Three years ago I decided to really give the side hustle of photography a real kick in the pants/full out try. Not just by word of month as jobs trickled in as I had full focus on my full time job. (I cruised that way for a decade…)

I bought a full frame camera, my first prime lens and spent every morning commute, bathroom break and spare second diving into learning. These are are some of the online courses I took to learn in between my other job and running a household with my little’s – it was so worth it and I’ve never going to stop learning. See my other blogs for online resources and in person retreats.

“Untouched” by Ace Fanning Via the Unraveled Academy

https://www.theunraveledacademy.com/ace-fanning-workshop

This is the workshop I wish I took first. It is great for questioning how you photograph – straight out of camera images of your dreams really just saves you time in the long run. Reflective light (like the concrete in the photograph above is your best friend folks!) The process and how it unfolds, is a lot of work, but do the whole workshop! And it’s also entertaining.

“Teethkiss” by Yan Palmer

http://www.yanpalmer.com/teethkissthe-class

This course takes care of the whole artist – mindset, shaking the money tree, glorious posing guides, love soaked video recordings for inspiration and some woo-woo goodness that aligns perfectly with my learning style. I plan to take this class again and again as a recharge. I still stream the video recordings Yan sent to return to my WHY. The community Facebook group that pulled around Yan for this workshop is truly magical. I will have her photography my family one day (I’m putting it out there universe)

Editing and Behind the Scenes Videos by Stomy Solis

https://www.stormysolis.com/the-shop/

Stormy releases limited editions of these and the go fast. You can see her start to finish as she literally paints her photograph. It’s like watching a magician work and the love and light shines through the images when she is done.

“Getting Started with Lifestyle Photography” by Elena Blair via Creative Live

https://www.creativelive.com/class/get-started-with-lifestyle-family-photography-elena-blair/lessons/the-actual-shoot

This was the first online lesson I took. I was not in any online communities or forums and hardly knew what I was looking for or what questions to ask. She broke down her prompts, poses, settings and for the first time made photography look so accessible and the images she captured where ones I wanted to photograph and didn’t see around as much.

“Lightroom from Import to Export” by Mike Wade via Unraveled Academy

https://learn.theunraveledacademy.com/pages/lightroom-pro-guide-mike-wade

This walked me through import, process, settings, editing and all the things in between. I had avoided this program for years and only stayed in photoshop for editing and this was a game changer! Hello batch editing and finally speeding up my turn around time. I still use photoshop as well, but learning this program from start to finish was the number one cause in getting time back in my day in the computer.

Invest in yourself – your time, your money, your talents. If you choose to participate, I highly recommend live seats to hold you accountable. Cheers to learning in 2020 – if you have any other online workshops you recommend, please comment below!