Here are some common questions we’ve received. If yours is not here, contact us and we’d be happy to answer it.
Absolutely not. We welcome anyone who is passionate about improving their photography skills and who enjoys traveling to beautiful locations.
Absolutely not. If you do not have dietary limitations, you are welcome to order whatever you want when dining with us. Jeff, our co-leader, enjoys his gluten fixes when we are dining out.
However, all of our travel snacks provided by us will be gluten free (e.g., candy, fruit, chips, bars).
Yes! All of our gluten free dining options also offer vegetarian options. Our daughter, and our daughter-in-law are vegetarian so we know how to accommodate these diets both with our snacks and with our dining options.
Prior to a shoot, we will let you know what to expect - everything from what it will take to get to the shoot location (e.g., time, trail, terrain, sunrise / sunset time, potential photograph opportunities en-route), what we hope to shoot and how it might be best composed, to possible camera settings, and so on.
Once on location, we will set up and illustrate a couple of composition ideas. We encourage creativity and will provide ideas on how to work the area. The rest is up to you.
We will work with you on composition ideas, camera settings, and taking a couple of test shots. We will spend as much time with you "one-on-one" as you find helpful.
If you are a more advanced photographer, our goal is to get you to the right place at the right time. We are available as need be for questions & ideas.
Sunrise shoots
We aim to be at a sunrise location 45-60 minutes before sunrise. Many times the light before sunrise can actually be as spectacular as the sunrise itself. We will often stay at a sunrise location for 30 minutes or more after sunrise. It depends on the subject, the clouds and how the light is lighting up the subject/landscape before us.
Sunset Shoots
We aim to be at a sunset location often 1-2 hours before sunset. We definitely want to be set up to capture the golden hour. We will often stay at a sunset location for 30 minutes or more after sunset to capture the scene during the blue hour.
Most of our workshops involve easy to moderate hiking to get to the best photography location. You will be most comfortable and get the most out of your photography trip, if you are comfortable hiking 3-4 miles with your gear.
Our itineraries offer a general guidelines on what to expect from shoot to shoot. For our trips, a rating of:
- EASY - means < 2 miles walking over mostly level ground.
- MODERATE - means walking 2-4 miles with up to 500 feet in elevation change.
- STRENUOUS - means walking 4-8 miles or more, with over 500 feet in elevation change.
If you have any questions about a particular trip or even a particular shoot, please contact us.
We will send a recommended packing list prior to the trip. The recommended packing list will be for clothing as well as gear. Depending on the season, some of our shoot locations can be quite cold or very hot and dry so having the appropriate clothing will make sure you are comfortable during our shoots.
In general
For all our trips we recommend participants have a comfortable pair of hiking boots. Although we may not be doing aggressive hikes, the southwest is full of slickrock and cacti. A good pair of hiking boots will give you good traction on the slick rock and provide some protection against cactus needles.
We also recommend having lightweight sun protective clothing.
No. Adobe Photoshop is a rich editing tool. If you are not familiar with it, we can help you get started. You do not need to know Photoshop to participate in our workshops or work sessions.
No, but we encourage you to have at least downloaded a trial copy onto your laptop before the workshop. We do most of our photo organizing, post processing and printing through Lightroom. You will benefit more from our hands-on workshops if you have Ligthroom available on your machine and have some familiarity with it.
Do you have a place you would like to photograph, but you don't see it listed?
Yes, Sweet Light Photos would be happy to work with you on customizing a trip to meet your needs. Whether you'd like to visit one of the places we've photographed, but don't see it listed as a workshop. OR maybe our workshop dates don't work for your schedule.
Contact us with your desired location and dates and we'll do our best to accommodate.
If you cancel more than 60 days prior to the workshop start date, you will be given a full refund less a $100 cancellation fee. If you cancel between 30 and 60 days prior to the workshop start date, we will retain your deposit but will return any additional money that you may have paid. There will be no refunds if you cancel less than 30 prior to the workshop start date.
While this can be difficult to hear, it is a necessity. Each workshop requires a significant amount of preparation and expense. In addition, it can be difficult to fill your vacated spot if less than 30 days remains. However, if your spot is filled, we will refund your entire payment(s) less a $100 cancellation fee.