What an AMAZING Week!

Earlier this evening, I arrived back home to three sets of open arms ready for hugs after my being away since Sunday morning. Several times a year, I take a week away from the studio to go and study under some pretty amazing photographers. This past week, I was immersed in a sales & marketing class and I was so inspired and have so many incredible ideas that I can't wait to implement. We went full force for all 5 days and I can honestly say my brain hurts, but in a very good way!

We had an incredible group of about 16 in our class and I think we all learned something from each other, at least I know I learned something from each of my classmates. I made some great new friends and really just look forward to watching everyone grow after this intensive experience.

Okay, before you think that we did nothing but sit in a classroom, I just have to tell you about some of the "field trips" we made. One day was to the local mall. Cool, shopping, huh? Well, not really. We visited some stores such as Hollister, Abercrombie & Fitch, Victoria's Secret, and Origins and really got to look at how they brand their business and carry that branding through everything they do, from hangers, to packaging to the total experience.

Last night, we had an awesome field trip to the hotel's lounge to study wine labels and how the label itself, including the logo, the wine description, etc., can really tell you about the experience you may have when you open that particular brand. Cool stuff, huh? We all loved it.

What week long class wouldn't be complete without a fun celebration at the end? After the classes were over last evening, we all headed to the ball room area for a fun 70's party. There was a lot of dancing and just letting the hair down and there were quite a few people dressed up in 70's style clothing! I didn't dress up in any themed clothing, but you probably would have had a hard time pulling me off the dance floor!

And what a way to wind down each night, but to sit out on a balcony in your ocean view room while there was a full moon. Amazing. I did take some photos, but I haven't taken them off the camera yet. Tonight, I just vegged and tried to let my brain relax...plus, the season finale of Grey's Anatomy was on, and I couldn't miss that!

Lots of Fun Teaching Mini Seminar

Last night, I was SO nervous to teach a mini seminar, More Than F-Stops, to about a dozen of professional photographers at our PPSNF guild. Thankfully, my nerves settled after the class got started. The goal of the class was to help other colleagues prepare for their Certified Professional Photographer (CPP) exam. We went through a set of about 55 questions that are representative of the types of questions on the exam and didn't just tell the answers, but discussed them and why 3 of the 4 answers were not correct. The goal was to help the class understand why so they could apply that to when they took the test.

A lot of photography is based on different principles involving math - inverse square laws, lighting ratios, etc. I have to admit that I'm a math junkie. Always have been always will be, I'm sure. So, for some of these types of questions, I got some blank stares as I tried to describe how the answers were mathematically achieved! Yeah, I'm a geek, and proud of it, but I think we finally did get to a point where the math was understandable!

If the class achieved one goal, it was that each attendee would take at least one more bit of knowledge home with them and write their own goal to pursue the road to their CPP.

Studio Renovations and more...

I can't tell you how very excited I am! The studio is getting a BIG facelift! After a newborn session last weekend, the studio floors were torn up and are in the process of being replaced with beautiful wood flooring and a new tile entrance! I am doing this myself, mostly when my hubby is at work - he does help out when he gets home, too. I was hoping to post some quick snapshots and I promise I will later this week, but between laying the floors during the days and attending a few workshops this week in the evening, it just doesn't seem there are enough hours in the day to even get those snapshots off the camera!

This has been a really busy week trying to get all of this done before a maternity session this coming Saturday, then it's off to Daytona for a week to attend a week-long class on sales & marketing with a very successful photographer. I have been waiting a year to attend this class! :) This is a week-long school offered one time per year for members of the Florida Professional Photographers (FPP). I cannot wait!

I'm also excited to be teaching a workshop tomorrow evening as part of a series of mini-workshops that our local photography guild offers to its members. My class is called "More than F-Stops" and it's all about the very technical side of photography. I am so delighted to share this knowledge with fellow photographers! I will be co-teaching this with a fellow photographer from our local guild!

So, lots going on this week, but wanted to take a few minutes to at least give an update on what we've been doing! Keep your eyes out for some of the renovation snapshots!

Urban Fashion Shoot Workshop

One of the wonderful things about being a member of a local professional photographers' guild is attending workshops! Tonight I attended one called an "Urban Fashion Shoot" given by a friend, Vincent Pierce, and the group of us headed into downtown Jacksonville with two beautiful models, Amy and Megan! I'm still going through the images, but I did want to post at least one or two!

Renaissance Beach Workshop

It's always fun to get out and do something different and Wednesday night I did just that, along with about 20 other photographers from the Professional Photographers Society of North Florida, of which I'm actively involved. The workshop was held at the beach in Ponte Vedra and what made it different, was our model was dressed in a Renaissance period dress and joining her was her beautiful horse.

With this many photographers, it isn't always easy to find a spot where you can capture the image as you envision it as well as make sure there aren't a lot of lenses appearing in your shot! But, that's what's fun...challenging and discovering unique approaches to get a shot that you can proudly post.

Below are a few of my favorites!