I was sitting here working on a talk I'm giving in a few weeks at the annual Wedding Photographic Society convention here in Chapel Hill when it occurred to me that I hadn't yet announced to you, my amazing blog-readers, that I was going to be speaking! Yikes!!!  

A little background: the Wedding Photographic Society (WPS) is a network of professional wedding & portrait photographers who collaborate online and in person on ideas, thoughts, and information in an attempt to elevate the artistic, technical, and business standards of the photographic community. Though the WPS is based in Raleigh, a chapter opened last year in Wilmington, and with nearly 800 members participating online from all over the world, there are rumors of new chapters in several locations. Are you a professional or aspiring photographer? Why not join us? Better yet... come to next month's convention at the Carolina Inn! The WPS has put together a stellar list of speakers that I'm honored to have been included on, including Neil Van Niekerk, Julia Woods, and Ann Monteith among many others, and because it's relatively small, you're essentially guaranteed the opportunity to meet and chat with lots of other photographers (including speakers!), which is QUITE different from the big conventions! There will also be opportunities to participate in live shoots, a trade show, personal mentoring, and lots of social events... it should be a fantastic experience!

My talk in particular is entitled Perfect [Business] Focus. One of the most important things we can do for our businesses is to distinguish ourselves from our competitors... especially in a market as competitive as photography. Unfortunately, a lot of photographers - especially new photographers - are drawn to what appears to be safety in numbers, and model both their artistic vision and their business tactics on those of other photographers who they perceive to be successful... a dangerous strategy at best. I'm going to talk about why finding and refining your own vision is a vital component to any photographer's business, then give ideas about how you can go about doing so in a way that will both satisfy you creatively and pay the bills.

So that's it! Come one, come all! I'm vacillating between excitement and terror at the prospect of speaking in front of a group again, but hey... at least this will be a slightly smaller crowd than last time  ;)

xox,

annemie