Snap Photography Festival

Lesley_Burdett

Let’s talk SNAP.

I’m a great advocate of Snap Photography Festival. I’ve been to all 4 so far since it’s inception in 2014. It surpasses itself every year and I really can’t explain how important I see it as a continual game changer for my photography, that it’s an all-round, no-brainer creative ‘kick up the backside’ and most importantly, a yearly check in and soul reset for me … but I’m going to try.

As a small business owner, the endless hours I seem to sit at my computer editing, blogging, accounting, social media-ing, dealing with emails & calls, enquiries, website updates and other very important stuff that I absolutely know I’m solely responsible for, is sometimes soul destroying and lonely. On occasions, all I want to do is turn off my computer, run away from my office with a camera in hand and go take photos of things and people I might meet. As a single mum of 3, that’s not so easy to do when you have school runs to get back for, meals to cook and a household to run yada yada yada.

I have a very busy work & home life and so to arrange things so I can attend SNAP for 4 nights is a big ask. Luckily, I have a very supportive ex and current partner who know how important SNAP is to me and my profession. So this post is to you photographers who already dabble in photography, wedding or otherwise and are maybe thinking of attending SNAP in 2019. I’d like to try and explain why SNAP should be on your radar if you’re thinking about booking up a photography workshop for next year.

I’m absolutely going to say you’ll need to know already how to use a camera. SNAP is not a ‘how to use your camera’ workshop. I’m not talking how to calculate your lenses depth of field and OCF power requirements in your head … who does that shit anyway?! I’m talking that you know how your camera works and that you know what you need to do to take a decent image. That’s it. There are indeed sessions which cater for more technical side of things which you can sign up for however, most sessions are about ‘what to do’ i.e. inspiration, story telling, live shoots etc. The knowledge you will gain from stepping back & watching others as they work is unbelievable. You’ll realise everyone has the sames worries, wobbles and questions. You’ll soon realise you have the basics covered and that it’s okay to have confidence in yourself. You’ll give confidence to others too as it’s all hands on deck. You’ll share. You’ll learn. You’ll have lots of fun and the Keynote speakers will blow you away too.

The last couple of years I’ve hardly got my camera out my bag, borrowing bodies and lenses from the sponsors Fujifilm … and then went out and brought them ha! I’ve been in quite a bad place mentally and so spent a lot of my time stepping back & soaking up the positivity, atmosphere and writing down stuff that I wanted to do when I got home. You’ll take away what YOU need as well I promise. But don’t just take it from me. Check out these testimonials from newbies and regular attendees alike. SNAP is not a cult. Don’t be scared about coming on your own. I get nervous too in big crowds believe it or not. There’s a Buddy System where the regulars are assigned newbies to take advantage of … sorry, look after 😉 Here’s a message I received from one of my Buddy’s from last year … I hope he doesn’t mind me sharing:

I just wanted to put in words how grateful I was for your support and smiley face last week. I had an amazing time, I didn’t feel at all overwhelmed, but I know that if I did you’d be very easy to talk to, so thank you for volunteering for the buddy scheme in the first place and contributing to the overall positivity of SNAP! It’s left me in a very good place and I’m loving seeing all the photos in the group.

My abiding memory from the week will be seeing you getting all emotional over your Tintype and spotting you from a distance posing heroically on a sand dune on the beach, both receiving and then giving back to the Snap community, which is what it’s all about I guess. Thanks again and hope to catch up soon.

I was totally made up to get this feedback and even had a little cry when I got it! Connections are really important to me and I can honestly say, the SNAP bunch are good eggs. We share, ask for help and discuss some great things in the Snap Secret Facebook group … OMG don’t tell anyone there’s a secret group fgs!

SNAP is a community with respect. It’s diverse and inclusive. Community standards is something Laura Babb SNAP’s founder is really hot on too:

Our aim is to book speakers with a broad spectrum of skill sets, both from within the wedding and lifestyle industry, and from outside, as we believe that diversity and outside influences make us stronger.  We are committed to seeking out feedback from our community and adjusting our approach accordingly, and we’re also committed to examining best practice in workshop and training delivery.

For me, SNAP is a divine space created with you & me in mind. The positive mental and body health part is the icing on the cake. Morning yoga & walks and extra curricular activities you can dip in and out of. And then there’s the mid week party … oh boy.

So I think that’s enough from me for now. Please get in touch if you want to know a little more, have any questions or would like any reassurance if you’re wavering. As a SNAP Ambassador, if you decide to book a ticket with SNAP this year and mention me when booking (PLEASE DON’T FORGET), I will receive points towards purchasing my own ticket … which as usual I will probably book in the final few weeks leading up to SNAP as my income is always stretched. I will however, always break the bank for what I see, as an important event in my yearly calendar and vitally important to the success of my photography business. Not only does it reset my head and steady my sometimes anxious heart, it fills up my creative fuel tanks for the entire year. What more could your clients, family, friends and loved ones ask for?!

See you there.

L
xXx

p.s. There’s even MERCH too!