A little bit over a month ago I was reached out by Shoot my travel to do a photoshoot with them. Since Eric and I rarely get the chance to take pictures together we jumped at the opportunity. Today I'm going to share with you some of the pictures we got and let you know my thoughs about this experience.

What is shoot my travel?

Shoot my travel is a website that connects you with local photographers in different parts or the world to "help you capture the vacation moments you don't want to forget".  They offer different packages  that range from 1 hr (15 pictures) for $195 to 3 hours for $375 (35 pictures). No matter what package you book, you can chose if you're going to be in the pictures by yourself or a small group, or if it will be a couples session.  

How to book:

When you book you book your photoshoot you start by choosing your destination and one of the photographers availables in the area. Then you have to fill a small questionarie with your preferred date (not time), and area of the city. NOTE: This doesn't necesarily mean you're all set with those requests. Once you get connected with your photographer, you have to figure out what date and time work the best for both of you. 

Our Experience part 1 :The bumps on the road

We booked the "You and the city" package and decided we will have our pictures taken by the wrigley building in Chicago. We scheduled the photoshoot for june 10th but our photographer cancelled last minute due tome some issues with the company. I blame this to the fact that this is an startup company and they're still figuring things out. Anyway we ended up having the photoshoot on june 24th. Luckily we live in Chicago and we weren't in a hurry to get this done, but for someone who is traveling with a tight schedule this may be an issue.

Our Experience part 2 :The Photoshoot

Our photographer Petra was really nice, once we got the meeting point we talked a little bit about what we had in mind. She knew I wanted some pictures at the wrigley building so we were headed there first, but that day was really sunny and she let us know the lighting was making very difficult getting good pictures so she suggested to walk around downtown and shoot in different locations. We liked the idea too and that's what we did. I have to say that she is really nice and made us feel very confortable the entire time. The experience of couse was completely different than when we did our engagement session, but I think that considering she is not a wedding/engagement photographer, she managed to take some cute candid pictures of us. I would totally use these on my wedding website!

ps. I think Petra's travel photography skills shined through these next two pictures. I've been living in Chicago for more than 3 years and I've never had a good picture taken at the bean. Petra made that happen!!

Overall thoughts:

I think Shoot my travel is a great option if you're traveling (duh!) and have no idea where to find a photographer. I personally think it is a little bit overprized, considering I paid $50 more for my engagement session and I got almost 100 pictures. The turnaround time is great, I got my pictures in less than a week and I loved pretty much all of them. I don't think the pictures I received were edited and the overal feeling of the photos were not cohesive. In a way I think that was better because it made easier for me to edit the pictures the way I like to make them fit better with my instagram aesthetic (#diditforthegram). To make this experience even better I definitely recommend to communicate with your photographer and let him/her know your expectations and preferences, maybe send them a couple of pictures you love to help them visualize your idea. I also recommend to book this in advance, that way if something unexpected comes up, you'll still have plently of time to find another photographer.

Have you heard about Shoot my Travel before? Let me know your thoughts !