was all i needed to recoup from the awesomeness that was this weekend.
how can i describe the GoPro?
i have been trying to think of ways to sum it up.
when i got to talk out loud to craig about it last night i almost cried….because my heart is full.
for me….it was the absolute perfect environment to learn.
i never have done well in a classroom setting.
i have a very short attention span when put in a setting that is restricting.
so learning like this about something i love was dreamy.
it seemed out of body.
i didn't think that this kind of learning was an option for me…..and that is what made me teary.
having freedom to walk around, talk, interact and say "wait go back…i missed that."
amaaaaaazing.
this is a photo that i like to call "PAY BACK".
crystal b walked in friday morning and i was shocked!
it was such a SUPER surprise for my email friend to walk in the door!
blogland rules!
the entire oceanside of the beach house was floor to ceiling windows.
some people get to live like that everyday??
wow.
everything was high end…very fancy….ooh la la.
check out the creepy 7 foot portly chef statue in the background…..
i did double takes ALL the time thinking someone was standing there.
so weird.
he was a source of entertainment for everyone.
this is the view sitting at the kitchen table.
come on!!!!
"did you see that sky today? TALK about blue." (name that movie)
we had a family shoot to watch and learn.
and then take our own shots.
these are a couple of mine but i didn't edit much like we were taught because i need lots more practice.
the kids were troopers!
then we practiced on each other.
(i am missing two people in the group….sorry girls)
cam was the token dude.
he was good at tolerating the ladies…very fun to be around. HI CAM!!
and tyler is hillarious.
i laughed more this weekend than i have in quite awhile (except for when i was in da club in my cardi)
"being tall is pretty much the most amazing thing you can be"
we had a time learning how to shoot in studio light.
then we had a bridal shoot on THE bridge.
if you know wendy and tyler's work then you know the bridge. :)
gorgeous.
kansas doesn't have views like this in too many places….or anywhere.
today is wendy's birthday!
happy birthday to the coolest red head i know.
every minute was good.
i learned SO MUCH.
i have so many things to remember and review.
i left with a really happy heart and completely encouraged to continue to find MY purpose in photography.
to make my business be what i want it to be.
to be awesome like wendy and tyler.
but that is not possible.
they are out my league in that department.
do you realize they are leaving for the next 9 months to travel & photograph and teach all over the world?!
as a family.
together.
they rock.
in every way.
thanks for THE BEST weekend wendy and tyler.
i had really high expectations and you far exceeded them.
i am full and overflowing with joy.
**********************************************************************
cremation-usa.com - It’s in your interests to create a customer journey from landing to conversion that’s as streamlined.
Wendi Garland - Hi – I looooove your blog. I live here in San Diego so hearing about the Gopro workshop (and that it was right here!) was so neat. I need to go out an find ‘the bridge’ – it looks like a fun spot. Many thanks for your awesome blog.
Debbie - Grrr. I hit post too soon, sorry!
I also wanted to say your photography from the workshop is amazing! I hope we can swap some shots…
Debbie - Again, thank you so much Meg for introducing me to Blue Lily. They were amazing and much better than I could have ever dreamed.
What a joy to meet and visit with you IRL!
I’m getting rest as needed. 🙂
I spent the afternoon with Dana yesterday and continued the party with her. We had a blast!
Trina McNeilly - So happy for you. Looks like it was beyond amazing. Love Wendy and Tyler..so fun to meet them at ALT. And yes, what a dream to travel with you’re fam and take amazing photos!
xo Trina
Tracy Fisher - My favorite part was… “My heart was full”. Lucky girl. Lucky girl. That might be the best description ever.
