OC MugtoMug

Last night, the wife and I as well as our great friends Scott and Melissa travelled to the Mesa Verde Country Club to attend and Orange County Mug2Mug meeting put on by SmugMug. Photographers, possibly as well as any industry that I know, like to get together and network.  Many of the photography blogs that I follow herald again and again the value of meeting with other photographers and sharing knowledge together.

Unfortunately, up until now I hadn’t been able to attend any of them.  Until last night….

Jasmine Star is the leader of the Orange County chapter of photographers who use or are considering using SmugMug and has put together a few get togethers so far.  She is full of personality and it was cool to get to see her in person after reading her blog for a bit.

The guest speaker was none other than fantastic photographer and newly engaged bride to be Jessica Claire.  Jessica photographs are full of elegance and vibrance and so it was great to hear her speak.

Being a bit late and sitting in the back sometimes has its advantages.  Here’s Jessica being intro’d by Jasmine.

And here’s Jessica speaking and answering some questions.  While she didn’t set out to make this a seminar on a certain topic, it was refreshing to get to hear her candidly share the story of her progression as a photographer.  I really enjoyed the way she was real and kind.

Jasmine was also snapping a few photos of Jessica as she spoke.  Hers turned out alright…

Jessica was also sporting one of her many Shootsacs and asked us collectively to snap a few shots of her wearing it.  The shootsac is an awesome lens bag that really frees me up during weddings with my lens options.  You can buy a plethora of interchangeable covers for the shootsac and she’s sporting one here.  I’ve opted for the black cover.  Classy.  Manly.