Pre-PSW Checklist

Hi all, long-time attendee, first-time blogger. Just kidding. With less than a week to go I thought a recap for resources and tips for Photoshop World might be helpful.

For those first-time attendees or for those who want the inside scoop on how to get the most out of your Photoshop World experience, do not miss Larry Becker’s “First-Time Attendee Orientation” held Tuesday during the Pre-Con sessions. This event is FREE and is held in two sessions: 3:15–4:15 pm and 5:15–6:15 pm.

If you cannot attend Larry’s event, or want more information about Photoshop World or getting around Vegas in general be sure to check out my “Insider’s Guide to PSW”. You can download it here.

To help plan your schedules two electronic options are available for you. First is the PSW App by Shaun Welch available for the iPhone. If you don’t have an iphone or iPod Touch,  don’t worry there is the ever-popular PSW Schedule PDF by Dave Cross which you can download here.

Next, if you are on Twitter, be sure to sign up for the NEW Photoshop World Hashcaster Site for the latest information and roundup of all the day’s PSW news and important Tweets. You can sign up here. Speaking of Twitter, the Photoshop World Tweetup will be held Tuesday night at 8 pm just outside the registration area on the patio (same location as last year). This is a great opportunity for you to meet and network with other Photoshop World attendees and the instructors (including Scott Kelby himself).

Last, here is a handy checklist of things to remember when coming to Photoshop World:

1. Your Badge. It is the “must-wear” accessory at this year’s “Project Photoshop”.  You need it to get into any event during the conference. If you forget it, expect to be asked by staff to go back and get it.
2. Comfy shoes. As in shoes you can walk around in all-day and not get blisters. Learn from my first-year mistake. Ouch!
3. A sweater or jacket. Vegas may be 110° F next week, but the conference rooms are air conditioned so be prepared if you tend to get chills.
4. Water. There is water available in the back of the session rooms. However, if you are going on a photo-safari or photo-walk, bring water. In Vegas, it may be a dry heat, but 100°+ temperatures can sneak up on you.
5. Writing utensils. It seems every year I am borrowing my pen to the person seated next to me so they can fill out their evaluation forms at the end of a session. Don’t forget you may also want to take notes during the sessions.
6. Money. Now I don’t mean bring cash for the table games, but be sure to have your credit cards or cash on hand for the expo hall. Many exhibitors will be selling as well as displaying their wares and also there is the Kelby Training Bookstore. It’s like Target – expect to spend a lot more than you planned for.

Hope this list and resources help you make the most of your PSW experience. See you all next week in Vegas.

NAPP member, Kevin Stohlmeyer is an Adobe Certified Instructor, User Group Manager and Adobe Community Professional for Photoshop. A graphic designer specializing in digital illustration with more than 15 years experience in the field, Kevin has also been teaching the Creative Suite since 2000. Check out his blog posts at c2gps.com/blog.

Rock & Roll – The PSW After Hours Party

I shoot bands & musicians in Atlanta so this was an extra special treat for me that I was not going to miss!  The one and only Scott Kelby (and his talented band members including his lovely wife) rocking to tunes by Travis Tritt, Alien Ant Farm, ZZ Top, Janet Jackson and one of my favorite’s from The Clash, “Should I Stay or Should I Go,” (just to name a few)! This After Hours Party was a huge hit at B.B. Kings Orlando.  The rainy night didn’t seem to keep anybody from making this fun event… Great food, great entertainment and chance for everyone to get to know each other a little better. This was a great opportunity to just have pure fun… and it was!

Keri McDaniel – (Snapped Images) is Photographer in Atlanta specializing in Lifestyle Photography   -   www.snappedimages.com

R

A Blog About Blogging

Just attended 2 classes before lunch.  Intro To InDesign by Terry White and Blogging For Photographers by Scott Kelby, Matt Loskowksi and Richard Harrington.

Intro To InDesign was a little basic for me, but I did get a few tips out of the class.  My favorite was under the Preferences Menu ->Compositions there is a check box so that the text wrap effect only affects text that is beneath that layer.  This is great and I wonder why it is so hidden!!

The Blogging For Photographers class was amazing.   I think it rekindled my interested in blogs in general.  I myself have two blogs: My Personal Blog What’s Dan Doing and a blog about fun and wacky ties that I have made Fit To Be Tied.

I have gotten out of the habit of posting on these sites, which Matt said most blogs don’t even last 30 days!   I am not sure that I am going to be able to post 2-3 times a week like they suggested, but they will both be updated more frequently than before.

Live From New York… It’s D-Town LIVE!

If you’re looking to take a little break from all your Cyber Monday shopping, why not tune in to an extra special installment of D-Town TV TODAY from 2:30-3:30pm EST with Matt Kloskowski and Larry Becker LIVE from the B&H store in New York City.

You’ll learn some hot digital photography tips and get a one-of-a-kind tour of the B&H store, where you’ll get a look at the hottest lighting, lenses, cameras and printers available today.

