One of the greatest things about WPPI is that you learn so much and you take so many new ideas back home with you that you can incorporate into your work and your business.  Each year I come home from Vegas and I think about the next step that I want to take as a photographer.  Being a professional is all about growth, and knowing that there is always something to strive for.

On that last day of the WPPI convention, as I was already thinking about my next step, I was honored with “The Next Award” for being the next great up and coming photographer.  I realized then that my next step is to make sure I live up to “The Next Award.”  I am so humbled, and I am so grateful to those who put me up for the award.

The team at Graphi has been a second family to me. Maureen, Lisa, Dario, Dan, Mike and Mauro are always amazing to work with.  They have helped me grow in so many ways.

Arlene, George and the rest of the team at WPPI have been so supportive of my work and my career and I respect them all so much.

I left for WPPI a month ago, and each day since has been an opportunity to grow, and to do something to live up to the award. Thank you all so much.

We all know that getting married by Elvis has become a Las Vegas tradition, so we decided that this year we would spend one of our nights in Vegas during the WPPI convention with Elvis at Graceland Chapel.  I got together a group of photographers from around the globe for a surprise Las Vegas style wedding.

I told the photographers that we were doing a photo tour, and everyone was so excited when we got to our first stop- Graceland Chapel.  I had a future bride and groom pose for a mock wedding. Our bride wore a leopard print dress and red stilettos, and the groom wore a light blue tuxedo. The best part? The bouquet was a beer can…open of course. The wedding started out smoothly enough, until our bride decided to cozy up to Elvis, which started a bit of a brawl!  My team as well of the photographers were cracking up the entire time. We couldn’t have planned such a perfect shoot.

As an added bonus Elvis got up to the podium and shared some of his business’ history.  He’s a great guy and a great businessman.  He agreed to join us at our booth at WPPI a few days later, which everyone got a kick out of.

After the chapel we headed to the “Welcome to Las Vegas” sign for a few more shots of our bride and groom.  It was such a great time and I’m so glad I got to meet so many inspired photographers.  I hope you enjoy the images!

A specials thanks to the http://www.gracelandchapel.com/ For letting us use their space and to our sponsors WHCC for providing some amazing giveaways and transportation as well as Animoto, Triple Scoop Music and Graphi For all your support and love… We love you all!!!

We are back from WPPI in Las Vegas, Nevada, and I could not be more excited to share everything that we experienced during the convention. We kicked off the trip with a photo tour with about forty photographers from around the world. We stopped at Graceland Chapel and photographed a mock wedding with one of my future couples, getting hitched by none other than Elvis Presley. Everyone was laughing and shooting and enjoying the opportunity to do something so Vegas! We also took our bride and groom over to the Welcome to Las Vegas sign for some more shots.

The next day we traveled to the desert to photograph a bride.  She brought two different dresses for two different looks and we were stoked about the resulting images.

The tradeshow was a whirlwind. While working at the Click Nation booth and talking at the GraphiStudio booth and the White House Custom Color booth I had the chance to meet so many cool people. It was an amazing opportunity to network and share knowledge.  I learned so much from my peers in such a short time.

The convention ended with an award ceremony.  I am extremely grateful for receiving the “Next” award, for being the next up and coming photographer. I am so fortunate to be part of such an incredible community.

I am already looking forward to WPPI 2012!