WPPI in Vegas and a Gorgeous Desert Shoot - Southern Illinois Photography
Well…I've been MIA for a while. My good friend Leigh and I headed out to Vegas for the yearly gathering of photographers at WPPI. It was definitely an adventure...
First….we headed out for a 2 hour drive to the St. Louis Airport in snowpocalypse numero tres. We never cracked 60 down the interstate. It was intense….but we made it.
We had been concerned for days that our flight was going to be canceled, but it turned out that the flight would be the easiest aspect of getting to Vegas. Let me just tell you…paying a little extra for non-stop flights is totally worth every penny!
Even though we stayed at the MGM Grande…which was awesome and where the conference was…I think my favorite place was the Paris. I will definitely be back!
At Paris there is a restaurant called Mon Ami Gabi. If you are going to Vegas you HAVE to go eat here. THE BEST FOOD EVERRRRRR!!!! There are just no words to describe how amazing it was. (FYI - I found out after the fact that they also have one in Chicago….so if anyone wants to make a road trip up just to go eat I am 150% in)
Getting to hang out with other folks who have the same ups and downs ins and outs as I do was a breath of fresh air. The classes were inspirational, the expo was hard on my wallet, and the camaraderie with my peers was priceless.
2 BIG things happened for me while we were there. Number 1….I got to meet Elizabeth Messina, who is my photo guru. She is such an inspiration to me. Again, there are no words….I got emotional as she took the stage and pretty much sat on the verge of tears throughout her whole class. Her and I decided to start a new trend of hand holding pictures instead of face snapshots. :) LURVE her!
and number 2 is….We attended a stylized shoot out in the desert that was put together by my close friend Stephanie Reeder and Carrie Nelson. The location was the Red Rock Canyon National Park. The beauty of the desert is absolutely breath-taking. Don't get me wrong…I love the midwest…but it was nice to shoot something different for a day. These are my digitals, I also shot a little bit of film and I will post those as soon as I get them back from the lab :) Keep your eyes peeled.
When one of the fellow photographers is as gorgeous as this…you have to take a chance and ask her if she would mind modeling!!! :) It was totally worth asking!! Thanks Lindsey! :)
