The title of this post is fitting in more than one way. I just returned from a 10 night stay in Las Vegas for our perennial Anti-Workshop and the WPPI tradeshow. Let me tell you – after 10 days in Vegas, I don’t care if I never go back. It will be days before the stench of cigarette smoke and the cha-ching of slot machines leaves my head. Despite the dry air and endless buffet lines, I had an awesome time.
It started with our Anti-Workshop. We kicked it off with a pre-party at a little speakeasy in downtown Vegas. There was no shortage of delicious food and yummy martinis. Let’s just say we put the Anti Ice Luge to good use that night The first day was all about breaking the ice and starting from scratch. We chatted about composition and pre-visualization and then broke the attendees into groups, assigning them a crazy challenge that landed us on the local news. Here are a couple of posts from attendees, describing the day -
Eliesa’s take on Day One
Jared Wilson
Our first UK attendee!
Day Two was all about using light and directing your subjects. One of the things that I’m really proud of is that we give our students lots of opportunities to shoot in small, intimate groups. We had 13 models this day, which meant groups were 3-4 people. Attendees were given a “shot-list,” which was designed to help them see all the cool things you can do with light, composition, angle and good direction. I am always floored by the quality of images that our students come up with. Check out some of the Anti-Crew’s awesome images -
Jared
Josh Solar
the delightful miss michelle
Troy
Eliesa’s take on Day Two
Day Three was lots and lots of business and photoshop talk. No shoots that day, but we all gathered back at the downtown to chat about business and to watch John do his amazing painting with light technique.
Day Four of the Anti-Workshop was a total blast! We all met up for a super-secret final shoot at the Neon Boneyard, which is where all the old Vegas signs go to die. Doug, John and myself each took turns shooting. I always like this part of the workshop, because it gives attendees a chance to see how very different we all are. Here’s a couple blog posts about the shoot -
Sarah Huffman
Abby
Janine
Eliesa’s take on Day Four
And here are a couple of my favorite shots from the day -





Then it was off to sell our wears at the WPPI tradeshow. Our booth was a smashing success, despite the fact that the powers-that-be stuck us in the corner. Thanks to everyone who stopped by or spread the word about the Totally Rad Actions. The whole thing has been a huge grass-roots effort and we couldn’t do it without all the photographers who have shown us some serious love. We heart our Totally Rad Friends!
A few days later (day 10 of our trip), we all met for one last hoorah at my favorite Las Vegas bar – the double down saloon. Don’t get me wrong, I like the glitz and glam of the clubs on the strip, but I am really more of dive-bar kind of girl. And there is really no bigger dive than The Double Down (home of the world famous bacon martini.) For the last couple of years we’ve gotten all the last Anti-Alumni together to drink, catch up and generally cause a lot of trouble. This time, we decided to document the debauchery with a polaroid camera. Here are some favorite memories….


All and all, Vegas was a blast, the workshop was a success and the tradeshow rocked. Thanks to everyone who made it special!
delightfully,
Chenin