Rachel Vanoven | My Workshop Review
I might be one of those crazed Rachel Vanoven fans. Honestly, who wouldn’t be?! She is such an amazing person inside and out. I follow her on Instagram and periscope {and of course facebook} and I admire her on so many levels. I wish more people in the world were as caring, generous and genuine as Rachel. Let’s begin with an embarrassing story, because you know, why not? Rachel recently traveled to Florida on a family vacation. She shared many of her photos on Instagram {I swear I’m not a stalker!!}, but one photo in particular caught my eye as I was scrolling by. A photo at the Goblin market – the very restaurant where my best friend works. Cue my obsessiveness. I immediately text my friend exclaiming, “OMG, you met Rachel Vanoven?! She’s a total celebrity!” Long story short, my friend thought I was totally crazy. My friend didn’t actually meet her, but she saw Rachel there with her family so I’m still incredibly jealous. Like I said earlier, possible crazed fan over here.
You really shouldn’t be on the fence about purchasing the newborn or family workshop. Look at how many followers Rachel has on Facebook {150k+}! Her cult following speaks for itself. If you need more convincing though, I’ve got you covered:
I’ve purchased both her newborn e-workshop and her family e-workshop, along with her family prep guide that I send out to all my clients. To say that I have loved every single product I have purchased from her would be the understatement of the year. Rachel is such a wealth of knowledge for any newborn and family photographer! You really couldn’t ask for a better, or more experienced, mentor to teach you the ins and outs of the industry. The very best part? You don’t even have to change out of your jammies!
The newborn workshop is incredibly detailed – containing multiple videos and an easy-to-reference written guide. The reference guide is written in a way that feels like a conversation, making it an easy, approachable read. I keep my printed written guide next to my beanbag during my newborn sessions in case I want to reference it for any reason. I’ve read it so many times I don’t need it there, but it’s great to have on hand if you want to quickly reference workflow, or even check one of the workflow collage photos to double check finger placement, head placement, any of the little details, really! Speaking of workflow, Rachel’s recommended workflow was a total game changer for my newborn sessions. My sessions run so much smoother now that I am able to seamlessly transition from pose to pose with minimal disturbance to baby. Prior to the workshop I struggled to remember which poses I wanted to do and was constantly picking up baby and moving them from their back to tummy and vise verse. Not good. Prior to the workshop, my angles and composition were unflattering and awkward. Rachel explains all this information {and more!} in her guide.
All the the e-workshops definitely opened my eyes wide! Before I began photography, I was an elementary teacher. In the teaching field we always talked about the “a-ha” and “light bulb” moments that are so important when teaching. I can guarantee these are included in the workshop. I had So.so.many of those ever-important “a-ha” and “light bulb” moments! I have seen a such drastic improvement in my newborn photography. Having unlimited access to the videos is p-r-i-c-e-l-e-s-s! I love being able to brush-up before a session by watching one, two or all the videos. I’m able to fast forward, rewind, replay and then replay again if I want. I love being able to fast forward to a particular pose I might want to focus on for my upcoming session {I’m talking to you, taco pose!}. One of the main selling points for the online workshops was the fact that I could revisit the material as many times as I want/need. It’s proven to be so tremendously helpful. It will be tremendously helpful to you, too!
The family e-workshop contains both basic information {if you’re just starting out} and plethora of information for the seasoned photographer as well. My favorite part of the family e-workshop was watching Rachel shoot a family session. I’m talking a real life, real kids, real challenges, session. No perfectly posed and prepped model family here. Because really, who has ever had a family session like that? No one. That’s why it’s so helpful to see how Rachel handles real-life situations at a session. The tips she gives for interacting with the kids are g-o-l-d-e-n! They work every.single.time. I used them all year, I used them this weekend. They never fail. I love that I feel much more confident approaching my family sessions after taking the workshop. Rachel is also working on a new family workshop for 2016, so if you purchase now during the black Friday sale, you’ll not only receive this amazing guide {which will be retired after the sale!} you’ll also have the option to upgrade for a fraction of the cost of the full retail price once the new guide is released. I’m anxiously awaiting the release of the new workshop. I love learning from Rachel, and I know the new workshop will be nothing less than amazing!
Need more convincing that Rachel’s workshops are total awesomesauce? You are invited to join an amazing mentor community. It’s an incredible support system. Everyone is so nice and so willing to help each other out any way they can. I think I learn something new at least every week {even everyday!} just through the conversations in the mentor groups.
Make sure to head HERE on black Friday to score your newborn and family workshop at 50% off. Totally worth it! Extra bonus?! I saw on her page today that she is throwing in a NEW 1 hour newborn posing video as a bonus. OR you can purchase this new video for only $75. The awesomesauce just never ends with Rachel. 🙂
