WPPI 2017- Wedding & Portrait Photographer Convention

I won an expo pass from Rangefinder Magazine to the WPPI 2017 Expo & Convention in Vegas a few weeks back! It was my first time going to a photography convention! It was a fun opportunity to see the newest photography technology, equipment and products as well as learning from different instructors in their areas of expertise! I took classes from Sue Bryce, Rob Greer, Matthew 'The Body' Kemmetmueller & Melissa Jill. I purchased a new Speedlite modifier from MagMod to help with fill flash for weddings in the Summer! :)

It was super fun going from 4 inches of snow in Seattle to 60 degress in Vegas! My bff joined me on the 2nd day which was awesome. We had super delish Thai food at Lotus of Sian & Irish food at Nine Fine Irishmen and gluten free breakfast (orange blossom French toast) at the Four Seasons. Not pictured: Eating at Canaletto Ristorante at the Venetian having a pasta trio and cocktail by myself, seeing Frank Marino's Diva's Drag Show (also solo) and yeah, I foolishly didn't take any class pictures either! Whoopsy.

Overall, it was really cool to see everything in one place but it was definitely overwhelming trying to fit everything into 2 days of the convention with over 200 vendors and tons of speakers. Next time I'll plan to be there earlier in the day as the expo closes by 4pm.

Vancouver KiZouk Festival Weekend

Whoo hoo! My first time technically leaving the country in 10 years last weekend! (sidenote: what the heck, how did I let that happen?!) Ate soooo much good food and had so much fun.

Went up to Vancouver to perform on our Brazilian Zouk dance team lead by my BF Rob & his partner Cat. It was super duper nerve wracking to perform in front of a ton of professionals and other dancers! We practiced for months on the choreo and we did pretty freaking great!

It's been 2 years officially since I started taking Brazilian Zouk classes. I have never been a performer and always admired people who could express themselves through the art of dance. It's been super rewarding and fun (and also REALLY hard and frustrating), but I'm finally getting confident with myself, my body and my dancing! I've also met sooo many great people through dancing.

I'm super grateful to my boyfriend Robert who is an amazing and patient instructor. He's let me tag a long on sooo many classes and performances the past 3 or 4 years. I love spending time with him and seeing him shine as a teacher and performer! Thanks for not kicking me out when I sucked & got mega frustrated, babe! hahah. He's teaching Zouk all over the world and I'm so proud of him! Thanks to Cat for helping me out so much this year as an instructor and being so positive and helpful! Kelsey, thanks so much for the private 2 weeks ago, it helped me so much!

Besides the super fun classes and social dancing that went on until 3 or 4 am every night, we had a crazy party in our hotel room which was a blast. I wish I had photos of everything but I tend to put my camera away at parties and events so I can really enjoy myself. #photographerproblems

I had the best time planning our meals and scouting for fun spots! Eating out and exploring are basically my favorite things besides photography (and puppies). If you are gluten free like me, I highly recommend the places pictured below:

  • Nuba (Delicious and healthy Lebanese food)
  • Bao Down (Chinese and Filipino style Bao and other food and drinks. They have GF fried adobo chicken!)
  • Tacofino (amazing drinks and awesome tacos. Their neon logo sign and mid century modern decor are also #goals)
  • Mosquito (cocktail and dessert bar, yummy chocolates and macarons)
  • Cartems Donuterie (offers awesome GF donuts, go early)
  • Lemonade Bakery (GF HEAVEN! OMG! Seattle needs to step their game up HARD)
  • Long's Noodle House (amazing and cheap Chinese/Taiwanese food. The Xiao Long Bao were so good)
  • Laduree (more macarons. Expensive but good)
  • SURA (freaking delicious Korean food. They had Army Base Stew which I had been meaning to try, soooo spicy & hearty)

Also, The Steam Clock is fun & also hit up the Nike Outlet by the airport! DEALS!

xo - Haley

Las Vegas Vacation

My boyfriend Robert & I took a weekend trip to Las Vegas for my 27th (AHHH WHAT) birthday 2 weeks ago! It was filled with ups and downs (mostly due to travel issues) but we had a damn good time enjoying some delicious and decadent food, going to XS nightclub and dancing and drinking and just taking in all the lights, sights and people.

We stayed at the SLS which was super hip and fun, my first time staying in a non-chain hotel if you can believe it! The steak and mushrooms and seared ahi tataki with yuzu salsa at Katsuya were AMAZING. Melt in your mouth steak, so good. Also enjoyed plenty of cocktails, dairy free GF macaron ice cream sandwiches at Perfect Scoop, El Buen pastor Mexican food, french style steak frites at Mon Ami Gabi and a view of the Bellagio fountain (and a lady from the midwest singing sad 90s karaoke), loved the drinks and amazing decor and whimsy of Park on Fremont. Also ran into my good friend Trenton and his girlfriend who were on vacay too!

The best part of our trip was definitely the Neon Museum / Neon Boneyard tour. It was sold out last year so we made it a point to go this time. I had SUCH a good time learning about the retired neon signs and the history of Vegas. Manny our guide was such a sweetheart, really enjoyed his anecdotes and fun personality.

Definitely going back next year and seeing the Magic Mike show! LOL