During the WPPI 2010 conference, (Wedding & Portrait Photographers International), I signed up for an additional Plus class with Cliff Mautner. 2 full days with Cliff and 20+ other photographers equates a really inspiring session.
Photography is all about light. Cliff shared with us about the direction of light, and how the quality of light is more important than the quantity of light. He challenges us to quit running for the open shade! Cliff’s style of shooting against the harsh sunlight definitely has more character than soft lighting.
But at the end of the day, his perspective is that great moments are more important than great lighting.
Cliff shared with us a quote by Jay Maisel, “Take a look at what you’re looking at”.
And another… (i can’t remember whose quote this is)…
“What use is having great depth of field if there is not an adequate depth of feeling.”
How true. Here’s Cliff at work, sharing tips with the class.
Our class was divided into teams so that we each get an opportunity to direct the models.
And here are some of the results…
If you’d like to read about my WPPI 2010 experience, read part 1 and part 2 as linked here.
View photos from a Trash the Dress photo shoot I did in Vegas here.
Marissa is Tan & Catherine’s first child. Somehow, I think firstborns are always photographed more than the second or third child. Parents are usually more diligent in capturing every little moment of their child’s progress, and the slightest smile makes the new parent all soft and mushy inside. I know that Tan & Catherine really dote over Marissa.
Some friends tell me that the pain of childbirth is easily forgotten after you hold your child in your hands. Perhaps not the first 3-6 months (every parent can tell you tales of sleepless nights)… but when she grows a little older, I am sure that child will steal your heart.
I had a fantastic time shooting both Eric and Chew Yong’s wedding recently. The two of them met at work (gosh imagine that!) and now they are getting married. Throughout the day, there was never a dull moment as Eric’s friends were so sporting as well as enthusiastic in trying to help Eric get through some of the toughest challenges in the morning. Check out the photos below to see how tough they were.
The girls started the morning preparing all of their special “concoction” for the guys.
Meet Chew Yong, doesn’t she look beautiful here?
Eric and his “heng tais” before leaving for Chew Yong’s house. These guys are super dedicated!
One of the tasks, brush your teeth using wasabi as toothpaste! Talk about burning your mouth.
Brushing their teeth wasn’t enough, they even had wasabi put all over one of the “heng tai” where the rest of the guys had to lick it off.
Next task, bursting the balloon whilst eating a banana off the other guy. Seriously, the guys just did all of this without complaining and did it with gusto!
The guys even had a special shirt made for the wedding.
After leaving Chew Yong’s place, we headed over to their new home for a couple more shots.
I love the wallpapers in their new place, it looks so classy and elegant. They really have an eye for interior designing.
A big thanks goes to Ian Chew who helped me with the wedding throughout the day.
Watch the same day slideshow by clicking on the link below.
Aside from running from class to class at WPPI, I decided to join one of the many photo shoots organized during WPPI. This particular Trash the Dress session was organized by Melissa Diep, a photographer from Chicago. A huge number of photographers turned up, but we were split into groups with different models so that we can each take time to pose and direct the models.
It was interesting to see how different photographers had a different vision even at the same location. Each photographer that was in my group came up with different shots! I was mainly using my off camera flash to get some really cool grungy shots. I love this parking lot series.
If any of you has visited the Las Vegas strip, you’ll know how tough it is to get a shot without a crowd in it.
I also utilized the delicious evening light in Vegas for these shots…
I’m glad to have met so many talented photographers during this shoot. I had a great time, and I hope to meet all of you again in the near future! As for the models, Karen & Shelby, it was great working with the both of you!
It’s easy to overdo yourself when you attend WPPI. There’s just so much going on simultaneously. With multiple Platform classes ongoing and a huge trade show to visit, I constantly felt that there was not enough time to do it all.
One of the things I managed to do was a trash the dress photo shoot with other photographers around the Vegas strip. Here are a few shots from that session. I’ll be putting up other images later. [updated: view the photos from the Trash the Dress session here]
After a few days of rushing for classes, I realized that it’s best I choose my classes wisely, and be there really really early for popular speakers!
I was disappointed when I couldn’t get into Jasmine Star’s Platform class even after queuing for 45 minutes. Good thing was that the organizers for WPPI had a back up plan, and those that missed out, heard her speak the next day! And what a blessing it is, when I won a shootsac during her session!
Here’s me with Jasmine and her husband JD (taken at different times!)
Jasmine Star inspires me to dream big, to believe that anyone can succeed… after multiple failures. We all have failures in life, but as long as we fail forward, we’re moving in the right direction.
In her first year of shooting weddings, she shot 3 weddings, and then the next year, 37 weddings! And all this without paying for marketing! She communicated who she was through her blog, and when people saw that, they were attracted to her. Use every opportunity to be ME.
She cares for people around her, and completely believes in helping others, eg. vendors. The question we should ask ourselves as photographers is, “What can I do for others? To help others?”
Kevin Kubota, in his Platform class, brought up a very important question that we all need to answer:
It makes me think… what are my goals in life? Can I quantify them? Or is success some vague concept in my head that seems unachievable? How would I know if I have reached there?
The other 2 key speakers who influenced me a lot in WPPI 2010 are Marcus Bell and Dane Sanders. Marcus showed the class a very touching video / photo slideshow and shared his passion in capturing moments for his clients. I was moved to tears when I saw the video.
The bridal couple came up with this surprise for their parents, who had been married for about 50 years. The video showed old footage of their parent’s own wedding, their moments in life when they had a newborn, intercutting with footage from their child’s wedding day, years later. The expression on the parent’s face as they watched and reminisced old days and how far they have come was so moving.
It just reaffirms my belief that what I do is so important. I am here as a photographer to capture bits of history in people’s lives, whether it is the moment they say their vows to one another, or when a mother feels her child in her tummy kicking, or when a family demonstrates their love to each other.
Years from now, I want someone to look through the images that I have taken, and remember… not me, the photographer, but the feeling they had when that image was made.
Which, at the end of the day, comes back to that question of “What will success look like to you?”
Dane Sanders, author of the book, Fast Track Photographer, shared with us this quote. I love it.
I am looking forward to this journey of life, and what it holds for me.
On the last night of WPPI, we celebrated the work of many talented photographers from around the world. Awards were given out to the winners of the 16 x 20 print competition, and also International Prints of the year award for various categories.
I am so proud to say that Asian photographers are rising and making a mark internationally. Louis Pang won the International Portrait Print of the Year award, and CM Leung won 2 International Print of the Year Awards, not to mention many mentions of accolades of excellence! That is so exciting! Congratulations to the both of you!
Here’s a group photo of the Malaysian ‘contingent’. Jenny had left Vegas earlier in the day. Glad to share all these exciting moments with you guys!
