Red Rock Canyon, first half

Las Vegas, walkin' about

I spent Wednesday evening Vegas walking around with some other photographer friends (Jason and Andrew of Table 4 Photography and Aaron.) And just so you know, I DID photograph more than just the guys I was with, but I'm saving those other pictures for when I finally complete the small assignment I started working on last year.

This is a pretty recognizeable landmark, but for those of you who have had the pleasure of NOT going to Vegas, I'll tell you it's the Flamingo.


Meet the guys.


Jason and Andrew showing us how to shoot. They should give a workshop.




Uh.....


Um.....I offer no explanations.





I feel like saying, "Don't worry, little boy, we'll find your mommy."

WPPI Print Competition

I don't think I can possibly do a re-cap of the week that I was there, so I'll be posting little snippets here and there as I'm able to do so.
I entered the print competition again this year after having my humble success last year and I really didn't go in with high expectations because I really just wanted to learn from the experience. I was able to sit in one of the rooms during judging all day Saturday and I saw 7 of my prints judged. After they made their comments, I was able to understand why they said what they said. In the end, two of the prints scored an 80 which means they earned Accolades of Excellence. The remaining prints of mine earned scores from 75 to 78.

This is the first time one of my wedding prints has done well. It seems only my non-wedding work does well, which makes me wonder..........nah, the competition is pretty stiff so I can't expect too much. I just love the expression on this little boy's hands!



This one was taken in Colombia during my last missions trip and these boys had just finished with their bible class. I took it as I walked by and didn't have a chance to check my settings because I didn't have time to stop to properly take the shot.

WPPI - my week in Vegas

Ok, so I guess it's time to tell you about my week in Vegas at the WPPI convention (Wedding and Portrait Photographers International). The convention officially kicks off on a Sunday, but I showed up four days earlier because I had signed up for some extra classes. Everything took place in Bally's or Paris.





DAY 1&2


I spent two days in a class with Chris Lalonde from Canada and we talked about tricky lighting situations, RAW conversion, printing and other important issues. He's a super talented photographer and he has a wealth of information. And he's also very cool and calm, in a punk sort of way. He's full of funny side comments. We went through the entire process of setting up a shot with lighting, and taking it through the digital process, and then ending with printing. I met several people through this class including KJ from Dallas, and Corla from Canada.




DAY 3


On Saturday, I attended a full day of business classes and I learned lots of stuff and came up with several ideas of my own. Through that day, I made a friend, Miv from Canada.




DAY 3&4


Do you remember a post of mine a little while back about the contest? I entered in five images and this is my first time ever, so I didn't know what to expect or how the process goes. The judging goes on for two days and you can sit in on it so that you can hear what the judges have to say about the images. But because of the business class and a run to the airport, I couldn't sit and listen as much. So I didn't get to see any of mine.



That afternoon, I picked up Ashley from the airport and we headed over to listen to some of the judging. Then we indulged ourselves in some free Vegas entertainment. We went to the M&M store!! Even though they upcharge it like 5x, we had to buy some M&Ms at the store in Vegas. I really am soooooo sad that M&M stopped making crispy M&Ms. They were my favorite! Does anyone else like them? We should start a petition.

At that night's presentation, Becca found me in the crowd as we were waiting for things to start. I had met her and Orbie last year also on the first official night, when I was sitting all alone. I must have looked 'new' or something, but I was so appreciative of their friendliness. So, it was neat that I would see her again on the first official night this year.



DAY5


The first full day of the convention. I ended up talking to one of the head judges from the competition since I knew him (David Williams) and I just wanted to say hi. I asked him if he remembered one of the prints in his category and he did! And he told me it did very well!! Oh my gosh, I'm shocked! I wasn't expecting anything to come of this.


The way the judging is done: five judges give the image a score and it is averaged. Anything that received an 80 or above receives and Accolade of Excellence. It also hangs in the exhibition at the convention. Because of space limitations, anything that receives an 83 and above is printed in their book of award-winning images. After the prints are scored, they go back and select 1st, 2nd, and 3rd place, so it's not necessarily the highest scoring ones that win.


