Joyful Moment on Stage

The high I'm on right now is pretty ridiculous. I've been teaching for 10 years in the photo industry. 10 years and I finally made it to the @CanonUSA stage at @ImagingUSA. I wasn't "nervous" like you think. I don't get the butterflies so much when I speak, but I do care. I care what people think, I care what Canon thinks and ultimately I knew I wanted to produce something that would wow, teach and inspire - but not overwhelm. Shooting on a trade show floor in front of hundreds of people isn't easy. They are lit like they're trying to make everyone look like they've had a REALLY BAD NIGHT...for the past week. It's AWFUL and you can't go find a window to bring your model to in order to create something that matches your brand or what you'd do on the job. THAT made me not nervous, but motivated. I knew I needed to push my photography skill further in order to get this done right. This isn't the part where I take credit for being amazing. This is the part where I tell you I probably would've BOMBED this stage appearance if it weren't for my friend taking the time to help me learn something new. @lastxwitness - thanks for brainstorming this with me, teaching me how to bring to life what I envisioned and giving me confidence (or a kick in the ass) when I needed it. I couldn't have done this without you. Here are photos of the talk and my photos - effects all done in camera (I did clean up skin a little, crop one and remove a few distracting background elements of another all in @Lightroom). Head to my stories to see what the natural light looked like when this was taken. Dress and flower crown by @sewtrendyaccessories - model @brennamperkins