We are back from WPPI 2011 in Las Vegas. What an amazing trip! Inspiring and fulfilling! We had a week filled with photography, traveling, meeting new friends and connecting with colleagues from our area. We were inspired by some of the world’s leading photographers and creative artists – Yervant, Greg Gibson, Elizabeth Messina, David Beckstead, David Williams and soooo many more.

Here are a few images from Jana’s workshop with Yervant.

We must already own everything since we only purchased a few memory cards and a Motibodo keyboard at the tradeshow to speed up our workflow. We will be sharing our insights once we have it up and running. We absolutely love the idea that the software can be installed on multiple computers. Thanks Dave and Quin!
We also found an exciting new album company and will be adding several books into our already awesome production collection. We are super excited about their paper surface selection and stylish album covers.

…Elvis has been replaced…

Signature Suites at the MGM was our home again. Clean scented air and perfect accommodations. Upon arriving in Vegas we stocked up our kitchen cabinets and fridge with healthy food from Whole Foods. Great breakfasts and lunches on our balconies, a scenic view of the mountains and strip! Dinner… well that was eating out and we made sure to visit our favorite restaurants Shibuya for sushi and Teppanyaki Japanese grill, Diego for table-side guacamole and superb margaritas and Mon Ami Gabi for some yummy French cuisine. The find of the trip was Holsteins Buns and Shakes at the Cosmopolitan. We were so glad that we did not discover their amazing burgers and spiked milk shakes until the last day!

A show and a trip have become a Vegas Tradition.
Zumanity was a very unique form of adult entertainment and we really enjoyed it.
We traveled south via Boudler City, Hoover Dam to the Grand Canyon for our trip this year. Mike insisted on making the drive memorable and rented a Camaro SS. What a fun ride, especially on the twenty- mile dirt road in snow! LOL.

Part Two with amazing photos from our trip is coming soon!

mike & jana

Well it’s that time again to VOTE for us. We are nominated to the PHILLY HOTLIST 2010! We appreciate the nomination and will continue to do the very best for our clients and to reach new creative heights in 2010/2011! VOTE for us HERE

We photographed the 2010 Teen Design Fair at the Renwick Gallery earlier this week. Washington DC teens were invited to learn about careers from the National Design Awards winner, finalists and jurors. These professionals are working in the fields of fashion, industrial design, architecture, multimedia, and graphic design. The students met Jenna Lyons from J.Crew, John Jay, Behnaz Sarafpour, Tim Gunn from Project Runway – the keynote speaker, and many others. Capturing the teen’s faces as they met with their design idols was incredible and the designers seemed to really enjoy explaining what it takes to follow one’s dreams.
It was a great pleasure working with Occasions Caterers .
We love DC and hope to visit soon.

jana & mike

Ashlee and Jon were married last year at Wintherthur “An American Country Museum and Estate” located in the beautiful Brandywine valley area. It was a very special outdoor wedding in a tent setting…. Please take a look at the blog post from their wedding. HERE.   

Thank you for participating in this great event. We enjoyed meeting you and your four legged friends.
mike & jana

Click HERE for more information about the 9th Annual Dog Fest!

Your testimonials remind us how much our hard work is appreciated, but entering prints in an international competition somehow makes it all official. We start looking through the past year’s favorite images after the holiday rush and spend a few days deciding, tweaking and printing on the studio Stylus Pro 4800 Epson printer. Then the boxes go out, and after anxious waiting we witness print judging.
Many amazing prints were selected out of over thirty five hundred entries for everyone to view. We are proud to announce that six of the prints were captured by Mike and Jana! We couldn’t do it without our amazing couples and supportive vendors. Thank You!

The annual trip to the WPPI international photography convention in Las Vegas is always full of inspiration, learning and excitement. We spent time studying with some of the world’s leading wedding and portraits photographers – Kevin Kubota, Jim Garner, Catherine Hall, Dave and Quinn Chen, David Beckstead and many others. The trade show was as exciting as ever – a few new toys for the studio will make an appearance soon.

It was not all just hard work. We had some fun too, lots of great cafes and restaurants. We definitely had two favorites though Mon Ami Gabi in Paris and Shibuya in MGM. The stay at the Signature Suites at MGM was quite a treat. Make sure to check it out if you ever make a trip to Las Vegas. This is the view from our balconies.

We looked for inspiration outside the convention as well. KA one of the Cirque de Soleil performances was an amazing experience – visually stunning!
When the city got to be too much, we headed east to Zion National Park and spent four hours on a three-mile hike climbing rocks and jumping over creeks taking photographs. Make sure to visit Oscar’s Café in Springdale, UT for a Murder Burger and a cold beer after a long day of hiking.

It was a great pleasure meeting so many new friends. So much inspiration! We can wait to start the season photographing and designing albums! Time to start planning for the WPPI 2011.

mike & Jana