I returned Wednesday from a trip to Atlanta for a Professional Photographers of America photographic convention. This convention includes a huge tradeshow, classes/presentations from the leaders of our industry, and of course some parties. I attended more than a dozen educational classes throughout the conference, covering subjects ranging from business skills, photographic technique, as well as expanding the use of the many technologies available. It is always a great time of learning and bettering myself as a photographer, finding ways to distinguish myself and to provide an experience that my clients won't find elsewhere. It is inspiring to learn from photographers who have honed their craft so well.
So that is the nuts and bolts of why I took the trip, now for the more fun details! Seth and the girls dropped me at the airport on Saturday morning and I caught a direct flight to Atlanta. I settled into my chair and spent the three and a half hour flight reading Love Does by Bob Goff (great book, easy to read, highly enjoyable). When I landed, it was time to embark on the part of the trip I was most nervous about - the subway. The day before I left, Sadie sat with me in my office as I dissected MARTA (Atlanta's rail system) and figured out how to navigate my way to where I needed to be. At one point I said, "I can do this, right?!!" and she responded, "Um, I don't know, hopefully." Well, it actually turned out to be much easier than I anticipated, and not scary despite the fact that I was the only white girl on the train. Once I got off the train, it didn't take too much wandering in the wrong direction (all the streets are named Peachtree) to find my hotel, making it there just before dark (wandering downtown Atlanta by myself in the dark wasn't high on my list of things I look forward to doing). I had the evening to myself in the hotel room to read because my roommates didn't get in to town until much later. Once they arrived, it was an all-night chatfest...we talked until after 4am, much later than my usual 10:30pm bedtime! The late-night chats happened every night, and needless to say, I got much less sleep on this trip than I'm used to getting, but I did have a great time with my roomies, Adilfa and Heather.
The next few days were spent in the classes I described before, taking notes, rubbing shoulders with other photographers (haven't heard the final number but there were more than 10,000 photographers registered), walking the tradeshow expo (bought a few new things for the studio), and enjoying the company of friends. We took the CNN studio tour, fought the throngs of Falcons fans (the playoff game was next door to the convention center), and had a great time at the closing party at the beautiful Georgia Aquarium. Our little group of six had a great time together (me, Heather, Adilfa, Kent, MJ, and Dana)! Already looking forward to Phoenix next year!