My Day at the PhotoPro Expo 2013

Last Sunday, I moseyed down to Cincinnati to check out the PhotoPro Expo at the Northern Kentucky Convention Center. My main motivation was to be able to soak up some of Joe McNally’s greatness while he spoke and inspired the crowd during his The Moment It Clicks presentation.  But alas, after soaking up as much as I possibly could, I still did not receive any calls from Nat Geo or SI. So, the method of using osmosis to become a great photographer has still not been proven yet. I guess I will still have to keep working at it.

The biggest lesson I learned while listening to Mr. McNally (I really just want to call him Joe, but out of respect to his body of work, I stick with Mr. McNally), is a story he shared about meeting one of his idols.  Mr. McNally was relieved to hear that sometimes, even his idol missed ‘the shot’. That is a very important lesson for photographers.  Sometimes, even the greats, miss the shot.

About the PhotoPro Expo

The PhotoPro Expo is the largest photography trade show that occurs within a moderate driving distance to me in Dayton, Ohio. This year the fun started on Thursday and ended with an all day workshop by Kevin Kubota on Monday. Thursday and Friday was full of many different speakers. In addition to speakers, the trade show started up on Saturday and went on through Sunday.

Inside the trade show you could find all types of vendors from framers to virtual backdrop vendors. I particularly enjoyed talking with the different print providers to discuss different price points for my portrait work. I am really interested in getting some huge metal prints done, so the trade show was very beneficial. But of course, inside the trade show was the LIVE Model Fantasy Shootout by Westcott. The photos below are some of the shots I took in that booth.

This year, along with Joe McNally, there was a cavalcade of talented instructors and personalities. I personally took part in sessions with Lou Freeman, Rick Sammon, and saw Kevin Kubota taking a lunch break back in the cafe area. Sandy Puc was also on hand broadcasting her SPTV.com show out at the entrance to the trade show. I was sad to miss Zach and Jody give their Three Keys To Running A Thriving Wedding Business presentation, but at least I got to listen to them talk with Sandy for a bit.Rick Sammon was in the Westcott booth, providing helpful tidbits and some of his vast knowledge to those taking part in the Westcott LIVE Fantasy Model Shootout. After his stint in the Westcott area, he headed over to the teaching area where he taught a workshop on HDR.

After Mr. Sammon left the Westcott area, Lou Freeman stopped by to give some tip high fashion looks, and showed different interesting uses of the Westcott Ice Light.  There is a photo below of Lou giving a demo with one of the models with two Ice Lights.My day at the PhotoPro Expo was incredibly fulfilling. From the insight from Joe McNally to the networking with other photophiles, PhotoPro Expo was well worth the money to take part in a great exhibition. If you have any questions about it feel free to leave a comment below, tweet me, contact me on my Facebook page, or you can fill out the contact form on my website.