Jasmine and I would not miss WPPI annual convention for anything else. Yes, it costs a lot of money, time and effort to be in Las Vegas each year, but what’s so incredibly precious and valuable is not going to be cheap. We’ve been to three of the four WPPI convention. The last two weeks went by so fast. After the euphoria has subsided, I got up at 6am today to reflect on what’s special about WPPI 2010. Let me warn you…this is a LONG post.

From a personal standpoint, to be invited to speak at a platform class and to judge the print competition is a HUGE honour. To be the first Asia-based photographer to speak there is historical. My session “7 Winning Strategies” was held at 8am, March 9. I didn’t know what to expect or how many would show up. Given the time, only the hungriest and most dedicated would turn up. I was honored to have 200+ packed into the room. I am sorry to hear that security turned people away because the room wouldn’t fit anymore. Hopefully we can see you next year.

Only five seats left when we were 5 minutes from starting.

I enjoyed delivering the presentation very much.

I put my heart and soul into this. Lost more than a few nights of sleep over this. It was nerve wrecking…not so much about speaking because I do that regularly but more so of the sense of occasion. This was the biggest stage of my young career. Closer the time, the nerve disappeared because I knew I was only speaking from my heart the things that we practice everyday & every week at Louis Pang Studio.

And the results? I felt I really connected with the audience. What an honor to be applauded for a minute! I was told that almost everyone left with teary eye when we showed the last video. (Couldn’t see the crowd very well with the lights on me.) Thank you for staying back to hug me and to share with me what the presentation meant to you. A grown man came up to me in tears said, “I had not cried since my father passed away and I cried today because I saw so much love and life in you and your work.” I am deeply privileged that you share such private information with me.

Many more stopped me randomly in the cafeteria, hallway, escalators, tradeshow and print gallery to thank me for the class. You guys are so sweet. You have no idea how much your encouragement and feedback mean to me. Your tweets, Facebook messages & emails touched Jasmine and I deeply. Thank you guys! We are happy that we can sow into your lives. We can’t wait to hear about the harvest you will reap.

Sharing my guerrilla lighting techniques at the Asukabook’s booth.

Print judging is another new experience. Bambi Cantrell chaired a panel of nine judges which include Yervant, Jesh de Rox, Rocco Ancora (three-time Australian wedding photographer of the year), Michael Greenberg (2010 Grand Award Winner – Portrait & multiple WPPI award winner), Roberto Venezuela, Juli Cialone (another multiple WPPI award winner), Jennifer Maring (who doesn’t know the Maring’s) & Jerry Costanzo. Quite a lineup, don’t you think? I love the breakfast and lunches judges do together. Such a great place to get to know people.

To be honest, I was star gazing and awestruck for a while. Their humility and kindness put me at ease. When a print by one of the judges is in the queue, the chair will rotate out the judges. Rotations are done regularly anyways. Also, when a judge recognize a print, he/she will step away so that it is judged by another colleague. The integrity of the judging process is impeccable. (More on print judging in another post.)

Dave & Quin of the DQ Studios and Quikeys. Friends who have always been helpful and frank me with me.

The best part of WPPI is the friendship. Over the years, Jasmine and I have cultivated friendships with photographers around the world. So we had breakfasts and dinners with various groups of friends. Sometimes I learn more over a meal that I do in come classes. Really proud of the deep connection we made with some people. These friendships are priceless to me. It was heartbreaking to say goodbye to friends we only see once a year.

The biggest surprise for me was winning International Portrait Print of the Year. The 38 8×10 winning prints (19 from each round) vie for four of the International Print of the Year awards. My buddy, CM Leung, took the Wedding Print of the Year. I ran to the front to get some pictures of him accepting it. As I was walking back to my seat, Jim Garner (one of the emcees) announced my name. Disbelief was my first reaction. It was my Oscar moment but everything was a blur. According people who saw me, I was shaking my head in shock. Almost choked up. I have visualized this scene in my mind a billion times and on March 10, 2010, it became a reality…almost exactly as I had visualized it except that I didn’t get to give a speech, a privilege for the Grand Award winners. That means more hard work ahead!

When I got back to my seat, I went straight to Jasmine. Kissed and hugged her tightly. So many memories flashed through my mind. The rejections, ridicule and hardship we went through building the business. It was bitter but it is so sweet to hold that award. Makes it all worthwhile.

I was so happy for CM who won 2 International Print of the Year and a third place in non-wedding album category. We are best of pals and to be able to make history together was so special to us. For many years, the Americans and Australians had dominated the WPPI print competitions. This round, Asians made a small inroad with a 7-award haul (5 from HK, 1 Indonesia and Malaysia).

