I did not hesitate to join Sandra Coan’s certification program. When I say I did not hesitate, I mean it. I did not intend to, but I found a ‘backdoor’ link to her program when it wasn’t officially open and scheduled to talk to Sandra about the program to see if I was a fit. I believe I was the first person in the program because I just KNEW I needed the education she provided after we spoke during that initial phone call back in spring of 2023. Not only that, I needed her teaching style.

I have been a part of several mainstream education platforms throughout the years that are generally viewed as the standard education platforms for photographers. For me, I found I struggled with learning through them because there wasn’t a lot of discussion, it was video watching without discussion, I didn’t resonate with the teaching style, and many are tailored to you as the artist becoming just like the educator in terms of their style of creating rather than using the knowledge to create the art I want to create.

I joined a Mastermind for photographers at the beginning of 2023. It was during a one-on-one call with the photographer that hosted that group steered me to Sandra when seeing the lighting inconsistencies I was having in my work. I constantly heard ‘find the light’, ‘look for the light’, or ‘study light’ but did not know what this meant. I can look at the light all day long but what am I looking for?? In Sandra’s program, Sandra breaks lighting patterns down in an easy-to-follow manner and suddenly I got it. I dove in and binged all the program videos and got to work.

I was not able to attend the first-ever Sandra Coan Certification retreat in 2023. As you can imagine, I was over the moon elated to attend the July 2024 retreat hosted at the gorgeous McMenamins Edgefield Resort in Portland, Oregon, and to meet all of the wonderful photographers who are in the program. We are literally from all over the world and are all in different stages in our photography businesses. It was not hard to feel like I had known some of these people for years shortly after meeting them.

The retreat itself was three days. We had a couple of different ‘lecture’ style gatherings where we learned about posting on Instagram, lighting techniques with strobe, and how to do model calls for profitability. My favorite part of the retreat was ‘choose your own adventure’ where we could choose to break off either with Sandra herself to ask specific questions about what we were currently problem-solving in terms of strobe use or we could go with another of the photographers who had already earned certification and were teaching some of their techniques. The groups were small so there was plenty of time to ask questions and actually try what we were learning.

A representative from B&H was there with gear for us to rent as well. I rented the Westcott FJ200 strobe and got to work on testing it out for my modern hospital newborn photography. I want my lighting to be consistent from hospital to hospital and that can be difficult with every hospital being different. Using the Sandra Coan lighting method, I knew this could help alleviate that but I’m stubborn and had been putting off trying it because I really didn’t want to lug a bunch of gear into hospitals. At the Sandra Coan Certification retreat, I was able to see how lightweight and portable the FJ200 is and how easy it is to carry into a session. I also got to play around with and create these beautiful images of Sandra’s posing doll Betty, who needs her own line of products but that’s for a different day!

The evenings were filled with chatter, laughter, and yes even tears. I have had a truly hard time finding my tribe. In the photography industry space it can be even harder when there are so many different niches and styles. To sit in a space with some amazing humans who truly are their authentic selves is incredible. This retreat for me became more about solidifying that I am where I need to be. I have taken so much useful knowledge from the retreat that I have already implemented into my photography. I really can’t wait to see how my and my friends from the retreat will grow and transform before the next retreat.

Want to be at next year’s retreat? Yes, you do! Check out the Certification Program here. I am happy to answer questions you have as well so ask away!

If you are a photographer looking to learn more about Modern Hospital Newborn Photography and how to get started in this niche, check out this link.