One of the best things I’ve done for my creativity and business is doing little easy editorial shoots while on vacation. I know, I know, you’re not supposed to work while on vacation. But it doesn’t count as work if you’re growing and there are no deadlines. It’s more like… creative education via a new experience. Here’s a few reasons I would 100% recommend doing an editorial shoot while on vacation, like I did between canoeing, hiking, and other incredible activities while on the Big Island of Hawaii.
1 – FALL IN LOVE WITH WHAT YOU DO (AGAIN)
Even if you’ve shot dozens of couples before, shooting one in a new location can bring energy, joy, and intensity back into your next sessions. It can trigger a little more fire in your heart in doing what you love. You will thank yourself later!
2 – MAKING A BUZZ ON YOUR SOCIAL MEDIA ABOUT IT
While you’re ignoring everything on vacation, the social medias can pay for it. Getting a few candid iPhone shots or gifs while doing this shoot and posting them mid-vacay can help your social media stay consistent. You can also just use your professional camera to take some beautiful lifestyle, scenic, or candid photos to fill this void.
3 – MORE CONTENT & MATERIAL SO YOU DON’T RUN LOW
It’s always nice to have gorgeous images that you love to pop in your feed every so often (or blog!) when you’re unsure what to post. It also helps mix up your work so that it doesn’t all look too similar as far as location, style, and season go.
4 – TAKING PHOTOS SOMEWHERE COULD BOOK YOU CLIENTS THERE TOO
Especially if you want to be a traveling photographer, booking a shoot in a certain location and doing a good job tagging locations and nearby areas/vendors could help you book future shoots there. The images below are from when I went to Kona, Hawaii, where we had an absolute blast doing anything and everything. I’d go back anytime to shoot a wedding!
If you can find a paying customer, great, but if not, I’d get the word out and do one for free. Doing free shoots can get messy, but if you make sure to have your volunteers sign a contract that basically says you owe them nothing but a few photos under your creative discretion, you’re usually in the clear. Making the shoot free guarantees you can choose your models to fit your needs too, wether that be people who are very boho chic, people who have modeled before, or people who have a following on social media.
