Exhausting • Exhilarating

I just got back from the experience of a lifetime - Seniors Ignite Event 2014. I've been going to conventions, seminars, workshops and events for two decades. As a member of Senior Portrait Artists, the events I went to were superb learning and social hangouts. Most memorable were clearly the years I had a winning senior model who traveled to the events with me, representing myself and our Cheshire High School community. Courtney Malloy in Tuscon '08. Abby Erhlich in San Diego '10 and Anna Morse in Palm Springs '11. 

This year, with our young organization Seniors Ignite, our event was above and beyond anything I could have imagined. First and foremost, I am honored to be a member of the SI Crew. The brains and braun of the organization. When we had our staff meetings and nightly debriefs during the event, I couldn't help but look around the room in awe of the talent and wisdom that I am in the company of. It is simply humbling. These loveable, genius artists and entrepreneurs are my extended family. The devotion to our industry and eagerness to share and educate among this group is unprecedented. None of us are commissioned speakers and educators at the event. We are volunteers, starting a revolution in photography and business education. I went eight days of going non-stop on three hours sleep a night and although I am absolutely exhausted now, I would do it again in a heartbeat.

I wasn't going to enter any seniors in the model competition this year. I was simply going to go and enjoy the event and immerse myself in mentoring and in education for myself as well. I am so thankful that my friend talked me into it because I ended up with the perfect winning senior in Allie Rosadino. I had warned Allie that she had HUGE shoes to fill, following in the footsteps of our former CHS winners. Man, did she ever go above and beyond. Allie and her mom Cheryl made this one of the most memorable experiences of my career and represented me and Cheshire High with grace, levity, energy and raw beauty. There wasn't a single moment where we weren't laughing and enjoying the ride with new friends from across the country. Such a joy. I couldn't ask for better representatives than any member of the Rosadino family. The images Allie and I created are simply stunning, as are those of my friends and colleagues she collaborated with. Great job kiddo.

Finally, the most important reason this year's event was destined to be a high point in my career, was having Morgan Dent by my side. When I opened my first studio, I made a conscious decision that my career would be centered around mentoring the next generation of photographers as well as pursuing creative excellence within my own work. I have hosted dozens of interns and countless job shadows through the high school over the years. Morgan is Allie's classmate, a co-editor of their yearbook and a photography student. Morgan will be heading off to college in the fall pursuing a career in fashion photography. I first met Morgan through the school's Job Shadow program and I was immediately inspired by her eagerness for learning. Since then she has helped me with everything from location sessions to post production and her strong work ethic is unlike most adults. I asked if she would like to attend the conference both as my assistant and a student because I wanted her to experience and learn about the business side of what we do. You see, they don't teach business in art schools. They teach you how to be a great artist but now how to earn a living at it. At her first professional conference, she not only assisted me on shoots but sat and learned with some of the most brilliant artists and business women in the country. Superior role models for a young lady with a world of success ahead of her. She reworked my own program that I was slated to address, within an hour of my stage time, because my Keynote program was done on an older version and wouldn't work with the house projection system. My program? Mentoring through interns and paying it forward on behalf of those who have helped us. Since she put it together for me, and since I have a severe fear of public speaking, she came on stage with me and worked the slides and videos. Having her by my side on stage got me through it and I cannot thank her enough. As a seventeen year old artist, she gained the respect and admiration of the photographers that I admire and respect. We took the Job Shadow program to a whole new level. And what would an educational trip be without a little school work? Allie modeled for her during downtime so she could add to her college portrait portfolio. She also had to create landscapes as part of her Photography II class so we flew into the desert a day early and stayed a day later so she could work on her landscape homework. We walked for MILES in Las Vegas at night (Cheryl wore a FitBit) creating cityscapes, spent time in the Mohave Desert and Red Rock Canyon, and even met up with my nephew Jonathan at Nellis Air Force Base. He brought us out onto the flight line and we were standing right next to F-15E fighter jets as the pilots and his fellow tech crew prepared for a mission. That was sick. Had we stayed an extra day, I would have been able to reconnect with another CHS grad, USAF Pilot Mike Vallone, who contacted me after seeing that I was there. Mike had just flown his B-52 into Nellis for training missions this week. Small world. USA!

So thank you Cheryl and Allie Rosadino. Thank you Morgan Dent. Thank you fellow SI Masterminds. Thank you attendees as well. The fact that you chose to invest in yourself at the event is inspiring. The knowledge I gained myself this year is brilliant and the feedback from fellow photographers who I met has been wonderful. I'm grateful that I could share my own knowledge and inspire a few new artists as well. TTFN, until next year – San Diego 2015.