Man, I have some AMAZING stories to tell about this mini-workshop. If you don't know who they are, these guys are at the top of their game. Bob Davis shot Eva Leonora's wedding recently (see more of his work at http://www.xanga.com/lastoriafoto), Mike Colón contributes regularly to Grace Ormonde Wedding Style magazine (see his work at http://www.mikecolon.com/), and that's just the tip of the iceberg for these amazing people!

These guys are awesome - real people, really amazing photographers, and an absolute riot! We took everyone to dinner (9 of us total, including Bob, Mike, Kenny, the awesome Graphistudio reps, and 2 other photographers) and we were out there laughing and having a great time until after midnight. Mike taught me the "white man's" traditional way to drink sake, Steph got Bob to talk me into getting a Mac (you have no idea on how big of a deal THAT is! LOL), and we ended up crashing a Korean video being shot on Time's Square.

I think we even have a few images of Mike shooting a Canon - although I'm waiting for my check to accidentally "lose" those files! LOL

I promise I'll post more, but for now, here's some of the images from during the actual workshop. If you're anywhere NEAR these guys, go see them! They are easily worth 10x what we paid!

Enjoy!

Shan

Thanks for such an awesome time guys!

Shan

This is just a random post.

No real reason.

Just to say hi.

:-)

Shan

Well, we just got back from our first client get together, and boy was it fun!

We went ice skating at Kent State ice arena, and I haven't been on skates in 15 years. I still did ok, but my feet are killing me!

We all had a great time. Callie hadn't been on skates in a long time, so Tristan and Megan helped her out.

We brought the boys too - here's Ian on skates for the first time:

Christian came too - he really wanted to hang out with Megan:

Tom (Callie's Husband) wasn't too confident on skates either:

Steph took Christian out to see everyone

Here's me and my boys:

It was a great time. Thanks to everyone who came! We're working on the GTG for march!

Shan

Well, according to justsayhi.com, I'm 76% geek.

Surprising, as I thought it would be higher. LOL

Take the test and enjoy it!

Nerd!

Enjoy the quiz.

Nerd.

:P

Shan

76% Geek 76%

Well, $163 in UPS overnight charges, $254 from the lab (including another overnight charge!) and $420 in entry fees (not to mention the $500 in membership renewals) and we're DONE!

I guess I should share with you what all that was for. :-)

WPPI (Wedding and Portrait Photographers International) is a well respected international photography association. We are members, and this year we decided to enter their Awards of Excellence 16x20 Print Competition. The judging will be held in Las Vegas at the convention (March 14-21) and we're going early to see the actual judging.

What we want to see (and know) is what they actually look for, and how the images are judged. While we'd be thrilled with a win, we're actually looking at this as an investment into next years competition. Knowing exactly what they are looking for will really help us in our selection.

Anyway, I just wanted to share in my excitement. Print competitions are quite expensive! LOL

Here's the images I sent:

"Mary Kay"

 
"No tears dad"

"Reluctant Father"

"A Slice of Heaven"

"Welcome to the family"

Anyway, Wish me luck! My pocketbook is much lighter after this, so I hope it's worth it!

Shan

This Sunday (February 10th, 2008) we're going to have an informal get together. All of our past and present clients are welcome!

We're going to get an email list together soon, so if you'd like these, please email me at shannon@831Photography.com so I can put you on the list.

This Sunday, we're going to go to the Kent Ice Arena. Open skate is from 2pm - 4pm. They say to arrive at least 30 minutes before the time.

The address is:

1 Loop Rd.
Kent, OH 44242

Their phone number is 330-672-RINK.

Admission is $5.50 per person, rental is $2.50.

We really want to be able to spend more time with our clients, whom we truly consider friends. This is a ready made excuse!

Comment or email me if you're planning on coming. This one is for everyone - I haven't skated in years, and it should be a laugh! Make sure you bring a camera!

Hope to see you there!

Shan

A few weeks ago I held my first true workshop. 11 hours of intense, hands on work with flash photography - and man was it fun!

I really enjoy these type of events, and watching the lightbulbs go off is really exciting. Check out these real emails:

Dear Shan,

I wanted to thank you for the Vivitar Flash Workshop I attended. It was so much more than I ever expected. I left feeling confident that I can take a professional looking portrait, without spending a fortune on expensive lighting. You took the time and explained everything making sure that we understood before you would continue on to the next lesson. I really liked working with the colored gels, allowing me to change the look of my backdrops, just by changing the color of the gel filter, also very inexpensive. I also enjoyed the night shooting. I would surely attend another of your workshops in a heartbeat, and am looking forward to what you have up your sleeve to teach us at the next Midwest Conference in April.

Sincerely,

Cheri Campbell-Godfrey

Shannon,
Thanks for the great seminar.  I thought I knew studio lighting, but I learned a lot today.  My main goal of today's class was to learn how to travel light with studio gear.  I learned much more than I had hoped.  Those Vivitars are amazingly versatile and flexible, and your enthusiastic style of teaching is inspirational.  The literature, format, and number of topics covered were extremely helpful.
Painting with flash was a new technique for me. I learned about the nuances of balancing multiple background lights with the foreground, using multiple lights in aperture priority mode, and how to best accessorize the Vivitars to perform like real studio workhorses.
I'd recommend this course to anyone who wants to improve their flash or studio lighting techniques.
Sincerely,
Jeremy Miracle

I mean, how can you not love getting emails like this!

Here's a few images:

Thanks everyone for making it a great workshop!

(All images © Cheri Campbell-Godfrey or Jeremy Miracle, used with permission)

Shan