What a week! We just finished volunteering as model coordinators at Great Lakes Institute of Photography, or GLIP for short. GLIP is a photography school that brings professional photographers and photography instructors from all over the country to NMC for one week in June. It is only a week long class, but finding models is a year long process.
This was GLIP's 13th year and it was a success. We had ten classes available. Of those ten classes, seven of them required models. It was our job to find models to fit the instructors requests. They asked for families, seniors, dancers, babies, children, older gentlemen, Harley riders, couples, high fashion and glamour, businessmen, body builders and brides and grooms. One instructor even requested a clown (which were able to find).
The modeling sessions were all over the NMC campus, on the playground, on top of and under the bleachers at TC Central, at the State Hospital, the State Park beach and at our studio. The Tuesday evening session on the beach gave us a gorgeous bride and groom and a double rainbow. Over fifty models later, the instructors and students were thrilled. We cannot wait to see the final images.
Our days started at 7:00 AM and ended at midnight. We were able to come home at night. The students stayed in the dorms. Rumor has it that many students were still up at 3:00 AM! Too late for me!
On Wednesday evening, we photographed the Fly family at the State Park Beach. We gave this family session a twist by bringing along over twenty students and three instructors. The students and instructors were in awe of how wonderful the family handled all of them watching the session. They also loved the beach setting and the perfect weather for the session. The images are stunning!
After the beach session, one of the GLIP assistants (GLIPPIE is the official title) raced back to campus and changed into her wedding gown. We photographed her dancing and running down the beach in her wedding gown until it was too dark to see her. Carly was a gorgeous bride!
There is no time to rest for Michael or me. I am back to work preparing orders and Michael is on his way to Muskegon for Miss Michigan week. He will take Rebecca Ransom (Miss Heart of Michigan) to the pageant for official check in on Saturday, then come back to Traverse City for a few days. On Wednesday, he will go back to Muskegon and I will join him on Friday. The Miss Michigan Scholarship Pageant will be on Saturday.
After the pageant, I will go to Jackson on Sunday to photograph my niece's formal bridal session. Monday will be a Professional Photographers of Michigan board meeting, then back to Traverse City to photograph Tyler's senior session on Tuesday. He and his family are vacationing from Indianapolis. I have been friends with his parents for over 22 years. I photographed his parents' wedding and his first baby portraits. I cannot wait to see everyone again!
The next day, Michael and I will leave for Howell to photograph my niece's wedding on Friday, June 27.
Where did June go? It feels like it just started and I am already booked for the month! Let's hope it goes as well as GLIP did.
