South Africa. February 2025.

About a year ago I stumbled upon a Facebook post from a Minneapolis based photographer who was born in South Africa. Each year she hosts a few styled shoot retreats in South Africa. As I look through the her photos + recaps from previous trips, I fell in love. But then doubt crept in "I can't go to South Africa.....that's so far away....that's so expensive."

So I pondered for a few days, and finally said, "nope. I'm DOING this." It was the weirdest feeling.

A voice in my head was saying, "Crystal, you NEED to do this. This opportunity landed in your lap for a reason." However, I felt that I didn't want to do this alone, so I texted Kayla and threw the idea past her and within ten minutes, it was a yes from her. We were doin the damn thing.

After downloading about 20 movies for the 15 hour plane ride so I had options - to which I watched just one, I found myself thinking "What do I want out of this trip." I came up with the following.

1.Stunning Images

2.Photo with an elephant

3.Connect with the other creatives

3.Increased confidence

5.Challenge my fears

6.Explore the different cultures

7.New perspectives

And I checked each of those boxes.

To tell the entire story, or even attempt to type it, would take more scrolling than is already planned for ya'll,

so I'll keep it simple :)

Thanks for stopping by, I hope you can see the beauty + magic in every photo.

We stayed at the most beautiful + welcoming bush camp. The employees were the absolute sweetest, the chefs were top tier (we ate ostrich, and honestly it was REALLY GOOD) and the cocktails hit the spot every time.

Isambane Bush Camp Website

There was no shortage of wildlife around and IN our tent. Totally out of my comfort zone to have little creepy crawlies in my living space as I prefer to GLAMP not CAMP hehe. I can OFFICIALLY say I conquered my fear of spiders.

We had Lizards, Spiders, Stick Bugs, and Praying Mantis in our tent.... + a Mouse IN our BED. Ask me about this one later.. it's a good one.

Q: So what is a content retreat?

Basically, a content retreat is the perfect opportunity to capture stunning photos, connect with other photographers + creatives in the industry, + spark creativity in yourself and your business.

Q: So you're going to South Africa to take photos of people you don't know?

Yep. Pretty much. But honestly, at the end of our retreat these "strangers" became friends. Tears were shed as we said our goodbyes, the entire group meshed so well. Literally the best group ever. And most of us were from MN!