WPPI 2009 In Vegas: Part II, Shoot! Shoot! Shoot!

WPPI is the largest gathering of wedding and portrait photographers in the entire world, and when that many cameras converge in the same place photo shoots are bound to happen. The subjects are sometimes "real" people (posing for engagement shoots or bridals), but usually they are local models. Between the photography conference and bunches of Valentines day weddings, it's a tough weekend to rent a wedding dress (I know because we did it!).

A lot of the shoots are "group shoots", with lots of photographers gathering around the same subject. What you see below is actually a shoot happening for a class my mom was taking (she is standing in the far left side of this photo holding the camera to her face). My mom flew in a few days before the conference officially started to take a class with one of the worlds best portrait photographers, Bambi Cantrell. I'm pretty sure my mom mentioned that Bambi photographed the family of Vanessa Williams once, and that her photo shoots can sometimes cost upwards of $100,000. The classes sound really fun, with a few hours of classroom instruction with the pro, and then some time with professional models attempting to re-enact the principles that were just taught in the classroom.

There were "brides" all over the hotel that weekend. They are basically living my dream of walking around in a wedding dress all day long.

The other type of shoots that occur aren't associated with the conference in any way. They are organized by photographers themselves, sometimes with real couples/brides, but most often with local models. Some of these photographers look a little tired, which should be no surprise since they tend to party all night and then get up to take pictures at 6 AM the next day!
Photo by Daria Bishop

The photo below is by a Weddingbee reader, Catie Ronquillo, who came up to me and said "You are Mrs. Avocado!" It was really fun to talk to another reader in person! Most of the shoots are really conceptual, giving the photographers a chance to practice their technique, in Catie's case they were working on using off-camera flash.

The majority of the shoots are staged in either the dessert, or a place known as the Neon Graveyard, seen below.
Photo by Amber Hughes

I love this saucy shot by Sarah Rhoads (who was almost my wedding photographer!)

And then, or course, there are the "brides". If you were to take a walk through Vegas in the early morning or late evening during this conference, it is pretty much guaranteed that you will find a model running around in a wedding dress. Between the real Valentines day wedding couples, and the models posing as fake brides, I had no idea who to say congratulations to!

Not many photographers take pictures down on the strip because it is crowded and cluttered. Knowing that makes me love this shot by Chelsea Nicole even more!

Most photographers are willing to make the 40 mile drive outside of Vegas to these dry lake beds for some dramatic desert shots.
Photo by Raw Photo Design

The two photos below are probably my favorite "bride in Vegas" portraits ever. I love the set design (of course I would with all of those suitcases), and how elegant the model looks stranded in the middle of nowhere.
Photo by Victor Sizemore

Isn't this amazing? I know I have a million-and-one photos of myself in a wedding dress, but how awesome would it be to have something so put-together like this? I'm in love.
Photo by Todd Pellowe

My mom and I were able to join a 6 AM photo shoot that another photographer had set up. I brought my little point-and-shoot and attempted to stay out of the way while the other photographers swarmed around me trying to get the best angle. The sweet model posing for us was deaf in one ear and it was her first photo shoot. She was really nervous, but she did a marvelous job!

I managed to capture a few pretty pictures myself!

Next up is a fake wedding, with a real diamond ring!