Hey Everyone,

I kept this fairly quiet, but I decided to make a second stab at working in the Green Room for the Westminster Dog Show at the Penn Hotel (located across the street from MSG). Last year, I gave a fairly stark experience of the show. I did not see it necessarily as a failure last year, just not as a real success. :P

However, having done the show last year, it had opened up several doors for us. We have been invited to help raise funds for several shelter groups and recently have been asked to join some boards for pet related causes. In short, I feel that it was a net positive and worth making another stab at. Also, I felt that I did not want to walk out with my tail between my legs!

This year, I went in having much lower expectations and completely re-tooled my packages. I also changed my promo material, including photographs of only pets that had been shot on backdrops and in studio lighting (vs outdoor work). I featured Westminster Dog Show dogs and added new products, such as throw blankets and some studio books.

While I am not crowing, I am satisfied with the results. The results were pretty solid. We were also fortunate that some of last year's owners came to visit - and brought their friends.

(1) We booked 29 different breeds this year - a huge improvement.
(2) We made a small, but meaningful profit (yeah!).
(3) We photographed 3 of the 6 'new breeds' though I was not 100% thrilled with one of the sets (they did a 'walk on' in between sessions and I tried to fit them in. The dogs were revved up and were not able to calm down until the end, and I had to end the session early because a prior appointment came to have their pet photographed).

Over-all, a very positive show and I am glad that I did it. I have been asked if I wish to do next year's show and I have decided with Chanthee that it is more than likely worth doing (90% likely). Of course, show photography is not my bread and butter, and I know I need to continue to retool my packages and product offerings. However, I am pretty happy that I made it out alive the second time and feel a bit better about myself and my performance in the process. :P

I am going to plow through some photos by this weekend and start publishing them as I fulfill orders.

James