Yeah Field Trip isn’t your average photography convention. It’s more of a hippiefied mélange of various institutions – part summer camp, art school, artist collective and spiritual boot camp. Held every year over the span of about a week in California, Yeah Field Trip is open to photographers and creatives who want to meet up, unplug and create photo and video art in the woods (sometimes clothing optional). As a newcomer to the annual event, I had no idea what to expect at this year’s “Yeah Field Trip, Mountain Edition” in Lake Arrowhead, California.
The brain-child of photographer and Smilebooth creator Whitney Chamberlin, the weeklong “playcation” that is Yeah Field Trip could see you being bunkmates with some of the most recognized photographers, bloggers, and creatives in the business. In the few days that I spent at Field Trip, I bumped into viral creative photographer Ben Von Wong and joined him for a quick time-lapse photography session in the snow, took a sunrise photo walk with Sony Artisan and filmmaker Chris Burkard, and was roommates with HGTV.com star, author, and blogger Erin Loechner. Basically, you finally get to break through that fourth wall and get to interact with some of the stars of the social media stage IRL instead of just liking their photos on Instagram.
The attendees this year, around 500, were a mix of millennial newcomers to the photography industry, seasoned professional photographers in their forties, and even married couples who attended with their young children in tow. Cameron Wiley, a 27-year-old Kansas City-based wedding photographer told me, “I’m excited to be here because not only am I going to be learning about photography, but the event also focuses on well-being. It’s a cool way to connect with others and not just focus on the technical side of things.” Married wedding photographers We Are The Parsons brought all three of their children along to Yeah Field Trip, where the young couple would be presenting a tear-jerking intimate talk about their experience photographing couples on the most important day of their lives. (Not a dry eye in the room for that one…)
While attendance to Field Trip is not cheap (almost $1,000 for the admission ticket in addition to paying for room and board), many young photographers save all year to attend. Some attendees may come looking for networking opportunities and professional development, but one of the biggest draws of Yeah Field Trip is that it’s also somewhat of a wild party from day one.
There are all-night dance parties (including opening night at the ACE Hotel in Downtown L.A.), naked photo sessions in the woods, mid-day drunken dodgeball sessions in the snow (all optional, of course). The theme of the entire week is not one of reckless abandonment by any means, but rather one of letting go, going with the flow, and being open to adventures with other “Field Trippers”—and hopefully make some beautiful pictures in the process! I have to admit, on Day One, this was a little much for my normally A-type personality, who was there on assignment and was not at all excited about having to share a room with seven strangers in a bunk bed situation. But by Day Three, after having dug deep and bonded with other Field Trippers during emotional talks about our personal goals, where we all wanted to be in our lives and careers, and the art we wanted to create, it was time to just go with it. By this point in my journey, therefore, it seemed totally normal when I ran into my Australian bunkmate, photographer Rachel Smuin, during a break between workshops and she told me she was off for a topless bike ride/photoshoot in the snow and asked if I wanted to join. Ok, totally normal by this point. Nothing is shocking at Field Trip!
While the general focus is on photography, with the event featuring sponsored workshops from Sony, Canon, Nikon, and Leica, the itinerary also included yoga classes, journaling workshops, and watercolor painting. (It would have even included a “sound bath with wolves” if, as the rumor was, the wolves hadn’t been recruited last minute for filming Game of Thrones. Still trying to figure out if that was a joke or not…but again, nothing is shocking at Field Trip!)
Some of the photography workshops were structured more like heart-to-heart conversations or roundtables where all attendees explored the deeper levels of what it meant to be a photographer or visual storyteller. There were also plenty of opportunities to hone in on your technical skills with all levels of gear, which was loaned out as part of the cost of attendance for the entire trip. (I always wanted to try out a Leica rangefinder, and was able to take one for a spin during this trip. Unfortunately, I soon found out I’m not a natural when it comes to using a rangefinder…)
Ryan Muirhead, a favorite photographer of many of the millennials in attendance, taught a workshop called, “Slowing Down and Staying Present.” Known for his stunning portraits of young, often nude, beautiful models, as well as his emotionally raw photos of people at their most vulnerable state – including pictures of his sister at her young child’s funeral – Muirhead encouraged other photographers to open up and be vulnerable in their work. The young photographer held his workshop outside, sitting cross-legged on the ground with attendees gathered casually around as he repeatedly apologized for not having a more formal presentation.
“In a weird kind of way, I don’t love photography,” Muirhead told a rapt audience. “I’m really comfortable saying that. I really, really, really wanted an excuse to connect with people and talk about stuff that was hard for me,” Muirhead explained as he described how photography was his vehicle to that place where humans connect. In that spirit, the only exercise he asked us to do was to choose a partner, someone we didn’t already know, and sit quietly looking at each other in silence for five minutes before taking each other’s portraits. My partner seemed a little nervous to look me in the eye at first, but we eventually settled into the exercise and he opened up and smiled naturally for the portrait I shot of him. A very simple exercise, but effective. Muirhead’s was one of the most popular workshops of Field Trip, with many photographers attending several of his subsequent talks and presentations.
So many of the attending photographers I met at Field Trip seemed to echo the sentiment expressed by Muirhead during his workshop. Everyone I met on the trip seemed to be there on a journey towards something, even if they weren’t sure what it might be. “I felt kind of lost as a photographer,” says 21-year-old Kaylee Forbes. I wasn’t loving [photography]…So I think I came with the intention of maybe just trying to figure myself out.” During the trip, Kaylee got to spend some one-on-one time with photographers she’s been following a long time on social media, Whitney Chamberlain and Anna Palmer. “That was a little surreal,” she told me of their meeting. “Total fan girl… They really encouraged us,” describing how she was brought to tears as they encouraged her to discuss some of the deeper levels of what drives her photography and art.
These kinds of revelatory moments seem to be the main draw for everyone at Yeah Field Trip. Whether it happens for you during the all-night Lazers and Blazers dance party, or during a one-on-one sunrise discussion with Chris Burkard at the top of a snowy mountain… there are so many opportunities during this one-of-a-kind event to explore and find what it is you might be seeking. It’s almost like a scavenger hunt in search of your creative muse. Attending Yeah Field Trip and getting the opportunity to meet and adventure with so many different artists re-ignited my passion for photography in a way that I was surprised was possible. If you are looking to rediscover why you became a photographer in the first place, Yeah Field Trip might be a great experience for you.
To purchase tickets for Yeah Field Trip 2018, click here.
