One month ago today I was sitting in a room surrounded by over 250 other photographers, all who believe it is our mission to serve our clients the best we can! One month ago today I was at my first ever Showit United in Tempe, Arizona!
It’s taken me a month to write this post, partly because I was waiting for my website to be published but mostly because I have been struggling to find the words to describe what transpired during my 4 days at the Showit United Conference. There is so much I want to share and talk about and there is so much I have learned that I am going to be bringing in to my business over the next year but I’ve decided that to keep this post shorter than a novel, I’d talk only about my most favourite moments!
- Getting to see Arizona! I was mesmerized by the rugged red terrain hundreds of miles below us as we began our descent in to Phoenix. I knew immediately that I was going to have trouble leaving, returning to the freezing North!
- Meeting ALL my favourite photographers!!! For me, my favourite photographers have taken the place of celebrities and it was terrifying to see all my absolute favourites in one place! It was as if Matt Damon, Chris Hemsworth, and Taylor Swift were all standing there drinking fancy drinks, open for me to go and say hello to anytime I wanted to, but finding the courage to do so seemed impossible! Well, I found the courage and I conquered the seemingly impossible and these moments were my absolute favourites of the trip and made me realize we’re all just photographers, created to love and serve our clients the best we can!
- The Magician! I’d be lying if I said I wasn’t disappointed that there wasn’t dancing after the ball but I would also be lying if I said I hated the magic show they had instead; Jeff Kaylor was awesome! The best part though? Jeff came up to the Showit Lounge after and did a private show, performing tricks for anyone who asked! Nothing makes you feel more VIP than a magician doing a private magic show 😉
- Being greeted at the airport by Field and all the other amazing Showiteers! It was no secret before going to United that these people love hugs but I thought it may have been a bit of an exaggeration. It wasn’t! Everyone you met offered a hug as handshakes were strictly prohibited by the Hug Security.
- Learning to Line Dance J When one goes to a western themed bar while wearing plaid, jeans, and cowboy boots it’s pretty much mandatory you learn how to line dance and I loved it!
- Justin Marantz’s lighting course: My mind was truly blown away by this hour and a half sessions teaching us that flash doesn’t have to look like flash. I’ve always been a little scared of flash and have never been a huge fan of the ‘flashyness’ of it but I walked away from the session with a true interest in flash and how I can use it to improve my photography and the wedding day experience!
- Katelyn James’ keynote speech, which I spent half of crying because it was just so intense! I loved all the keynote addresses but hers was by far my favourite and the one which, a month later, I look back on with the most vivid memory.
There were so many more amazing moments that were packed in to such a short amount of time that I can’t fully describe and, since a picture is worth a thousand words, I will leave you with some of my favourites, a mixture of iPhone pictures and pictures from the Styled Shoots put on by some amazing and thoughtful photographers!
