If you’re part of the Sony family, you know we love bringing content creators together to make magic happen. For the past year, we’ve hosted Be Alpha events in 17 cities in the US and Canada, where thousands of content creators came to play. We find this to be a winning experience for all: we get to show off our industry-leading cameras and lenses and our community gets to build their creative portfolios, meet like-minded individuals and strike up long-lasting friendships, and add some currency to their fun bank.

This year we have two events that are all of the above times one thousand: the two-day, three-night Kando Trip creative extravaganza, now in its third year, and the newly announced Camera Camp, a one-day video-focused experience built in partnership with the stellar duo of iJustine and Jenna Ezarik. Needless to say, we’re so excited we can barely contain ourselves. And, while we may be a bit biased, we do believe that if there’s one workshop experience you should attend this year, it should be one—or BOTH—of these. Here is why:

Kando Trip

We started Kando Trip two years ago as a summit of the creative minds in the Sony sphere: Sony Artisans of Imagery, Alpha Imaging Collective, personalities from the content creator arena, and the Sony North America team. It was such a mind-blowing experience that we knew immediately that not only would it become a yearly tradition, but we would also want to open it up to the greater creator community as an experience they wouldn’t be able to find anywhere else. Fast forward two years later—we’re less than two months away from Kando Trip 3.0, and we couldn’t be happier with how this year’s experience is coming together—starting with the location, the stunning Sunriver Resort in Oregon, and continuing with the amazing set of people joining us, the workshops led by some of the most brilliant minds in photography and video, and the surprise experiences we’re planning. We’re also making an even bigger investment in community this year by having a full day overlap between our ambassador community and our guest participants, where they can get to know each other, learn, and build friendships that could last a lifetime.

Camera Camp

iJustine and Jenna Ezarik enjoyed Kando Trip so much last year, that they lovingly dubbed it “Camera Camp” –see Jenna’s fun montage—and decided they wanted to give their community the same experience for video creation. So that’s how #SonyCameraCamp was born. The full day workshop experience will take place in beautiful Flathead Lake, Montana, and will include lots of classes, a massive video scavenger hunt, spending quality time with cool people, and having the kind of fun that doesn’t come around every day. One hundred lucky participants will be selected via an application and will get the opportunity to mingle with hosts Justine and Jenna, and other video content creators and YouTube personalities. Watch Jenna’s and Justine’s videos to get the low-down.

There are many important reasons a content creator should join Kando Trip and Camera Camp, but here are the top four:

The People

As Jenna says in iJustine’s Camera Camp video, “sometimes finding friends AND inspiration is actually the hardest part in life.” It’s true, and that’s why we’ve made it our mission to help creators find both. Kando Trip will have over 150 Sony Artisans of Imagery, Alpha Imaging Collective members, and industry influencers present, and participants will get a chance to spend two evenings and one full day with these amazing creators who are ready to share their experience and answer questions. Then there are the participants themselves, who we’ve found last year to be extraordinary humans with a desire to learn, engage with others, and be their best selves—see Justine’s excitement about meeting some of her best creator friends at last year’s Kando Trip. The crowd at Camera Camp will be just as inspiring, with lots of video content creators coming together to make magic happen.

The Workshops

There’s no other workshop experience available that brings together so many amazing teachers all in one place. Over 20 luminaries from the photography and video industries will be teaching their best kept secrets. Where else would you be able to go on a sunrise shoot with Colby Brown, learn portraiture from Brian Smith, create a timelapse with Drew Geraci, learn interviewing skills from Taylor Rees, and go on an astro shoot with Rachel Ross, all in the same day? Not to mention the sets and models you’ll have at your disposal to create shoots that you’ve been dreaming of doing but haven’t had the resources for.

The Gear

Regardless of what camera you currently own, you know Sony makes award-winning cameras and lenses, and if you enjoy keeping up with the latest innovations, you also know you need to get your hands on some Sony Alpha goodness. There’s no better place to do that than one of our events. Kando Trip will be replete with gear and our Pro Support team will be on site to answer any and all questions. Not only will we have all our camera models and all our top lenses available to borrow, but we’ll also have elusive pieces, like the 400mm GM and (the newly announced) 600mm GM super-telephotos, which everyone dreams of getting their hands on.

The Atmosphere

We’re obsessive about event locations because we know that creating magic requires a carefully-curated set of circumstances. Kando Trip will take place at Sunriver Resort, Oregon, a piece of heaven-on-earth. The grounds are impeccable, a river runs through it (and you know we’ll be kayaking & photographing!), horses roam the land, small planes land on a picturesque landing strip, you can see the snowy mountains in the distance, wildlife and birds roam free, and if you feel like it, you can even get in a round of golf. Add to this amazing setting some stellar event organizing, including great food and drinks, ample room to create and be free, space to mingle and space to be alone, a supportive Sony team ready to help and make your experience one to remember, and you have a recipe for an atmosphere you’ll keep craving long after you’re gone. The location for Camera Camp is Flathead Lake, Montana, and all you need to be hooked is to watch Justine and Jenna’s videos—glorious nature, stupendous wildlife sightings, amazing lodging, and even a few really cute dogs begging to play. Add the amazing video creators who will join the experience and you will have the ideal atmosphere to be your best creative self.

The Value

Real talk: the amount we’re charging for Kando Trip only covers a fraction of our expenses for it—the amount of workshops alone would run a much higher price tag. The value our participants get from it is substantial. As for Camera Camp, we’re not charging anything, you’re just responsible for your travel and lodging. We do it because this is one way for us to give something meaningful back to the community that we live and do business in. When people have life-changing experiences everybody in their sphere wins and we're all about everyone winning.

Bonus Reasons

Details matter, and we pay attention to them. First detail is that Kando Trip will be a green, single use plastic-free, sustainable experience, because we all collectively care about protecting the world we live in. The second detail is that we like to spoil our guests, so for both events we’ll welcome you with a goodie bag filled with cool swag both from Sony and our sponsors. And the final detail is that we’re all committed to making this amazing for each individual joining us, so we’ll do everything in our power to customize for you the experience of a lifetime.

If this all sounds like you, there is still a bit of time left to apply for and join Kando Trip HERE.

Camera Camp applications will remain open for the next couple of weeks and you can apply HERE.

See you in Oregon and Montana!