Facebook comes to Omaha!

Back in September I received an email through my website about head shot photography for an event.  The information was a little vague and I wasn't sure if it was a paying gig, but I responded.  I am pretty darn happy I did!  After agreeing to do the two day event in Omaha and signing a contract I was told that the company that I would be working for was Facebook.  Yup, you read that correct.  I was contracted to photograph an event that Facebook put on at the beginning of October called Facebook Community on the UNO campus.

What did I do?  I photographed about 160 people during the two day event!  It was a little crazy and both days I had to shut the door of the room I was in to get a small break and to scarf down a sandwich that had been brought to me a few hours prior, but it was an absolute blast!  The attendees were able to attend many different workshops about Facebook and how to work everything that it offers for small businesses.  They could then come to me for a free profile head shot that included a USB Drive with their images.  I spent about 5 minutes with each person.  So there wasn't much room for error.  I would photograph them and then upload their photos to my computer and do a very quick edit, give them their USB and send them on their way!  

A few people I photographed were photographers as well.  One fellow photographer asked me if I was nervous to give out unedited images.  It was funny because I wasn't.  I felt that my lighting was a flattering soft light and the quick retouching software each picture runs through really makes for a pretty great head shot.  When I thought about the two days after they were said and done I was proud of what I had accomplished.  Not every photographer could photograph all of those people back to back and be successful. The only issue I had was on the first day as Facebook really wanted me to shoot outdoors and use the environment.  I was outdoors for about 1 hour before the rain came.  So the rest of that day and also on day two I was indoors using a blank wall, window light and a softbox that I toted along. 

Below are just a few humans I had the honor to meet and photograph for a brief moment.  I wish I could have uploaded them all, but it is just a little too many for the blog!

Moral of the story...always return phone calls and emails as something pretty awesome could be waiting for you. :)