What I learned at WPPI

I attended WPPI in Las Vegas last week. WPPI is the annual convention for the Wedding and Portrait Photographers International (www.wppionline.com), an organization I am proud to be a part of. At first, I thought the real value of attending was just for the trade show, seeing new products, meeting with vendors....but now I go for the education and the networking.

Here are a few things I learned this year at WPPI...

*Las Vegas may be sin city, but it is my favorite city.
Vegas was the first trip my husband and I took while we were dating, and I fell in love with being in love there. I couldn't imagine going to Vegas any time without him. The dinners out, staying up late, blackjack, the shows....it is always more fun with Chris there. This year was special because we are celebrating our 5 year anniversary this month!! I even talked him into walking the tradeshow floor with me. :)

*It is weird being on the other side of the camera.
I took full advantage of the convention by asking a fellow photographer-and long lost bff, Jacquelynn Buck (www.jacquelynnbuck.com), to take a couple of portraits of Chris and I all dressed up for dinner on Saturday as an anniversary gift. What I got was a full 50 minute professional portrait shoot on location at the Aria Hotel. What I never realized is how exhausting it is to be the subject...and in heels too. I learned a lot about the rhythm of a session that I never knew before.

*It's ok to be a dork.
Chris does NOT take photos. Every time we go on vacation I have a grand plan to take my camera and have these great photos of us, but it ends up being photos of him with the scenery in every shot. He won't touch my camera, and thinks the handheld one is beneath him. :) Over time, this has made me not want to take my camera on any trip we took. I always cared about what others would think, I thought I would be the only one with a big camera, which might look dorky to the others.
I met up with a group of girls at WPPI who changed my mind. Krista, Sandra, Nataschia, and Rosita, thanks for teaching me it was okay to take my camera everywhere! We met up for dinner on Thursday evening and they each brought their cameras--I didn't, for reasons above. There always seems to be more things to shoot when you are in a group of photographers and before we even left the hotel, I was KICKING myself for forgetting it. They issued challenges to our wait staff at Hard Rock, taking photos of the food, everything. Sure, people were looking at us like we were crazy, but they were making art. Collectively, they have this passion for photography that was so inspiring. The next night, we all met up, and I brought my camera too. I wasn't afraid of what anyone thought, I was shooting!
Photography is a little dorky. It's technical, gadgety, but it's also what I love to do.

*Photography is still my hobby.
When I started shooting more for "work," I really forgot how much I loved the art of photography for myself. I used to give myself assignments and make prints for myself. When something is your job, you sometimes forget why you loved it in the first place. This past week, I got to shoot for the best client...ME! It was nice to remember why I loved it.

I learned a lot this past week, and am ready to start the season this weekend (yay Chrissy and Donald) with a renewed energy and tons of inspiration! Can't wait to see what I learn next year!!!