Hey you
Photographers and Creatives, this one's for you
It’s January as I’m sure you're all aware.. and in my world, that means weeks of office time, doing boring but necessary business stuff. Somedays, adulting bites.
Backing up and purging files. The thousands of photos I’ve taken over the last year. Making sure all are organized and where they should be. It is tedious and uninspired work indeed. To make things a little more interesting, my ADD and OCD are in overdrive, and I find myself sidetracked at every turn. Instagram, podcasts, I need to file this fingernail that has been ragged for two days. Do I have to pee? Damn it, I forgot to turn the kettle on for tea. Did I lock the truck?
I could go on if you want, but I think you get the picture. Monkey mind.
It’s exhausting really, leaving me no choice but to step away often which leads to more perils of sidetracking. It’s an epic wormhole scenario.
But when I’m in the zone, there is no stopping me. I set my timer every so often as a reminder to peel my eyeballs away from the screen so I can reboot my brain and get the old blood flowing.
In all my file scrolling and purging, I stumbled upon these little gems, taken by the talented Robin Lafond of Shyhorses Photography while we were at a creative retreat in Tofino BC. a couple of years back.
If you know me, you know the ocean is my thing. I’m a water sign, not sure if that has anything to do with it, but I do know that lakes and oceans are a cleanse and a recharge for my soul. The smells, the sounds, the swim. I love it all. Except when I underestimate the waves like I did at Destiladeras Beach last fall in Bucerias. I didn’t love that.
This retreat was initially brought to fruition by the lovely ladies of Inner Illume. Tammy @The Happy Creative and Carolyn @Farrohwild Photography arrange and facilitate these creative Women's retreats. There may be other brilliant women involved with the whole process now but this was a couple of years ago right off the heels of Covid shutdowns.
It was the reboot this gal needed. A creative recharge so to speak, and some soul-filling scenery.
The location is different from year to year. But in the spring of 2022, it was at the Pacific Sands Resort in Tofino. Located smack dab on the Pacific Rim, I mean come on! Doesn’t get much better than that.
The location alone had me convinced there was never a time or place more perfectly aligned with me, and I just knew I had to be there.
I met so many talented and fun women. It was completely refreshing on every level. There were some workshops and business coaching, but being a creative retreat, they catered to us artists and didn’t disappoint.
There were plenty of arranged shoots with the most incredible ocean views, sunsets, and an unforgettable, extremely early morning misty and moody beachfront shoot in the fog.
Every morning, we slowly poured ourselves awake with some delicious local coffee, absorbing the ocean views from the windows of our villa, perched up on a cliff overlooking the crashing waves of the always restless sea.
We laughed hard and ate well, sipped wine, sometimes kombucha, coffee, or tea. Made some sweet new connections and created some pretty amazing photos.
The retreat was not hyper-scheduled (thank God) there was plenty of time to relax, soak in the incredible surroundings, and indulge in your alone time if that’s what you needed, no judging- not all of us are social butterflies. Some of us need more recharge time in social settings if you know, you know.
With this creative retreat in mind and some prompting from Hello Glow Branding (thank you Jess) I have been reassessing my work and my why. Among other things- And it’s a lot.
I’m assessing where I want and need changes in my business. I think it’s a good thing to reevaluate every once in a while on all levels, not just the business side of things. Life is too short to get stuck in a rut, and I do feel that’s exactly where I’ve ended up. A big iced-up rut the size of a giant Earth Mover tire, and I’m spinning to get out of its deep, unrelenting trench.
There are some big changes brewing. New ideas have been seeping into the cracks for a while now. Little glimpses of light showing me the way.
In the meantime, I’ll be backing up the hard drive and purging out the clutter. Pressing the refresh button.
Until next week.
xo
Tam
For the Creatives
Here are some links to check out when you have some time, through this never-ending month.
Reboot, Recharge, Learn + Grow
Inner Illume - Creative Retreats
Kristine Nyborg - Photography Workshops, and Mentoring
Happy creative - Workshops, Business Coaching and Mentoring, for Photographers
Hello Glow Brands - Jess Trachsel Personal Brand Coach
Pacific Sands Resort - Tofino BC Canada
If you enjoyed this little read please share it with someone, because that would make my day and hopefully brighten theirs.
Hi there, I’m Tamara Dayle. Born and raised on the Canadian prairies. I am a wife and mom of two grown men and three unruly fur turds that rule the roost.
I am also a life photographer, storyteller and writer - Mishaps and Milestones is 100% reader-supported. Thank you for joining me while I write about all the sweet and chaotic moments this life throws my way.
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Warm coffee cheers
Tam