Tracy Fisher
amy jupin - lots of things i want to tell you, so much happiness for you, so proud of you, so excited for you, but the right words just aren’t coming to me…i guess mostly i want you to know that i feel so happy that you are rediscovering YOU.
that you are getting the chance to do things that you sacrificed before, that you are slowly and most surely becoming who you want to be, discovering that fire in you, and going for it!
there is so much in you meg, so much.
and when i read this post, and see you so insanely happy, i get choked up too.
it’s insane, i know.
it sounds so creepy, i know. i’m sorry.
you look happy and content and comfortable being you and…beautiful too!
the hair! and the little bits of long bangs!
ok, ok…like i said, the right words are missing. but i bet you know exactly what i mean, don’t you, friend? 🙂
Kristin S - So glad you enjoyed your time!
Kellie S. - LOVE your haircut
so happy for you and envious of your creative life!
jennifer - It sounds (and looks!) like you had such an amazing time. Yeah! And I super, duper love your hair. It looks so good on you!
Heather - I’m so happy for you, Meg!!! So amazing.
Gemma @ Musings of a gem - What a great time you had!! The pictures are lovely. It must of been a very inspirational location : )
Gemma x
Rach - Alright… now I want to go! 🙂
Danyelle - What a wonderful, happy experience! I can relate to your overwhelming feelings, that always happens to me too. 🙂
Oh, and hooray for meeting Crystal B. She one of my favorite people. So kind + genuine.
danielle - YOUR HAIR! oh my goodness it is fabulous.
“in da club in my cardi”
bahahah
Anne Marie - first time here I “think”…..and this ‘go pro’ sounds like it was a very enhancing experience! I would love to go to something like that –
Tiffany - how cure is ur haircut! thanks for sharing ur experience, it’s fun to read your words and to share in the excitement. i’m not a weirdo. promise.
Amanda Evans - OK, so I may have cried a little seeing one of the pics you took of Ken and I. I love it. LOVE it. Thanks so much, if you could email it to me I would really appreciate it.
Amanda 🙂
Camforbes - SMIIIIIILE CHICK!
Ha ha… quite awesome indeed. It was an incredible pleasure to have had the opportunity to meet “the one and only” Megan rockstar blogger mom photographer (any titles I’ve missed? lemme know…)
Hey, I’ve got some kick butt photos to send you… of you.
I consider myself blessed to have spent time with and learned from you and the group last weekend.
Check yer emails.
All the best,
Cam
AshleyAnn - Wahoo….I’ve been waiting for this post. I am a bit distracted by your awesome haircut! I can’t wait to see where all this leads for you…good times.
Jaala Allen - Thanks for the Emperor’s New Groove reference. One of my all time fav movies. Thanks for sharing these! How fun! What part of CA were you in??
Rebecca - You hair looks AWESOME, very good cut for you! keep up the great blog!
lisa - emperor’s new groove is THE best most quotable movie in our house. and it’s not because of our 11 month old … i have loved that movie for YEARS!
beautiful pics … awesome trip! luckeeeeeee!!
Katy Frame - Great pictures, as always. Glad to see that you’re back safely and that you had a blast. 🙂
I found a couple of things out in blogland today that reminded me of you..
http://sweetlittlesmoothie.blogspot.com/2011/03/everythings-coming-up-rainbows.html
http://www.crystalandcomp.com/2010/07/coolest-rainbow-birthday-cake-ever.html
Lindsay - What a fun adventure! And as a side note, love your new haircut!!!
Sugar Mama - Meg,
My heart is full FOR you. I was overwhelmed with emotion reading this, especially when you wrote that you felt you had found your true purpose. That tells me that we can ALL have that… we just might have to put ourselves out there.
What an incredible experience for you. Thank you for sharing it with all of us and reminding people like me that we CAN feel full from the things we love in life.
Elizabeth - Okay – this has absolutely not one little thing to do with photography (sorry!) but i am dying to know just where you got that shirt you’re wearing in the last pictures?!? the cream colored one you’re wearing over the green?!? I am in LOVE!!! It looks so beautiful on you!!! please do share…
CathyC - Meg, you look So Happy!! I’m glad you had a wonderful time. And your hair Rocks!!! 🙂
Peggyrice@gmail.com - Thanks to your first blog post about this I found their site and asked if they could come to Paris and they said YES!!! We are getting our family photos with them and I’m beyond excited!
