3 years ago, I stumbled on a Facebook Fanpage of a newborn photographer located in Portland, Oregon. Erin Tole quickly became someone I absolutely idolized. Every image she shared, I could honestly stare at for hours, studying her lighting, posing, and choice of props. Every thing she did with newborns completely amazed me. I would often chat with my dear friend Mary-Anne, of Mary-Anne Ferry Photography, about how it would be a dream of mine to one day mentor with Erin. Both Mary-Anne and I loved Erin’s work, and we would often call/text/FB message each other simultaneously when she would share new images of a newborn, and we would completely gawk over how perfect it was and how easy she made this job look! Mary-Anne and I both agreed that if Erin ever announced that she would be offering mentoring workshops, we would most certainly go. Late in December 2014, Erin casually mentioned that throughout 2015, she would offer private mentoring workshops on a small scale (2 students at a time) at her home studio. We emailed right away letting her know we were interested, and that we would both be available to attend in January. I literally burst into tears when I saw an email arrive in my inbox from Erin, letting us know we could be her first workshop of 2015. While I am confidant in my work, being able to refine my skills and learn some new techniques from Erin was exactly what I had been longing for to give my business a bit of a refresh.
The next few weeks couldn’t go by fast enough! We booked our flights and hotel, and started packing up our camera gear. We arrived in Portland and couldn’t believe that we were in the presence of the amazingly talented Erin Tole. It was so surreal to actually meet her in person. I even said to Mary-Anne at one point that I felt like I was in the presence of a celebrity! When you idolize someone’s work as much as we did Erin’s, it just didn’t feel real to be there. The workshop came and went, and my mind is still reeling with the wealth of knowledge I gained in such a short amount of time. I was completely in awe watching Erin pose 2 beautiful babies during the workshop. I learned so many new tips, techniques and ideas, and I couldn’t be more grateful for Erin being so generous and willing to share her “baby whisperer” ways with us. She was an open book the entire weekend- any question we had, she answered. She critiqued our work, she coached us through shooting during the workshop, and she walked us through some new workflow layouts.
I will be forever grateful for Erin’s generosity and continuing support. To say that attending her workshop was life changing is an understatement. It truly helped me define the path I want to take with my newborn photography, and reaffirmed just how much I love doing what I do.
