09 Mar
WPPI 2009 in Vegas: Part I
In February I went met up with my mom in Vegas for a convention known as WPPI (Wedding & Portrait Photographers International). At the time, I didn’t have a dSLR camera, wasn’t calling myself a photographer, and didn’t have any plans of getting into photography professionally anytime soon. WPPI changed all that in just a matter of days, and I’ll always be glad I ended up going because of that. I called That Husband each nice bursting with excitement about all of the new things I was seeing and learning. The original plan was for me to buy a dSLR when I earned the money myself, but when he realized how passionate I was about it, he gave me the go-ahead to jump right in and use “his” money to fund the project.
I’m going to get all gushy and just let you know that my husband is the best! He’s fabulous with money, with holding me back and keeping me with spending too much, but he isn’t a miser. He saw that this was something I loved, and knew that we had the money to buy it, so we did it. I hope it starts to pay off soon!
I’ll admit this first post is slightly gratuitous, a chance to show you some of my favorite shots from my week in Vegas, and give you an idea what I was doing when I wasn’t at the convention.
After entirely too many hours at the airport (canceled flight, no seats on stand-by, etc) I was very happy to check in to our vintage film inspired hotel room. There is just something about old Hollywood that always leaves me sighing.
That night I met up with a fellow bee Miss Dumpling! (I write for a national wedding website called Weddingbee, and I’m Mrs. Avocado on the site.) She is gorgeous and funny and awesomely self-depreciating. Incredibly easy to fall head-over-heels in love with. Don’t you love those kind of people?
I woke up the next morning to take a picture of the view, and realized it was of Hooters and the airport. Nice.
The wedding blogger in me couldn’t get enough of the topiaries in the lobby.
Look at that leaf covered ball in the background. I think it’s totally DIY-doable. Don’t you?
The MGM Grand is gorgeous. But smoky (as are all things in Vegas).
This is my favorite shot from the trip, and currently my desktop background. Aren’t the clouds in the background amazing?
There are photographers EVERYWHERE in Vegas during this convention. This lady gave me the idea to carry around my own little Polish dwarf and take pictures whenever I visit a new place. I’m really excited about this new project!
I was attempting to spend the least amount possible while on this trip (haha, what a joke), so I ordered cheap Chinese, ate half, and then had the other half the next day for lunch. I was so sick of eating out after that week.
Who writes these fortunes? I could do so much better than this. The casinos should get in on this and slip in papers that say things like “26 is your lucky number today”. I bet they would see an increase in reckless gambling involving the number 26 if they did.
They were giving out free Coke. I don’t drink Coke so I didn’t get any.
I crossed over the bridge and went inside New York New York. It was dark, dirty, and smelly. Is this what the real city is like?
Can you believe how much the sky changed in the time it took me to eat and walk over to New York New York? I’m so glad I snapped that bright colorful picture when I did!
I wonder if people ever stop to think “Maybe if I stopped throwing my money away in these machines, I could just save up my money and buy one of these cars instead?”
I’m super snobby about gambling (huge waste of time) because I don’t do it. Except that one time in high school when my best friend made me gamble away 25 cents at the bowling alley
. I’m still pretty mad about that Bre.
My mom and I went and got $90 sushi. Whoops. Good thing we had 2-for-1 coupons from the convention.
She had tuna. I didn’t like it.
The creme brulee was dreamy though.
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I played with the Blue Men!
JK, they are wax. Tricked you though for a second.
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While my mom was shopping at Banana, I took a second to see how I would look with one of those hot and trendy headbands you see all over the place right now. What do you think? I just worry I’ll look back on it in 10 years and think “What an idiot!”
I went out to eat with Miss Dumpling again on something like the third day I was there. These posts are not exactly going to be in order, more like, topical.
If you visit the Bellagio, look up when you enter the lobby. Isn’t this incredible?
The Bellagio has a room decorated according to the different season or holidays. It was Chinese New Year themed when we were there.
I’ve never wanted to rub the tummy of a plant before this.
Gah! Cutest ever!
Mandy/Dumpling and Jenna/Avocado.
A fountain of chocolate in the Bellagio. It’s like something straight out of Willy Wonka.
Quite possibly one of the best sandwhiches ever. I think they sugared the top of this croissant.
Mandy let me eat some of her crepe. She is both gorgeous and kind. And skinny. And has a slight Southern accent. She is basically as cute as those panda bears I showed you earlier.
We hurried outside to watch the famous Bellagio fountain show. I ended up liking the lights reflecting on the water almost as much as I liked the fountains themselves.
Pretty, but I still think I need to go to Paris someday to compare.
Vegas is dirty and full of naked girls and actually quite awful. But when you are standing at the railing waiting for thewater show, it’s easy to see why so many people fall in love with this city.
I'm a farm-raised almost-crunchy stroller-pushing picture-taking lifestyle-blog-writing gastronomy-obsessed divine-seeking thrift-store-combing cheese-inhaling pavement-pounding laughter-sprinkling lover of individuality and taking chances.
These are fab! I must have seen over a hundred blog posts on Vegas this month, what with all the blogs I stalk, but I never get tired of them! And I never stop wishing I was there.
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1I loved that headband on you. But then nothing fills me with more glee than the idea of looking back at photos of myself and laughing. I actually have a pretty classic look, but when I wear really fashionable stuff I always want photos so I can laugh at the fashions later!
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2Oh, Las Vegas. I went in January for my bestfriend’s wedding (and stayed at the MGM Grand as well) and I developed a love/hate relationship with the city. I love the lights, the atmosphere, the food, even the gambling! But I absolutely despise the seedy little men lining the street trying to stuff calling cards for $35 prostitutes into my husband’s hand.
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3Oh this post makes me so homesick for Vegas. I can’t believe it’ll be another four months until I’m back.