Matt Kloskowski will share a pre-processing tip in Photoshop, and Scott Kelby will show you a special studio tip using one light. Then it’s off to Larry Becker to highlight some economical, yet high quality, alternative light stands and tripods.

Plus, you’ll get to ask questions and chat live with Matt and Larry, as well as have the chance to win free B&H gift cards!

Click here for more information.

1/2 The Experience

What an awkward name for a Photoshop World post, but that sums it up for me.  I only got to experience 1/2 of Photoshop World due to a family emergency.  Not seeking out any pity from you though, I felt privileged to get the experience that I received.

I arrived in Vegas on Tuesday, which was about a day before most PSW attendees got into town.  I definitely took advantage of my early arrival — I walked roughly five miles that first day leading myself on a photowalk of the strip.  Later that afternoon, I met the one and only @NAPP_News (I call her Nantz) for dinner.  It was that first evening that I also met the one and only Scott Kelby.  Scott was extremely kind and I am happy to say that I didn’t freak out — I was worried about meeting all of my Photoshop / photography idols, because I wasn’t sure if I would be able to hold a normal conversation.  Later that evening I was lucky enough to meet and hang out with Matt Kloskowski, Corey Barker, Jason “TheScriv” Scrivner and other NAPP employees.  Not kidding, these are some of the nicest people you could ever hope to meet or take a cab ride with.

On Wednesday, pre-con day, I was fortunate enough to attend David Ziser’s Wedding Photo Shoot class.  David Ziser is pretty much my all-time favorite wedding photographer and if I could embody the style of any one wedding photographer, it would be him.  The best part of this pre-con is that I felt like it picked up where David left off in his Digital Wake-up Call tour.  David captured some amazing shots during the pre-con and it was incredible to see the man in action.  Wednesday night brought the Forum / Twitter Tweet-up and I am happy to say we exceeded our own expectations.  At one point in the evening there was close to 150 people at the House of Blues for the gathering.  It was awesome to see some of my favorite Tweeps and incredible to get the opportunity to have face to face conversations with them.  By Wednesday night, I could already feel the week starting to catch up with me and I was happy to hit the sack somewhat early to prepare for the PSW Keynote.

When Thursday morning rolled around, I was pretty much ecstatic and ready to roll.  The PSW Keynote was a first for me and I was live blogging with Nantz and Scott Bourne.  I saw Scott at the Tweet-up, but never had the opportunity to speak with him and since I have been following his work for what seems like ever, I was honored to be live blogging with him.  It was interesting to live blog the keynote and to be able to interact with those that were following along at home, we had people from all over the world reading our live blog which is AMAZING!

On Thursday I made it to two classes and to the EXPO before I had to catch a plane back to Kansas City to be with my family.  I was lucky enough to attend classes taught by Dave Cross and Scott Kelby.  While both classes were awesome, I was a little disappointed that I didn’t get to experience the other several classes that I had lined up for Thurs, Fri and Sat.  I do, however, have my PSW Workbook and it is a beast.  I am excited to be able to look through it all and learn on my own while I eagerly await the opportunity to get the other 1/2 of my Photoshop World experience in Orlando next spring.

I urge you to make arrangements now for March 25-27, 2010 – Photoshop World Orlando will be an experience you won’t want to miss.  See you there!

Kristopher Saim is an experiential marketing professional and photographer in Kansas City, MO.  You can follow his 365 project by clicking here.

Tidbits: Getting "re-scooped" and the PSW planner

This is what I get for trying to scoop the “un-scoopable.” Click here to read Scott’s blog.

On Monday, I posted what I thought was every single Photoshop World Poster from the last ten years. I ~thought~ one was missing but I just figured that it had been lost over the years. Turns out I was wrong… oh, so wrong.

Turns out Scott had an ace up his sleeve and if you’ve been to his blog, you already know this. See? This is what I get for trying to scoop the “unscoopable.” Hahaha! ;D

People ask me all the time if working for Scott Kelby is as fun as it seems. The answer, my friends, is a resounding “YES!” What you see, and read, and hear, and learn from Scott and the team is really the “real deal” … and ~that’s~ what makes Photoshop World the best conference there is!

Dave Cross’ Photoshop World Planner

Because Photoshop World is such a learning-intensive event, the task of plotting out which classes to attend can be a bit daunting. Fortunately, we have Dave Cross. Every year, Dave creates a handy (and extremely helpful) Photoshop World Planner to help you organize your agenda. His latest edition (PSW Planner 3.0) is now available via his blog. Plus, being the awesome teacher he is, Dave has also created a shot video on how the PSW Planner works for you.

View the video and download Dave’s Planner here.

Photoshop World is the most fun Photoshop learning experience there is! Join us in Boston for an unforgettable time!

Scott Kelby's Talks About His PSW Classes

I’m teaching three sessions at the upcoming Photoshop World Conference & Expo (March 25-27, 2009, Hynes Convention Center, Boston, Massachusetts), and I wanted to give you a little background on my sessions.

Read all about it on Scott’s Blog.