If you have never been to Photoshop World, then most of this post will seem really bizarre. What other conference puts on a keynote that changes themes every year, hires professional impersonators, produces fake commercials and gets Adobe to showcase its new technology first?
None.
Photoshop World is truly unique. The first day starts off with a keynote address delivered by Adobe and this year was going to be something special. Adobe has a public release of its flagship Photoshop application CS6, a new tablet version of Photoshop and Lightroom 4 was just released. What an exciting time for photographers.
I was down at the keynote stage early to watch the preparations and was amazed, as usual, by the team that makes the whole show happen.
Then there is Russell Brown. Since we were in Washington, he came dressed as Lincoln, and stayed in character the whole time. It was quite amazing to watch.
The seats were filled, the excitement was high and the show began. Now I am not going to show you the jokes and the skits but I found this keynote really funny and the Adobe presentation was awesome.
Toward the end of the Keynote, Scott Diussa and I gave away the Nikon D7000 kit to the winner from the Pre Con. It’s always a little scary standing on that stage and looking out at the sea of people. You would think by now I would be used to it, but honestly, I was as nervous this time as I was the first time.
After the keynote was over, it was time for the sessions to begin. And there were a ton of great classes offered. I managed to sit in on a few of the classes and they all rocked. Calvin Hollywood does things with Photoshop I had never even thought possible, Joe McNally can do things with a small flash that other would need a warehouse full of gear to pull off.
In the afternoon of the first day, the expo floor opens but it is also the time for portfolio reviews. It is one of the perks of attending the conference. Sign up for a portfolio review and you get to spend 15 minutes one-on-one with an instructor going over your work. I got to see some really cool work and hopefully give out some useful advice.
Thanks for the photo Brad. (© Brad Moore)
After the portfolio reviews, it was a quick trip back to the hotel to get ready for dinner and the after hours party. Now the after party was held at a DC nightclub and Scott Kelby and his band, Big Electric Cat (the same band that played at the Pre Con ) entertained the crowd. It was a really fun night and gave me the opportunity to take a couple more photos. If there was any downside, it was the couple of attendees who were trying to take photos of the band with speedlights on their cameras, with the flashes turned backwards.
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