Wow! I have just had the most amazing two weeks.

It all started on April 17th when I journeyed to San Francisco, CA, for the second part of the Albums Inc. WOW Tour. Looking back I realize what an amazing opportunity I had. I mean, how often do you get to spend five days with some of the greatest photographers in the country?! In San Francisco I got one-on-one time with Curt Littlecott (my partner in crime), Kavan Lee, and photographic legend, Hanson Fong. I can’t even begin to tell you what an honor it was. Above and beyond the work stuff, (if you want to know about that, check out my follow-up article on the WOW tour) I got the chance to spend some time socializing with everyone. Besides the food, I’m pretty sure my favorite part of the trip had to be sitting at dinner with Kavan, Karen Bates, Lorelei (two more amazing lady photographers), and Hanson when Selma, Kavan’s Office Manager, marketing guru, and beautiful wife overheard someone talking at the next table about how she had just had her engagement party. Well, who wouldn’t capitalize on that situation? Selma asked the bride-to-be a couple of questions, and then told her that we were sitting with some of the greatest wedding photographers in the industry. The girl politely took a business card; little did she know she really was meeting some of the industry’s best. Her loss, I guess!

Anyway, I just can’t stress enough how awesome my time was with these photographers. I’d like to thank Kavan, Hanson, Selma, Lorelei, and Karen for showing us a great time in the Bay area! West Coast rep Brenda Harper and I even got the chance to sneak away to Alcatraz for the day. Neither of us are professional photographers by any means, but we were both armed with digital cameras and had a blast shooting away on the island. Brenda was a little shutterbug with her Canon Xti, and I had my father’s D-70. Check out the photos I’ve included -- I don’t think we did so badly....











After San Francisco I was off to College Station, TX for the Texas School of Photography. Now I have to say that this school is legendary, and I was a bit nervous. Even at the age of 25 I wasn’t so sure I could keep up with all of the stories I had heard! After I was met in Houston by Kathy Biegel, our NY rep, she and I hopped in our rental car and drove out to College Station. We were lucky that on our first day we were able to catch a little R&R, because we sure needed it!

Our first night at the Texas School we were introduced to the outlandishly themed parties that the school is notorious for. Kathy and I found it was a great place to let our hair down and network with some of our customers. We got the chance to hang out with Kip Cothran, Kevin Conners, Raymond Fosdick, John Michael Hannan, Tony Corbell, and Lynn Broussard (former Albums Inc. rep). I would like to send out a big thank you to all of them for being our “guides” to the Texas School. Kathy and I couldn’t have done it without them. Know what else we learned in Texas? People there love to race armadillos. It’s some funny stuff if you’ve never seen it! But back to the trip … overall, it was a success. It’s always such a privilege for me to get out of the office, network with our customers, and meet new people. All I can say is, the roughly 1,000 photographers who attended the school sure knew how to have a good time! Plus they got to spend a full week learning from some of the most talented photographers in the country. If you get the chance, I highly recommend you attend next year!

I’d also like to say a very special thank you to Kathy and Brenda, our two Albums Inc. reps. They truly do work hard for you. These trips don’t just take dedication -- they take time away from their families. If you get the chance to work with either of these wonderful ladies, please let them know you appreciate all that they do. I know I do, and it’s been an honor to be able to work so closely with them. I have learned so much from both of them. You girls ROCK!!!

Well that’s about it for me. My next adventure takes me to Orlando, FL to a one-day seminar with Curt Littlecott. I hope to see some of you there!

Nicole