Bill Hurter is instrumental to my progress in WPPI. A wonderful man.

The LPS team…flanked by Kah Yee, in my opinion, Malaysia’s best digital artist & Jasmine, Malaysia’s best studio manager

I thought of all the people who had taught and inspired me. Rangefinder chief editor, Bill Hurter pointed out to me, “Sure many have inspired you…but you still have to run with it.” He is right. We need to run with the inspiration we’ve received.

So many hugged and congratulated us. Cliff Mautner, Ken Sklute and Greg Gibson…thanks for your heartfelt message. Can’t forget what Yervant said to me after the ceremony…he is such a classy statesman for our industry. A big thank you to my sponsors Asukabook & Think Tank Photo. Glad to be able to partner with you at WPPI 2010.

I’ve found my voice in WPPI 2010. This is one is historical to me. One I’ll remember for a long time.

[special thanks to CM Leung for capturing most of these pictures here & Philip Tsang for the video. Without the pictures and video, I won't be able to remember anything!]

I am excited to announce our workshops in Seattle and Hong Kong. This is going to be a lot of fun. Fresh from winning the International Portrait Print of the Year at WPPI this Wednesday and rocking the house platform class that I taught, I can’t wait to bring the same inspiration to our friends in Seattle and Hong Kong.

Seattle: Shoot Like a Pro (1-day workshop)
20 March 2010
This is a one-day intensive class where I teach the 3 keys of great portraiture: exposure, posing+communication & lighting. This is a hands-on class. While I will do a lot of live demonstrations, participants will also be given time to shoot in small group setting. I will be talking about my guerilla lighting techniques.

Hong Kong: Get Real (3-day workshop)
22-24 April 2010
Designed for wedding photographers who want to take their art and business to the next level. You will learn to manage light from dawn to dusk. Never been intimidated by any lighting scenarios and communicating with your clients. I will share from my heart how we turned our business, started in an obscured town in Malaysia, to an international brand. From branding to customer consultation, I will walk you through the whole process. Learn to sell successfully with integrity and without pressure or manipulation.

We have limited seats available. Email me louis(at)wedshooter.tv if you have any questions. Cheers!

What a new year it has been. Started it off with one amazing wedding after another. On February 20, I shot one of the most moving weddings ever. Irene and Dylan’s wedding touched me profoundly. Not just how madly they love each other, but those around them. Never seen more teary eyes in a wedding. Irene had me choking when we met for the first time two days before her wedding. “I was moved to tears when I saw your pictures. I knew then I wanted you to be my photographer,” she told me. Irene is every photographer’s dream bride. I am deeply honored.

On top of that, we had a blast running a week-long workshops and seminar with Joe McNally. We made history running the largest photography seminar ever in Malaysia…many who attended claimed it was the best photography seminar they had been. We are privileged to be able to serve the community.

But pain and tragedy soon followed…

First, my friend’s mother passed away followed closely by my grandma. For the first time, I attended two funerals in a week. No the most pleasant place to be at a funeral. It is a day of reckoning where the our lives are tallied and the final accounts recorded. The dead cannot talk, walk or do any more. There is no real lasting legacy. We may save up a lot of money, erect a monument or a building but nothing that’s man made can last forever.

The only legacy is influence. From the eulogies you can tell how much or little they have influenced, taught, blessed, mentored, shaped, and nurtured those around them. It made me thinking about my own legacy. Don’t think it is morbid to think about the end. After all, we should run with the finishing line in mind.

My grandma is one of three women of steel in my life. My mother and wife being the other two. As a single parent, she raised six sons and two daughters. Outlasted her abusive husband. Survived WWII. Put the kids through schools. How did an illiterate woman manage to accomplish that in the 40s and 50s?

Sitting there in the church with the casket next to me, and reflecting on my grandma’s life, I realized where I got that tenacious and stubborn streak from. While I spent limited time with her, there is no mistake that her blood flows in me.

The third funeral is figurative. Losing a friend hurts. The trusted, dependable and loyal friend that had stuck with me in the fox hole is no longer there. The pain is real. It feels like a dagger is stuck in my chest. When I recall the disappointments, the dagger is twisted and turned. It also feels like a funeral because the relationship is dead…it will never be the same again.

When you love people so dearly and they let you down in a big way. It hurts. It hurts deeply. I was told it was good that I could feel the pain because it showed that my heart is soft. “No, I don’t want a soft heart. I want a heart of stone!” I protested. But do I really want that?

Should I stop believing & seeing the best in people? Should I be more cynical? Should I stop being open and real? All because of a few people who disappointed me? Grandma, I know, you wouldn’t be proud of that.