In May 2025, I attended a photography retreat in Portland, Oregon as part of my goal to attend a workshop every year to further my education and create connections with other photographers. Here’s a recap of what we did, learned, and my overall experience.
What is the Finding He[Art] Retreat?
The Finding He[Art] Workshop is a photography retreat led by Iris Yu (Light by Iris) and Ashley Kaplan. The retreat takes place in a different location year to year. The hosts choose between several applicants to ensure they have a cohesive, like-minded group of photographers who will enjoy getting to know one another over the weekend. During the retreat they host three photo sessions where they walk through their methods and session flow. For this retreat we had an in-home, downtown, and outdoor session. When we weren’t photographing families, we had educational opportunities at the airbnb. The rest of our time was devoted to relaxing and getting to know one another.
Photographer’s Education
Over the course of the weekend we learned from the hosts through hands on experience while at photo sessions and from lectures back at the airbnb. And by lectures, I mean they had a presentation explaining their processes in their business as well as their session workflow. We had the opportunity to pick their brains and discuss our own business strategies, too.
We also had breakout sessions where we focused on our own artistic style. One activity we did was to bring printed photos that we loved or felt told a story. At the retreat we spread out our photos so that the other participants could look at our work and share what stood out to them. What words came to mind when looking at our images. What they liked about our editing or posing or point of view. What images felt didn’t belong. What images left a stronger impact on them. The words people use to describe our work can later be used in our marketing material. The takeaways can be used to help us narrow down our niche and style at future sessions or what we choose to present in our marketing.
But we didn’t just learn from our two hosts, Ashley and Iris. We also had a guest speaker who joined us for one of our photo sessions and dinner downtown. Our guest speaker was Becca (Becca Jean Photography) who spoke to us about SEO and website necessities. Even thought I had already taken her online course, I still took plenty of notes.
No need to bring your own note taking supplies. The hosts generously provided materials and some other goodies. This year it was a workbook, nice water bottle, sheet of Rainbow Window Film, and a small tote bag.
Aside from the formal education, we got to enjoy a lot of down time, too. From eating out together, to sitting in the air bnb’s hot tub and sauna, to doing a headshot swap in downtown Portland, we had plenty of opportunities to hang out and get to know one another.
In-Home Family Session
This year’s in-home session was primarily led by Iris who specializes in storytelling sessions. Her style of directing clients results in imagery that looks and feel documentary. We used the client’s entire home to create variety in their gallery. Because there were 10+ photographers, I didn’t take photos in every room like the kid’s bedrooms or hallways, but focused instead on the larger spaces such as the living spaces, kitchen, and master bedroom.
The purpose of attending retreats that offer model call sessions like this one (where a family agrees to host several photographers, follow wardrobe guidance, and let the Photographer dictate the imagery they will receive in exchange for free photos) is it provides the attendees a chance at building a portfolio of images that may be difficult to create with paying clients. First, if you do not have these types of images already it can be hard to convince a paying client to book a session like this because sometimes we have to see to understand the vision. Second, not every client will be able to find the time or afford to clean their entire home on top of paying for a photo session which means you may be limited to a room or two during a paid session.
These images have already helped me book more in-home sessions than I had been booking, and more sessions where families want to incorporate their entire home and activities such as playing musical instruments.
Outdoor Family Session at the River Gorge
The outdoor session was primarily led by Ashley who specializes in incorporating landscapes into her family sessions. They took us to a trail along the River Gorge for this session with a family of six. I particularly loved this session because of my love for the outdoors and being able to photograph a landscape I don’t get to enjoy in San Antonio, Texas. But also, I don’t often work with families of this size. It was nice to see how I could potentially group and pose and encourage interactions between parents and this many kids. Another reason I loved it is because, though it was late Spring, the wardrobes look like what families could wear during fall in Texas and showcases how families can layer clothing and include blankets for a cozy look.
