Last month, I was absolutely giddy with joy to get a coveted spot in Illuminated Classes "The Magic of Light Workshop," an online photography course created and taught by the incredibly talented Summer Murdock. She has been a source of inspiration for me for a while and I knew I had to take this course, although getting in is not easy. The class sold out in about 4 minutes flat this year. Thanks to high speed internet, my trusty iMac, dexterous fingers, and a little stroke of luck, I got in!

So, I'm not going to give away anything that is taught in the class, but I wanted to share my work from it and some reflections!

1. Beautiful light doesn't just appear in front of you - you have to look for it and sometimes even chase it. One of the best things about the class (aside from all the amazing technical lessons taught) was just that it simply heightened my awareness about light and I found I was constantly looking for it. So, when I was playing out in the garden with Theo, I was immediately captivated by the beads of morning dew on these plants we have, and the light flickering off of them. I ran inside and grabbed both of my cameras - the freelensed one below turned out to be my favorite. Equally, I was at this old wooden playground with the boys, and looking for light. I thought, "hmmm I wonder how it looks inside of that treehouse" and BAM. My favorite photo of the month - never would have thought to do that before!

inside the treehouse by laura barr photography

2. ...but ALL light can be interesting - as a mom of two young boys, its really hard to get out during the golden hour when its dinner, tubby and bed time. This course helped me see all of the different ways to use light and all of the different kinds of light I could utilize because there's way more to light than the golden hour.

waiting for a friend by laura barr photography

3. A "good" photograph is not about technical excellence or perfect people/places - those things help you make nice photos, but a truly "good" photograph is one that has the power to move the viewer. It's about the emotion that the photographer feels and how they capture the essence of that in the frame.

4. Photographer's FOMO is real - I have a serious case of FOMO when it comes to photography. Like, sometimes, I CAN NOT STOP for fear of missing something. This was never more true than during "the magic of light" - any twinkle, ray, or beam of light would have me running for my camera! I love being that excited about something, but constantly have to remind myself that there will always be more light! That's the beauty.

5. Tapping into your creative juices is essential - this course made me feel ALIVE. I love my job and I adore photographing babies and families, but stretching myself and my creativity was life giving. Even if you think you're not creative, you are. Follow your curiousity and explore it, you won't be disappointed!