May 2027 In O’Keeffe’s Backyard
A Sheography Alumnae Creative Photo Retreat
Sold out—contact Colleen for waitlist
DATES: May 31-June 4, 2027
BEGINS: At 4:00 p.m. on May 31
ENDS: At 10:00 a.m. on June 4 (which is hotel checkout)
COST: $2395/person
DEPOSIT: $500/person with the remaining balance due in February 2027
ACTIVITY LEVEL: Easy to moderately strenuous. Best suited for active, sure-footed participants who are capable of hiking up to two-miles roundtrip on uneven, rocky, or sandy uphill terrain while carrying their gear. Participants should have a 2WD high clearance vehicle they are willing to drive short distances (less than 5 miles) on dirt/gravel roads.
MAX PARTICIPANTS: 9 women, open to Sheography alumnae only
WORKSHOP DESCRIPTION
Calling all Sheographers! You're invited to the second-ever, top-secret, invite-only creative photography retreat in Georgia O'Keeffe’s “backyard” at the Ghost Ranch outside of Abiquiu, New Mexico.
We'll base ourselves at the remote Casa del Sol house (which is located behind a locked gate and not accessible to the general public unless via a private, paid tour with the Ghost Ranch). There, we'll have unprecedented access to some of the most beautiful parts of Ghost Ranch, known as "Georgia's Backyard." Walk right out our door to photograph in landscapes in which Georgia wandered freely and created her inspiring work for over 30 years. Towering cliffs, rolling siltstone hills, wildflowers, creek beds, and juniper trees with character await.
Unlike the typical Sheography workshop, this trip will focus more on an immersive field-based experience. Our days will be more loosely structured. Mornings, afternoons, and evenings will be dedicated to exploring our surroundings and creating our own portfolio of work in our own preferred locations around the Ghost Ranch.
In between, daily creative exercises (new ones! Not haikus!), in-depth discussions, and image reviews will have us expanding our understanding of:
Using mindfulness to deepen our relationship with the land
Expressing emotions visually
Using available light, color, shapes, and relationships to create shapeful and meaningful photographs
Defining our personal answers to "why to" photograph--putting more of ourselves in our photographs
As with all Sheography workshops, the workshop's curriculum will be developed from the participants interests (collected through a pre-workshop questionnaire) and tailored to both individual and group needs. Participants will also have ample opportunity to ask questions, experiment, and get immediate feedback.
This growth-centric, safe, supportive, and non-competitive environment aims to help you continue to "Put the HER in the photograpHER®" at the Ghost Ranch!
**IMPORTANT NOTE: We will be photographing both from The Ghost Ranch and surrounding public lands. The Ghost Ranch permits photographs created on their private property to be used for personal, non-commercial use only. Any commercial use requires prior permission from the Ghost Ranch Production Manager. If this is of interest to you, please contact Colleen to discuss further and to arrange. To read more about the Ghost Ranch's policy, visit www.ghostranch.org/commercial-photography/.**
WORKSHOP INCLUDES:
Four (4) nights lodging in a private room at the Casa del Sol house at Ghost Ranch from Sunday, June 2 until Thursday, June 6. (Four rooms have en suite bathrooms and can be reserved on a first-come, first-served basis for an additional $300/person--please request early! Rooms will be assigned first-come, first-served based on registration date.)
Photography instruction (classroom, field, critiques) and handouts
Permits, entry fees, and activities fees
Cool Sheography™ swag!
WORKSHOP EXCLUDES:
Airfare (the ABQ airport is about a two-hour drive from the Ghost Ranch)
Transportation to/from/during the workshop (carpooling will be encouraged due to permit restrictions)
Participant meals (which we will discuss as a group; options include: bringing your own food, preparing and sharing group meals at the house, registering for meals at the dining hall, or some combination of all three)
Trip insurance
CANCELLATION POLICY
All cancellations must be provided in writing. Cancellations made:
At least 61 days prior to the workshop start date: A full refund of all monies paid, minus a $250 administrative fee, will be granted.
60-31 days prior to the workshop start date: A refund of 50% of all monies paid will be granted.
30 days or less prior to the workshop start date: No refunds will be issued.
Any requests to transfer a participants registration to another CMS Photography workshop or to another participant will be treated as a cancellation. The above policy will dictate which monies, if any, shall transfer.
Although rare, CMS Photography reserves the right to cancel a workshop for any reason at our discretion. Should we decide to cancel a workshop, we will refund your registration fees in full.
Also, CMS Photography also reserves the right to modify a workshop itinerary based on local or federal restrictions beyond our control (e.g. COVID-19 restrictions, government shutdowns, closed sites). Should a registrant choose to cancel because of these changes, our standard cancellation policy outlined above applies.
There are no exceptions to these policies.
CMS Photography strongly encourages you to purchase trip insurance with a "Cancel for Any Reason" clause immediately after paying your deposit to protect yourself in the event of unexpected circumstances preventing you from attending our workshops. Consider contacting AAA, your credit cards, or other notable trip insurance companies for appropriate policies.