Member of the Month
Nick Ridwan Hadi:
A Blueprint for Success

By Linda L. May

Sydney is the oldest and largest city in Australia, and the capital of the state of New South Wales. It lies on the southeastern coast of this vast continent and boasts one of the finest harbors, Port Jackson, in the world, where even the largest ships can easily anchor. Sydney is an important commercial, financial and trading center with a total population of over four million, so it's the perfect location to start a new business. Nick Ridwan Hadi took advantage of this lucrative business climate and started CANDIDPRO Photography studio in the central business district of Sydney in 2003. It has proven to be a wise decision because CANDIDPRO continues to grow and expand every year. Nick specializes in weddings, but also does some portraits. So far, the number of weddings they shoot has doubled every year, and they expect that trend to continue.
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Studio of the Month

Regeti's Photography:
A Family Approach to Wedding Photography

By Michelle Perkins

Located in the historic district of downtown Warrenton, VA, Regeti's Photography, operated by Amy and Srinivasa Regeti, offers a brand of personalized service that is as unique and engaging as their 1810 town. "We believe that getting to know each client individually and becoming part of their day, rather than a hired vendor, allows us to capture the event intimately and yet unobtrusively," reads the mission statement on their website. And every facet of their business is designed to achieve this goal.

While the Regetis' business is relatively new, both Amy and Srinivasa have had a lifelong interest in photography. Amy's father is a professional photographer, so she grew up assisting him in the business (but she is quick to note that his style and her own are quite different). Srinivasa, born and educated as a computer scientist in India, was always interested in photography as a hobby, but wasn't able to fully pursue it until moving to the United States in 1998. A critical point for both came in 2004, when the couple came into a bit of money, enabling equipment purchases that would otherwise have been cost prohibitive. Amy laughs, "Still, when I saw how much it was costing, I told him, 'Maybe you should think about doing something with this other than just a hobby.' So he started pursuing weddings."
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In Studio & On Screen
Abstract Smoke Art

By Anton Heiberg

You can create your own abstract artwork with very little equipment and props. These smoke photographs were created with three incense sticks, an off-camera flash and Photoshop.

Find a room where there is no movement in the air, as even slight body movements will disturb the air and destroy the natural patterns created by the smoke. Also make sure you can ventilate the room afterwards as the smell of incense will last a long time after the experiment and you or your other half might not particularly like the smell. I used a softbox roughly four feet from the left-hand side of the smoke so that the smoke was side lit. Lighting from beneath should also work well. Set the camera on autofocus and focus on your hand, placed directly above the incense sticks, then turn the focus to manual focus.
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Business Landscape
Are You a Great Store Manager? Test Yourself on These 10 Personal Skills

By Phillip M. Perry

Are you a great store manager? It's an easy question to ask and a tough one to answer. At the most basic level, of course, every successful retailer must master the skills of displaying merchandise, scheduling staff hours and taking inventory. These technical accomplishments, though, are only part of a larger picture. "Champion" store managers also possess an array of personal attributes that inspire their employees to go an extra mile for the store.
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Member News
Important News for WPPI Members

• WPPI 2009: Save the Dates
  
  

  February 12th and 13th:	Plus Classes
  February 14th:	Business Institute and All About Schools program
  February 14th and 15th:	16 x 20 Print and Album Competition judging
  February 15th:	Opening Platform programs and a huge Mock-Wedding Welcome Reception!
  February 16th-18th:	Our biggest Trade Show! Platform and MasterClasses!
  February 19th:	Closing Program

  
  
  
• Check out Cherie Steinberg-Cote's blog for some haute couture-styled wedding images and telling anecdotes from a traveling professional. In a recent post, Cherie explains how to apply edge treatments to dramatize your photographs. Go to www.cheriefotoblog.com/
  
  
• Here's a 14-city tour you won't want to miss. It's Landon and Kristi Darr's workshop focusing on marketing to the high-end bride. Sponsored by Boda, Marathon, BluDomain, Calumet, Alien Skin software and getmarried.com, it's a program designed to help you develop and fine-tune your selling skills, branding, web presence and essentially create the buzz necessary to attract higher-end clients.
  
  
• Hanson Fong has just joined the already talent-filled speaker lineup for Light Pro Expo 2008, and Jed Taufer will be joining the Photoshop and beer evening classes! Free lecture series registration with purchase of hands-on full access registration. Space is limited to 200. Sign up today!
  
  
• The results are in from the first half of the WPPI 8x10 print competition! We received over 900 entries and some stunning images. To view the winning prints in each category, go to the competition wrap-up in the newsletter or go directly to the Competitions section of wppionline.com.
  
  
• First Person Arts, a non-profit organization dedicated to memoir and documentary in all its art forms, has launched its annual, national competition for memoir and documentary photographers, videographers and writers--First Person Impressions. All entries must be new works that have not previously been published, exhibited or screened in the United States. For more details about guidelines and how to submit entries, go to www.impressions.firstpersonarts.org.
  
  
• Studios, seniors and marketing fill the pages of the August issue of Rangefinder. This month's issue is packed with great marketing tips from successful studios, including ways to boost business in a sluggish economy, and showcases the best of the best senior photography. See www.rangefindermag.com for more.
  
  
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