Jen - Firstly, I love your hair do. It’s my favorite do on you of those you’ve had since I started reading your blog! It’s always nice, but this one is especially so and the color suits you so well.
I am so pleased to hear that you had a great time! How wonderful it looks.
I am still going on and on about having family snaps by Wendy & Tyler down here in Melbourne, Aus in a little over a month. When you do your world tour, I’ll book in too 🙂
Rachel - GAH! That sounds like an AMAZING experience!!!
And I am kinda laughing at myself for trying to figure out what those flying saucers were in the first ocean picture! hee hee!
Courtney - I’ve already noticed an improvement in your work and I mean that in the absolute nicest way! I hope that’s read as a compliment 🙂
Heather - I love that you had that opportunity. What a beautiful setting! I already think that your photos are absolutely top notch. But being better is always so fun! I can’t wait.
Rebekah - I’ve been reading your blog for awhile… maybe commented once. Then a few days ago I read your story about getting married young, five babies in ten years, etc. Now to read about your new experiences in figuring out your style (love the MJ clothes, too), a passion in photography, having the opportunity to learn/travel…. I am so happy for you! You’ve found your “sweet spot” as Max Lucado would say. 🙂 Congrats and blessings.
karen - So great Meg!! FYI..your shots are great!
Love that red neckalace. You look super in dark hair..go black!!
Janet - Yay! I am so happy for you that you got to go, enjoyed it, learned some things and had fun!
Kris - Wow….what a wonderful opportunity! I hopped over from my friend Holly’s blog, and found myself going back, and back and back to read as much of your blog as I could. On the photography, I love it too, and so does my daughter. In fact, she got way into it, and has taken a few online classes, and is now doing some photo sessions for friends. She would have loved to do this workshop. We are near San Diego too!!!
I love your blog. So fun. I will be back.
Kris
the.mrs - So fun!! And Wendy’s bag!! You could do a giveaway of that bag with this entry as the only entry and I would not be angry!! 😉
amanda - Such great pictures! And the sky .. wow, it is really blue!
Heather - Glad you had a great time, but I am posting because I can’t get over how good this haircut is on you! 🙂
Laura Phelps - you under estimate your talent my dear friend
you are in a league of your own
this is beyond fabulous
melissa stover - i think that’s incredible. i’d love to be able to do something like that.
Kacey - Sooo thrilled for you, Meg! I know it was absolutely fabulous. We just loved Wendy when she did our family photos – I bet she is an amazing teacher.
Thanks for letting us live vicariously through you. Some day I will go to a GoPro workshop!
Kacey
crystalbeutler - I am laughing my head off at “pay back” I look INSANE!! Sadly, I think I look like that most of the time. 🙂
My favorite comment all weekend was “I have news for you, he already knows he’s short! No surprise there!” So funny.
It was super awesome spending the weekend with you!! Hope we can do it again sometime. Like at some cool craft retreat . . . hummmm still trying to figure out how we can make that one happen.
Cari - The beach. Sigh….
So glad you had a wonderful time. Your joy is spilling over.
Shayne - So glad you had a wonderful time!
Love your new cut, btw.
mel - So fun!!!! What an amazing opportunity!
I would LOVE to do something like that one day!
So happy for you & can’t wait to see even more awesome photos from you! 🙂
Kimberlee J. - Do you know how happy I am for you?! I love it that you got to go there. I love it that you learned the way you need to learn. I love it that the people you lived with for the weekend weren’t Sleeping with the Enemy Weird AND I love it that I will get to see you put it into practice here. Shine on.
Kelly - Love, love your hair, Meg. Such a fun weekend. So glad you got to go. Kelly
Cory - Oh my goodness! This looks stinkin’ amazing!
P.S. It’s super awesome that you added a link to Libby’s story under your happy things!