The one I was asking him about received an 86!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I was sooooo excited. Mine was also considered for a placing, but was taken out very near the end. Wow, I was on cloud nine. I immediately called Ashley and we went over to the exhibition to look at the prints. I found it easily because it was closer to the front. We spent about an hour going through the other prints and seeing who won. At one point, I turned around and saw another one of my prints hanging!!!!!!!!!! If I was excited before, now I was even more shocked! This second one received an 80.

If you can't read it, this is what it says:

Dianna Montoya Wins Two Accolades of Excellence
in the
2008 Awards of Excellence 16x20 Print Competition

Dianna Montoya of Spring, TX, has received special honors in the WEDDING & PORTRAIT
PHOTOGRAPHERS INTERNATIONAL (WPPI) 2008 Awards of Excellence 16x20 Print Competition.
Designed to recognize outstanding photographers, the judging was held in Las Vegas, NV on March 15 and 16, 2008.
"I Can See!" received an Accolade of Excellence in the Non-Wedding Photojournalism category.
"Waiting" received an Accolade of Excellence in the Premier Image category.
Montoya competed against an international field of photographers to win such honors.
The Awards of Excellence 16x20 Print Competition awards are presented each year at the largest trade show, educational platform and convention in the United States for professional photographers. The 2008 competition included 2653 prints in 19 different categories submitted by photographers from all over the world.

One of the comments David made on my prints was the printing job. I had sent it out to have it printed but he recommended that I print it myself. Well, I had just learned how to properly print in the two day course I'd taken. One of the drawbacks is how expensive the paper is. Fine art paper can run $5 a sheet and they come in boxes of 25 or more sometimes.


At this point, I was embarassed by my printing job, but oh well, it was too late.

That day, I saw Beth Forester, John Solano and Brian Marcus, and Jesh de Rox speak. Each presentation was so completely different, but I took away many things from each one.


I went to the Champagne Shootout and indulged in some ice cream while hanging out with Ashley and Miv.


DAY 6

Second full day of the convention. I listened to Tom Munoz in the morning and I was really impressed with his reception lighting.

In between the speakers, I went to the tradeshow and walked around and collected literature. It's a huge tradeshow and very well represented.

In the afternoon, I went to listen to the guys from Photolux Studio, where the aforementioned Chris Lalonde is from. Several of the speakers have drawings for different prizes from their sponsors.


Believe me when I tell you that I never, ever, ever, ever, ever, ever win. Never. No amount of drawings ever produces a positive result. At the end of Photolux's class, they had some drawings for some nice products. I actually won one!!!!! Not only did I win, but I won some really nice paper that I was previously talking about. I'm stoked! Now I have the knowledge, inspiration, and supplies to print my own prints for next year.


That night we met up with several Houston photographers in the Paris casino just to socialize and meet each other. I showed up kind of late and I was standing too far away to hear anyone and I was really tired at that point. But here are a few pictures, courtesy of Marianne. Thanks!
She and I spent some time talking about the competition because she also entered the competition for the first time and did well.
Then, there's Ashley and me.

DAY 7

We slept in on the last day and we got Ashley packed up and ready to head home. It was a slower day since there were less speakers and less people at the trade show. The frenzy was waning. I spent some time again at the tradeshow and then later that night I went to the Awards Ceremony.

DAY 8

I slept in (Yea!) and packed my things. That afternoon, I went back to the strip with my aunt and my camera. We walked around for a while and just relaxed. We had dinner at the Cheesecake Factory before heading home, and before heading to the airport.

Overall, it was a great week and I learned so much and met new friends and visited with old ones. Other people I kept running into: Meggie Velasco, Jordan Chan, Kevin King, the guys from TriCoast, Suzy Roberts, and others I'd met that week.