The first thing I did when I got home from WPPI was well, sleep. Boy, I was tired! But the first thing I did the next morning when I woke up…even before unpacking, running to the store to buy some milk, and attacking the pile of dishes in the sink…was to reflect. I knew if I let real life overwhelm me right away I would loose the momentum that WPPI created for me. So I reflected on everything I learned and intend to implement on my business. I feel recharged and excited!
For those who don’t know, WPPI stands for Wedding & Portrait Photographers International and each year they hold a huge convention in Vegas…we’re talking 15,000 camera nerds ;) I read quite a few photographers blog posts about their past experiences and they were super helpful in telling me to plan out what you want to do. So plan I did! I created a schedule of what I wanted to do in my 4 days at the convention (which went incredibly fast) and I’m proud of all I accomplished! I went to the platform classes of Mike Larson, Bobbi + Mike, Jasmine Star, Jose Villa, and Jill La Fleur, did Showit meet ups with Nick of Spilled Milk and Jamie Delanie, took time at the trade show to decide what new album company I want to use, and most importantly spend time with new and old friends.
One of the best parts of WPPI was my husband stopping by. Those 4 little hours made a world of difference. Fred was off of work on Monday for President’s Day so we got him a free trade show pass and he came to see my world. My husband is amazing like this. He goes to boring business classes with me, crazy overwhelming trade shows, and showers me with his love and support. Ok, done gushing for now. First things first, we ate. Monday was our 6 month wedding anniversary so we went all out and did the lunch buffet at the MGM, wild I know. But really, it was great to sit down and reflect on our first 6 months of marriage!
After we were stuffed to the point of not wanting to move, we dragged our full bellies around the trade show floor and found Becker speaking at a booth so we sat, thank goodness, and listened. After Becker was done speaking, Fred and I stood up to go. Then I started muttering something about wanting to talk to him. Fred said okay and started walking over to Becker. I remained in place, shoes glued to the ground. Fred said I thought you wanted to talk to him? I said I do, buuut it’s Becker! Fred informed me that Becker is a mere mortal, not a photo god. So, I talked to Becker about my branding and he was so encouraging. I am thankful for my husband’s perspective. Fred is not in the photo industry and to him all these 15,000 people are just that. People. Fred pushed me and gave me the confidence that I was able to carry through the rest of the convention and talk to many more of the photo deities I so worship ;)
One piece of advice I have on WPPI is not to go it alone. The people you surround yourself with at a conference of this size makes the experience. The people I surrounded myself are just lovely. We took a little time to shoot each other in the courtyard of the MGM. We danced, and laughed, and enjoyed being our goofy selves!
by Erica M
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