In The Desert | Our First WPPI Experience | Las Vegas, Nevada

The time was 4:30 am. My alarm was going off after an hour and a half of sleep following the annual "Airplanes and Blazers" party at the Rio hotel; a traditional part of the Wedding and Portrait Photographers International experience. We had many opportunities at our first WPPI including a variety of extremely informative master classes taught by industry leading professionals and an overwhelming trade show that made us feel like kids in the world's largest Toys 'R Us. In the time that we have been home since our week long adventure in Sin City, we have been able to gather our thoughts and have so much to be thankful for as the experience has not only made us better business owners, but better photographers.

So, back to the early bird photographer. Of the 16,000 people who attended WPPI this year, only a handful seemed to be willing to meet at 5a.m. and drive 45 minutes into the desert for a lesson in lighting while their wives slept comfortably in their very nice Vegas hotel room. Well, not only do I feel that a good photographer never stops learning, but I wasn't about to turn down and opportunity to learn hands on from Zach and Jody Gray of Gray Photography, industry leaders and super cool people. The images below reflect my sunrise lesson in perfect lighting.

As soon as we arrived, I jumped out and grabbed the models that had been asked to join us. The scenery was irresistible and I shot as much as possible.




Our first lesson was a technique that helps to get perfect exposure for both your foreground and background- a feat not easily accomplished when the morning sun is beating down on both your subject from one very specific direction and on the mountains in the distance.



Next, we worked with diffusing the harsh light with no added artificial light. I was so thrilled with these shots that we ordered this very same diffuser (seen in use below) within days after getting home.






Our last set up was a little more commercial than we're used to, but one of my favorite things to do is learn techniques from another genre and find a way to bring them into the wedding industry.





The shoot ended with a long trip back to Vegas, crossing my legs the whole time. Apparently no one thought to install restrooms in the middle of the desert. A very special thank you to Zach and Jody who have not only changed the way I see light but have effectively helped us to provide a higher quality product to our clients.

The last time I blogged on here, we had just returned from Mud Wars. This time is was the desert. I'm thinking my next post has to be really out there; anybody want to get their bridals done in the Everglades?

-Evan