Wednesday, October 15th was suppose to be a vacation day for me! My husband had a weeks vacation and we had planned to be down at the Jersey Shore for a good part of the week.
But when a regular client contacted me with a job, it was impossible to turn down the opportunity to work. So we trimmed 2 days off our planned getaway so that I could photograph an internal conference at the local convention center for a major international pharmaceutical company.
I cut my teeth as a photographer in my 20's doing just this sort of work for a large insurance company and I know that the pace is going to be grueling.
After finding a place to safely stash my extra equipment and having a good look at my schedule, I make a quick stop at the coffee station to get a bit of caffeine to keep me going. Then I head in to the ballroom to find myself a seat that gives me good access to photograph the podium and move around the room without getting in people's way. Since the events are being webcast internationally, I take a quick scan of the video set up and their line of view to make sure that I stay out of it!
Test shot of the podium. This is going to be my view off and on throughout the day. But this is not all sitting around!! The presentations in the ballroom are just a small portion of what is planned so I am racing in and out at a quiet but rapid pace.
If I am not running, I am waiting. I must keep my cell phone on but it is kept on vibrate (throughout the conference, I am at the beck and call of literally a dozen people!). But when things get slow, I surreptitiously check it for business emails and really important stuff like the news feeds of social media!
Whats in the bag?? Two Nikons, three lenses, one Quantum Q-Flash, three Quantum batteries, a JustRite Bracket, one Nikon SB-800 outfitted with one pretty expensive piece of Tupperware that I have borrowed from a friend to try out before buying (the jury is out on this one.......somehow I resist spending $125 on something that needs gaffer tape to keep it in place). Also; extra batteries and media cards. If this isn't enough, there is back up equipment in the car.
This conference is not about pharmaceuticals......it is about food....endless amounts. The continental breakfast gets cleared away and morning coffee and snacks set up. That gets cleared up for lunch....which gets cleared up for afternoon coffee and cookies.
And that is not all! Every trade booth has a candy bowl. You can tell Halloween is just around the corner.
One trade vendor had a popcorn machine.
Photo 8: Favorite trade vendor giveaways: pens and thingies that you squeeze to relieve stress. Every conference I shoot, I try to get a unique one. I have a little doctor, a lobster and now a pony.
This conference spread across two buildings connected by a covered walkway. When the participants go off to break out sessions, they are spread across two buildings, two floors and six meeting areas. EVERYTHING must be covered and I race back and forth between buildings, up and down floors and in and out of rooms. At one point, I realize that in one building, there are speakers giving seven minute presentations and in another building there is a panel discussion at the exact same time. I do a quick estimate and decide that if I photograph one speaker right at the beginning, I have approximately 12 minutes to dash to the other building to photograph the panel and dash back before the next speaker is wrapping up. That's the game plan. My speaker goes up. But she keeps her eyes cast down on her papers as she speaks. Not good. I stand there, camera up to my eye, watching for my chance. My brain is screaming "Look up, look up, look up.....PLEASE look up!!" Finally she does, I get my shot and off I race. I got them all. Comfortable shoes!
Little breaks in the covered walkway showing off the hotel landscaping is my entire view of the outside world for two days. But that is ok. As Wednesday ends, I race home where husband and dog are waiting. Within 45 minutes the car is unloaded and reloaded and we are heading south!