Carolyn Dewey - Looks like a really fun time. I am SOOOO homesick for California. LOVED your photos of the BLUE sky and ocean and I’m stuck here in Kansas! Kansas has its moments, but there’s NO place like Southern California!
Renae - Hey Meg, looks like a fantastic time was had by all! I wanted to share a site of a photog friend of mine whom I think is amazing and does beautiful and amazing work. She works out of Fremont, Nebraska so we have a lot of the same types of settings (though nothing like the bridge) that you probably have in Kansas! I thought you might get some inspiration from her!!
http://www.beckynovacekphotography.com
happygirl - Either every person you photographed is GORGEOUS or, YOU REALLY ARE TAKING AMAZING PICTURES!! I wish I could look as great as the folks in the pics you took. I LOVE IT.
Heather @ Cookie Mondays - What an amaaaazing experience!
I am so happy for you!
I’m so jealous you got to meet Trish! One of my favorite bloggy friends.
And now, after seeing your photos I am totally geared up for my trip home in two weeks!!! (I’m making Cindy’s yummy quiche one of the mornings.)
Now, please teach us everything you learned 🙂
Lena K. - hey, you were 4 miles from my house! You passed my house off the 76 to get to the old bridge! Glad the rain wasn’t too crazy.
Sara - I am so proud of you for going, and by the way, LOVE the haircut. Its SOOOO cute. Sassy even. Heh heh.
Maria - Looks like such a Fun weekend! I love your new do! So cute!
Tricia - Your trip sounds amazing! I’m glad that you were able to have that experience. Love your new hair cut!
Karen Gerstenberger - I’m rejoicing with you – at God’s goodness and love for each of us, exactly as He made us. This is another proof of that, to me. Thanks for sharing the joy with us!
Hoosier at Heart - What an amazing opportunity for you. I’m so happy for you that you were able to go, learn and enjoy yourself so much. Keep sharing with us and don’t forget about us little people when you’re all famous and everything.
Mary - haha, I laughed out loud when I read “in da club in my cardi”. Only because that’s me…and I’m only 21.
I’m so happy you had a wonderful time, Meg! I love your blog!
Holly Cox - I’ve got a question…SOMEONE ANSWER because it’s driving me nuts….
Is the girl in this pic : http://megduerksen.typepad.com/.a/6a00d8341c469c53ef0147e2e6bc75970b-pi (long dark hair in the middle)
one of the girls from the Eighteen25 Blog, in this pic:
http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-K8Ht6B8EIc4/TVsTtlRcCpI/AAAAAAAAJRA/qx1sqjWxtW8/s1600/IMG_8404_web+copy.jpg
(long dark hair in the middle)
If not, they could so be twins!
Valerie@Chateaualamode.typepad.com - First of all you are totally rockin’ that new haircut. So glad that your expectations were over and above what you had hoped. Go Meg!
shauna reed - um.
i want to steal that necklace in those last photos.
really.
if i was there i might just rip it right off.
SO glad you had a good time meg!
kat - Lucky, lucky, LUCKY girl!!! That sounds amazing on every possible level!
Shannon - I was in San Diego last week! It is a fantastic place! So beautiful. The fact that people get to live like that everyday makes me so envious! I was actually kinda depressed when I got back. Glad you got a chance to enjoy the beauty. To bad it was cold….brrr!
georgia - Sounds like a supeR cOol weekend!
I see they are in london, if only I was wedding saving I wud be there in a blink of an eye!
Trish - lovely 🙂 i’m going to pull out my photos tonight and see what i have too. my brain hurts. 🙂
Ryanne - wow, i was kind of jealous when you first posted about your go pro weekend. but now i am so happy for you. congratulations and keep up the good work. and thanks for the 411 on the tummy trimming leggings. totally trying them.
Courtney Walsh - so so awesome.
i mean, learning new things in a creatively conducive environment is so inspiring!! so so fun. 🙂
Holly - very cool! Looks like you had an awesome time!