Friends that I never would have met had I not taken up this wonderful new hobby of mine!
We were headed to the iheartfaces Photography Conference for Women..
iheartfaces was founded by Angie Arthur & Amy Locurto.
You can find Angie here & Amy here. Want to know more about iheartfaces...go here.
Our driver was very in tune with when we wanted to stop and shoot a pic...
I don't think the...OOOOO My Gosh!!! Or frantically reaching for my
camera had anything to do with it...LOL!!
I like pink...like a lot!
But this...may have been a bit over the top.
And can I just add that I'm so new to Lightroom...
I have no idea how I got my watermark to go all over the picture.
I'll have to take a look at the settings and get it fixed for next time.
Sorry....
Had to take this pic for my son...another road named for you! LOL!
There was also a whole club on the way home...but couldn't grab my camera in time. :(
Here we all were...raring to get things started.
Did I mention yet that it was at Southfork Ranch?!
As in Dallas?!
You know...Bobby, J.R., Sue Ellen, Christopher & John Ross to name a few?
Did you watch it in the 80's? What about this summer??
It's baaacckkkkkk!
Just a little added bonus that we got to be at Southfork.
More on that later!
The tables were adorable.
We got Two (2) Bags of goodies!
And we were about to spend a whole day with women talking about photography!!!
Seriously!! Does it get any better than that?!
Here they are...the founders!
They told us that this was their very First large conference for women!
They did a fabulous job!!
Thanks so much Angie & Amy!!
Your hard work did not go unnoticed!!
I'm fairly new to this whole world of dslr (digital single-lens reflex) cameras...
did I just lose you?! Sorry...can't explain what it all means...google it...I did.
What it boils down to for me...a really cool camera!
Just kidding...it's way more than that for me...
A little more than a year ago, I decided that I wanted to take up something
that would allow me to learn for a lifetime.
I have a lot of hobbies...trust me...a LOT!
I've taught myself to knit, crochet, cross-stitch, sew, quilt, scrapbook...
You name it, I've tried it. (Well, almost...I don't draw or paint. But, I am looking into doodling!)
I've loved photography for a long time.
But didn't know the first thing about shooting in manual.
The words aperture, ISO, shutter speed and depth of field were NOT in my vocabulary!
Let alone...interchangeable lenses?!
Seriously intimidating!!
I'm an empty-nester, a soon-to-be grandma at the time and I was wanting to learn.
I've always loved taking pictures and I wanted to learn more.
I wanted to have something that I could use anywhere and always feel challenged.
Let me tell you, I picked the right hobby!
There are so many days where I feel challenged!
Like I know absolutely nothing...but I love seeing what I can learn today!
I got my camera in mid-July 2011.
I shot in the little green box mode (automatic) for 2 weeks.
I signed up for a 2 week online course and I've been shooting in manual ever since.
I know, I learned the hard way.
But, that is how I roll.
I never start on a beginner's project...I start with what I like.
(One of my first knitting projects was a sweater...I know, I'm crazy!)
I wanted to understand my camera.
To know how all those things like aperture, shutter speed, etc. affected my pictures.
I'm still learning.
I think I always will be.
There is soooo much to learn in photography!
Lighting, posing, macro photography, night photography,
light painting... the list goes on & on!
And...Bonus!
This new hobby opened me up to new friends!
The town where I live has a photography club!
I jumped right in! They are wonderful!
It's a club full of professionals, amateurs, hobbyists...
and the programs, outings and sharing is awesome!
It also has opened me up to people I have never heard of before.
Like this woman...Kelle Hampton.
Before this conference, I hadn't heard of her...
so happy to say that I have had the privilege of listening to her speak
about what photography is for her.
She is beautiful inside and out.
I can say...I was a little surprised to find that I was crying within
the first hour of a photography conference! Darn you Kelle! :)
I should have known there would be tears...it is a women's conference after all.
And anyone who knows me well, knows that I can cry at the drop of a hat!
