distinct privilege of having Joyce with us. She is so spunky, fun, silly and one heck of a dancer! So, we'll let Joyce take it from here and share some of what she loved about the Photog Retreat 2010!

What I learned most from last year's retreat...
I came away with a new found confidence in myself. I initially didn't want to attend, not because I didn't believe it would be fun, but because I lacked the confidence to stand next to other photographers and believe that I was a photographer as well. I generally regarded myself as a person with a nice camera who tried to take nice pictures of people and their lives. I was inspired by the people around me, and by their stories of their journeys to having successful businesses. I was the newbie on the block but everyone was really open and welcoming and never once did I feel judged for my lack of knowledge, which was something I may have been a wee bit paranoid about. :) Instead I found that people were excited to help out and impart their knowledge.

I absolutely loved the quality time spent getting to know one another. I've attended a lot of networking events but none have produced the lasting connections and friendships the way Photog Retreat has. You don't just show up for a couple hours to shoot together and go your own ways. You hang out together, go dancing together, eat together. There's lots of time to talk and really make friends. By the last day of last years retreat it felt like we were all a little family. I really enjoyed the Bui Brothers because those guys were a lot of fun to have dinner with on last year's Photog Retreat. I think we annoyed plenty of people while our table had fun making "music" with the wine glasses haha.

Overall, we asked Joyce for her top 3 things she enjoyed about the Photog Retreat...
1) Making lasting friendships.
2) Learning new skills as a photographer and business person.
3) The dance-off!