Imaging USA 2020: Day 2 and Day 3

by Francesco Carucci January 27, 2020

Day 2

The second day at Imaging USA for me is always less packed than the first day. It might be some of the initial excitement wearing off, but I generally dedicate the second day more to networking, rather than jumping frantically from session to session.

One of the very useful services that Professional Photographers of America offers during Imaging USA is the IPC Mentorship: fifteen minutes to spend with one of the judges of the International Photographic Competition to show images and receive feedback.

A lot of the feedback focuses on how to package an image to create impact for the judges: IPC judges are trained to judge an image based on 12 categories, but, as it's true for any competition that can not be based on absolutely rigorous criteria, there is a lot of room for interpretation.

Which adds excitement to photographic competitions.

Over the years I learnt that IPC judges have a certain style they prefer and some presentation formats are received better than others.

Incidentally it's not the style that I prefer for my images.

But I adapt. And I recently started to create a version of my images specific for IPC and I use the mentorship offered at Imaging USA to guide me.

This process has been working very well for me in the last couple of years with several images being chosen to be exhibited.

Back to the expo, I found the Fujifilm stand and I had few minutes to play with the Fujifilm GFX100.

A medium format mirrorless beast.

Everything with the camera is slower than with the Sony a7R IV: autofocus, reviewing images, getting ready for the next shot, turning on the camera.

But not impossibly slower.

I can see myself using it in the field with my slow and methodical workflow.

The GFX100 is a heavy and beautiful machine. It doesn’t feel cheap, unlike some of the criticism that I read online. The camera was mounting a 32-64mm zoom lens. The electronic viewfinder of the GFX100 is huge!

I love my Sony, but the GFX100 felt from a different league.

Will I buy it? Not yet. Not yet.

Few stands away, Sony was reminding why I love my a7R IV by displaying so many lenses in their huge stand. One of the attractions: a country singer giving a performance for everyone to take photos.

I love concert photography!

And this is one my shots with the Sony 135mm GM f/1.8. Straight out of camera. Ehm.

Country singer in Nashville at Imaging USA 2020

Day 3

Seth Miranda was the bright highlight of Day 3.

Seth is a brilliant portrait photographer and a very engaging speaker. He's talented, he's raw, he's authentic.

"... and people doing that frequency separation crap, I thought women had blood vessels..."

The session focused on creating lighting out of balloons and garbage bags. And not just bland, but amazing lighting.

The key takeaway of the talk is that you do not need fancy equipment to create beautiful photography. You need to know how light works and how to solve problems.

This lesson applies to every style of photography.

Fancy gear helps in many scenarios, it can make you faster, but it's not a strict requirement.

Follow Seth on instagram and everywhere you can find his inspiring photography and engaging education.

The closing note was another highlight of the entire Imaging USA 2020 by carrying across some of the most actionable information of the entire event.

Vanessa Van Edwards is Behavioral Researcher and author of best selling books about behavior science. Vanessa is also a wonderfully captivating speaker, who came across genuinely interesting, relatable and engaging.

In a hour long keynote, Vanessa brought several facts always backed up by actual research on how to be charismatic and yet pleasant when interacting with people.

Some of the highlights include always shake hands, use positive and exciting words and react to micro expression that signal fear or discomfort.

Fascinating. And relevant.

You can find Vanessa on Ted Talk.