I connected with her right away!
One of the first reasons she gave for doing photography was the emotional aspect.
She had me right there!
I wear my emotions on my sleeve...
Pictures are very emotional for me.
I have none...well, 3 or 4 from my growing up years.
They are out there...somewhere, but they won't be shared with me.
That's another story for another day.
But, that is why pictures are so important for me.
And I like details...lots and lots of details.
I love to tell a story with my pictures.
She had some memorable quotes...
"Capture the beauty of the Ordinary"
and she told us to
'Let go of taking beautiful pictures...
instead, take pictures of beautiful things!'
She challenged us to find out what inspires us...as photographers.
To tell people what is inside of me...
What story will I tell?
She gave us a specific challenge...
the 10 photo challenge...
Figure out what 10 photos are most important to you.
Believe me...I've been thinking about this and will blog about it soon!
She convicted me...
to believe in my talent and art
and to let it tell my own story.
I was near tears all weekend and on the way home...
just thinking about how she challenged me.
I think I love her!
Well, that wasn't creepy at all was it?!
Okay, I love her philosophy!
But, I wish she was my neighbor...
I think we'd be friends.
Our next session was making money with your photography business.
I'm not quite there yet...I have a lot of practicing and learning to do.
Which is why I went to this conference.
It's just one of the many things I have done to improve in my photography.
Amy Karp & Stacy Reeves did a great job and gave us many wonderful ideas!!
There are too many to list...and I can't give it all away...
I want you to join me at the next conference!
So you can learn too!!
Below are just some of the wonderful ideas that they shared with us
on marketing our business and products for our clients!
to promote our business online. What I heard was great!
Sorry ladies, but I had to step outside...
of all days...I had a horrible migraine!!
It took 3 rounds of meds to get rid of it...
I hung in there though as much as I could...
I didn't want to miss a second!
Of course there was a delicious Texas-style lunch!!
Yum!!
Unfortunately...no Texas sized siesta!
Look what else we got to do...
SHOP!!
Playing with the fisheye before the last session got started.
Do you see all that colorful gorgeousness?!
Yep...those were the give-a-ways...
And I won one!!
So exciting!! I got the second one from the right.
I knew I shouldn't have bought that Kelly Moore bag!
Oh heck, what am I saying....
a girl can NEVER have too many bags!!
Thank You! Thank You Epiphanie!!
:)
Our keynote speaker to close out the conference was Sue Bryce.
Oh my goodness! She was Ah-MaZinG!!
She's from Australia...love her accent!
(Do you think anyone from Australia or England says that about us 'Mericans?)
Let's just say...she knows her stuff...and she's funny!!
She believes a woman should feel beautiful inside and out.
Sue made me laugh and she made me cry.
Her memorable quotes...well the ones that can be repeated..seriously, she was funny!!
'It's better to have an impossible dream than no dream at all.'
This one really, really struck a chord with me.
Where the tears really started to flow...
this question...
'Am I good enough'.
Whew...I got poked in the back from my friend.
She knows my doubts, how I question whether I can do this.
I really struggle with self-confidence.
Comes from being told I wasn't good enough...
again, another long story for another time. :)
Sue challenged me, as did Kelle...to find my 'why'.
My message is my truth! Loved that!!
And she left us with this...
'All wealth, all opportunity, all success comes from gratitude.'
There was more to our day...way more.
Like the two afternoon workshops!
I'll blog those later.
I've rambled enough for today.
Until next time...
sit up, chin forward and down...
(And imagine it said in the most lovely Australian accent!)
those of you who were there....you know the rest!
I'm grateful, truly grateful for this weekend with new friends,
learning and talking photography, meeting women from all over the country...
(at least 5 or 6 states represented at our table alone!)
getting awesome swag, shopping and being challenged by some fabulous speakers!
Thank you to ALL who had a part large or small in putting this conference together!
I can't wait for the next one!
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