The atrium all dressed up for Chinese New Year looks awesome. How fun!
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4I can see more why my In-Laws love Vegas so much that they bought a little house out there. They aren’t big into gambling at all (and my friends made me lose a whole $2 once because of a damn leprechaun and wouldn’t let me quit when I was ahead. I’m still a touch bitter too) but they love the dry heat apparently.
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5I didn’t really like Vegas, either. It probably doesn’t help that I went through Vegas after a mission’s trip in Mexico and to go from such poverty to such extravagance in a day’s trip was too much for me. Go figure that I’m also not a fan of gambling. I’m glad that you had fun at your conference, though!
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6Great pictures - that’s my relationship with Vegas. It’s a great place to take interesting pictures and everyone should walk the Strip once in their lives, but if you’re not a gambler, well, there’s not all that much else to do.
My husband is the same great way about money - he’s a saver and helps us make wise purchases, but he’s not a miser either and knows when it’s worth it to spend a little more. I couldn’t live with either extreme - miser or major spender. These kind of guys are the best kind of combination!
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7i like the headband!
Vegas has always been one of the those cities that I don’t really care if I see, but I can’t wait to hear more about WPPI!
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8I don’t gamble and I’m not into clubbing, but I love Vegas. I’ve been 10 times. It’s my favourite place in the States, for the heat, the shopping, and the memories I have of family vacations there.
I can’t convince my boyfriend to go with me though- and that’s probably not a bad thing, as I expect we’d come back married and miss out on the whole wedding shebang!
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9I love seeing Vegas from your lens’ perspective!
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10Ooh, where did you go to sushi? I’ll be there this weekend and we love sushi.
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Jenna Reply:
March 9th, 2009 at 10:08 am
It’s a place inside the MGM? I wish I could remember
They have the COOLEST dish ever that involves a salad sitting on top of a fishbowl with a fish inside! I think it’s on the tasting menu and I want to go back there and get it someday.
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my hubby used to play in the BM band in Toronto. I wonder if his friend is any of the ones you have your pic with?? hmmm
http://photos-e.ak.fbcdn.net/photos-ak-sf2p/v67/64/73/671715194/n671715194_119004_6379.jpg
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12All of that food looks so yummy!!!
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13Mmh sushi….
I love the pictures though, it gives a great feel of the atmosphere I imagine of the city. Sounds like you had fun.
The ceiling in the Atrium, I’ve seen something similar but with more glass blown sea-creatures at a Museum in Palm Beach. I think it was a modern art museum. They look like jelly fish, it’s really cool.
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14I’m so jealous! I would love to go to Vegas and see all those beautiful things. I love the idea of taking your Polish gnome with you to places.
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15I kinda hate vegas because of all the nakie girls and seeing how dirty it is, but really you captured all the things I love about it- bright colors and beautiful things to look at, well done jenna. Well done
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16Stop making me crave the wide open western sky - I’m going to end up dragging Nick to the desert In a loving, “lets build a life” sort of way of course
I’m glad you enjoyed your trip!
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17Oh, and the headband - I dig <3
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18“I crossed over the bridge and went inside New York New York. It was dark, dirty, and smelly. Is this what the real city is like?”
From my experience five years ago, yes! I didn’t have a fabulous NYC experience, so don’t trust my word. I think I’m more of a country girl than a city dweller.
Vegas is the pits to me. I feel strange in that city, mostly because it feels so dirty to be there, more so than New York City, London, or Paris. Must be the greed and booze in the air, ha.
The real Paris is much better than the Vegas Paris. You should go someday. I much prefer Caen or Saint-Malo pace over the Parisian nightlife and crowds.
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19Loved your posts on Weddingbee, so great that you linked to this blog of yours!! My husband’s family is LDS and we have a definite affinity to the traditional family values being a Christians ourselves. Okay. So maybe my affinity runs deeper… I didn’t grow up around people of the LDS faith so I still find somethings new and interesting. I can’t believe you lost 50 pounds! That’s fantastic! You’re adorable and I LOVED your wedding, every single picture was fabulous!
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20I want to go to Vegas one day, although I’m not sure I ever will (Ryan has been and didn’t care for it). Way to capture some beautiful moments and bits
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21This makes me want to go to Vegas.
After spending our lives growing up at the beach and vacationing into nature, my husband and I have found that we love love love city vacations.
Mostly I like fancy hotels and restaurants and getting dressed up like I have somewhere to go. Vegas seems great for all these reasons, so hopefully we’ll be able to visit eventually.
I’ll have to take some mental notes on what’s good and not so good about the place.
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22Holy moly! That art piece in the lobby! That vintage-inspired bedroom! That chocolate fountain! Speaking of chocolate, it’s almost enough to change my pregnancy cravings from salty to sweet…..mmmmmm
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23Great pis
I loved Vegas when we were there last year…so much to see and do…I do enjoy a little gambling thugh
I stay far, Far, FAR away from the slots though. I love roulette…it’s my game. 50 cent tables in “old vegas”…I can play for hours on $20! I am a big boardgame player so this is the “grown up” version to me…plus free drinks and a chance to meet lots of different ppl.
Think you’ll go back to the convention next time?
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Jenna Reply:
March 10th, 2009 at 10:12 pm
It depends on how I do with the photography. If I can justify spending the money to fly out to WPPI, I definitely will! I want to spend even more time networking than I did this time. I felt stupid since I wasn’t “officially” a photographer and didn’t have a camera. That won’t be the case next year!
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oops! *pics* (my keyboard is sticky
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25Wow- I just read all your posts about Vegas. I love your pictures. You are very good, in my humble, totally lacking in experience, opinion. But a compliment is a compliment, eh?
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26Isn’t it great to find something you are passionate about?
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