I’m just back from this incredible conference in Chicago, called Strictly Business 2 put on by ASMP, which was all about the business of photography. Since the tag line for the conference was “Put your camera down and focus on your business”, I didn’t even bring my camera. For an event photographer like me, that was a weird experience, but it made me not hide behind my camera, be confident, and introduce myself to a lot of people. Photographers can be a pretty competitive bunch, so I was really struck by how friendly, helpful, and welcoming this group was. And the content was fantastic. So much stuff I really needed to know right now, and I feel like I have 150 things I can do tomorrow to improve my business.

However, since I didn’t even bring my camera, I have no photos of the event to post! Instead, here’s a series of photos of my dear friend Kevin Bracy-Knight, who helped me out on a portrait session for a client a few weeks ago. He’s a charming, funny and very generous guy, who is also a great sport about being silly and letting me photograph him. We all need more friends like him.

Off to start on that list of 150 things!

Patty Nason