Downtown Portland Family Session
Though all three sessions included direction from both hosts, the downtown session was truly a mix of each photographer’s directions and style when they take clients into urban areas. Downtown sessions are unique because of the challenges they come with (people, cars, trash, limited space, lighting) but can be a fun way to incorporate one’s city into their family photos. This type of location isn’t a good fit for everyone due to the challenges (for example a toddler may be difficult if you’re in a spot with a lot of foot and car traffic) but for families who visit downtown regularly or who have older kids, its a great option.
I’ve never done a family session in downtown San Antonio (just parks near downtown), likely because not a lot of people actually live in downtown like they do in other major cities. Convincing families to walk around downtown, including businesses and skyscrapers as a backdrop, and working around some of the challenges can be difficult, especially without any examples of what their photos would look like. So, this model call session was great for me to create a small portfolio of images that I can show clients what a downtown session could potentially look like — just with San Antonio as the backdrop.
My Review of the Retreat: 5 Stars
I’ve attended a few photography retreats and this has been my favorite so far and here’s why:
Small Group Size
There were fourteen of us total, including the hosts, which may sound like a lot but it felt smaller since we were spread out in an airbnb, spread out during some of the sessions, and were able to break out and do our own thing when we wanted.
I’ve been to retreats with less people and though that was nice for an introvert like myself, it’s also nice having more people to bounce ideas off of and be inspired by. If the group is too small you run the risk of being the most experienced out of the attendees and you aren’t able to learn from the others, which is part of the whole experience. You don’t want to pay to attend a retreat where you’re supposed to learn and end up teaching others instead.
Three Different Sessions
Having a variety of sessions at a retreat is important to make sure you’re getting plenty of content as well as experience with different situations whether it be scenery, lighting, or family sizes/dynamics. Most retreats I’ve attended have at least two different sessions. Too few and you don’t get enough content to share and too many can be overwhelming. If there are too few, you also run the risk of something going wrong with one and being left with content you can’t use. For example, a kid can be sick, a family can show up wearing something you wouldn’t post on your website/social media, weather can force a backup plan that you don’t care for, etc.
Model Families Were Well Prepared
This is very important when it comes to sessions where you are trying to learn from a photographer and walk away with content you can share. If you trust your hosts to find families that follow wardrobe guidance, have good style (in clothing or home decor), and are relaxed and easy going, then you shouldn’t have a problem. Though one family was used to smiling at the camera and it was hard to get them to not do that (this is important for sessions with multiple cameras taking photos at different angles) each family was great to work with, styled their families well, and were comfortable with fourteen people taking their photo.
Plenty of Downtime
I prefer a retreat where you don’t have a packed schedule and are rushing from one activity to another then going to bed exhausted only to wake up super early the next day. Instead of feeling rejuvenated and excited about everything you learned and experienced when you get back home, you’re tired and drained. But when the schedule allows for breaks and downtime in the evening, letting you unwind, relax, and get to know one another, you have enough energy to make it through the retreat and hit the ground running on your new ideas as soon as you get home.
Having downtime during a retreat is also nice because it gives you time to respond to emails, edit client galleries, edit photos you took during the retreat, and talk to your family.
Personalities of Attendees
One thing I really appreciated about this retreat is the hosts look at the personalities and values of their attendees to make sure the group will be cohesive and get along. A retreat doesn’t need to have people on different political spectrums or point of views. It’s not the place for that kind of dialogue. It’s meant to be harmonious and fun. If you’re worried about speaking your opinion or if someone’s opinion creates tension in the group it can really ruin the atmosphere, especially when you’re all sleeping under the same roof. But not only that, the hosts’ values dictate the type of families you will be photographing. often times the families will share the same values as the host. So if there is an attendee with an opposite viewpoint that can make a family feel unsafe, unwanted, or uncomfortable it could do a lot of damage.
Are you interested in attending the Finding Heart Workshop? What other retreats have you attended that you enjoyed?
