The first time I attended a Great Escape workshop was in Portland years ago. I was an advertising sales representative at a large corporation, but one of my guilty pleasures was reading e-letters from Great Escape Publishing.
I would daydream about traveling, taking photos and being paid for it, and how I could build an income stream for retirement.
Unfortunately I had no time, no photography skills, and no idea where to begin. All the daydreaming in the world wouldn’t fix that.
Enticed by the concept that ordinary people, without connections or experience, could earn income from their photos, I eventually decided to “go for it” and attend a live photography workshop, reasoning that if it didn’t work out, at least I could stop wasting time wondering.
I’m so glad I did.
Over the three jam-packed days of the event, I learned the basics of controlling my camera, moving from snapshots to saleable photos. I got a better understanding of what buyers were looking for, gained the confidence to move forward, and left with a plan to follow.
Selling my first stock photo was so exciting, and I learned that I really could make money taking photos in my spare time. Building a stock portfolio was a fun way to build an income stream for retirement, and I enjoyed seeing my photos show up in national ad campaigns, magazines, and even on TV.
When I was downsized from my job earlier than expected, I was still too young to retire and my stock portfolio was still too small for the income I needed. So I decided to up my game and expand into other types of photography.
I attended a second workshop and gained even more skills. Then I worked hard to get into a new kind of photography where $300 – $3,000 projects are common… and Lori invited me back to attend a third workshop but, this time, up on stage to talk about how I’m doing it.
This upcoming workshop in Baltimore will be my fourth workshop with GEP. Each one gets bigger and better, offering new opportunities for photographers to find their place, regardless of age, experience, or interests.
With $500 weekends the way Bonnie Caton does it… $300 – $3,000 projects the way I do it… $10,000 months the way Cheryl Bigman does it… or projects here and there for magazines, businesses or fine art… plus everything you need to know about getting started, it’s a great investment in yourself.
If you are still daydreaming on the sidelines, I hope you will join me. It’s an exciting time to be in this ever-changing field.