OSPW2 - Day 1

I had a blast at the OSPW2 in Napa last weekend(look at my post below if you don't know what it is). Jason and I left home at 7 in the morning on Saturday and arrived Napa at around 8:30. We were supposed to meet at the Embassy Suites where most of the OSPers were staying. After a kick off speech by Chris and Tana we headed to our first photoshoot(Bridal/wedding) at the Winery. Originally we were supposed to be at the Costello De Amorosa, due to some issues we went to V.Sattui winery which ended up being a great location for photos. The models were gorgeous!!! It was such a great experience to shoot with them and also to watch how the fellow photographers work.

After lunch we came back to Embassy suite to hear Jillian Kay speak about how to deal with the difficult clients. She was so cute! I saw her avatar before, but it was the first time when I saw her in person. We went to photo scavenger hunt with fellow photographers Lauren and Gerald in teh afternoon. It was fun but exhausting to drive around all over Napa looking for stuff. Did I mention that I met awesome Ed Pingol and his uber cool wife Monica??? I love love love Ed's work and it was soooooo nice to finally meet him. We all went to dinner at a Sushi place in downtown Napa.

After dinner we went back to Embassy. Nathan Holritz and Shaun Austin were the speakers. Then we headed to downtown for the night shoot. I didn't really do much there. It was cold and I was too tired to be show my creativity.

At the end of the day when I was checking my shootsac for the compact flash cards, I realized that my Lowepro pouch was missing! I was in shock, all my work was gone!!!!!!! We looked in the car and in my bags, they weren't to be found anywhere! It was found after two days in Lauren's car. I must have dropped it there during the scavenger hunt. Thankfully I have them with me now.

I have been too busy lately, didn't get to process all the photos. Here are some images from day1.

Model: Paul and Lisa(hot!!!)

OSPW2 in Napa

I belong to this photography forum, where many photographers from all over the world virtually meet to share the same interest and experience they have - photography! I have to say that I have learned a lot just by reading the threads and looking at the Fabulous creations they display everyday. The forum is called OpenSourcePhoto(www.opensourcephoto.net).

The photographers in the west coast formed a group within the forum named OSP West(OSPW). OSPWesterns(haha) all gathered together last year and held a weekend long workshops and shooting sessions. It was an awesome opportunity for the photographers to network and know and learn from each other. This year OSPW is holding the same event in Napa, CA; and guess what.......I am joining this year! I am so excited! Napa is just an hour and a half away from Rocklin, so I have no reason to miss the event. My husband Jason is joining me too. I pulled him over to the OSP Roseville meeting(OSPers in Roseville, CA had a fabulous evening last Friday, that's another story and I have to write about it on a separate post) and he seemed to have enjoyed it. So I am dragging him along. Jason doesn't shoot, but he understand(and knows very well) the technical aspects of photography, I hope he enjoys the time there.

I will post pictures next week and write all about OSPW2 in Napa. I am sure it will be awesome, I can't wait for the weekend to come!

My new website is up!

Hurrrraayyyy!!! My new website is finally up! I have been wanting to get a pro site for so long, but have been lazy enough to put that aside. Thanks to the girls at http://portfoliositez.com/, they are simply awesome. I made payements yesterday, got the welcome email in a couple hours. Worked on the site today and it is up an running. I'll be making a few more changes to the site; in the meantime, please check it out. If you happened have stopped by and wanted to leave me an input on the site, please do so. Any comments and critiques are highly appreciated.

Here it is - http://www.impressionsbynudrat.com/

Concert for Bangladesh

Last Saturday, the Bangladeshi community in the Greater Sacramento area organized a multinational concert to raise funds to help the recent cyclone(Sidr) victims of Bangladesh. A devastating cyclone hit the coastal areas of Bangladesh in November, 07. Thousands of lives were gone, the homes were all smashed to the ground. With no food, no shelter, people were hardly surviving. The entire country lost power, all at once, for the first time in the history of Bangladesh.

Being a Bangladeshi myself and a part of the community here, I attended the concert and helped raising funds. The concert was a great success, we were able to raise thousands of dollars that would directly go towards the victims. Indian, Pakistani, Iranian, Nepalese and US organizations were generous enough to donate big amounts to this cause. We were thankful that we could do this even when we were away from home.

The performers were the memebers of the international communities here. There were performances from Bangladesh, India, Nepal, Pakistan and US. Here are just a few pictures from the concert.

Opening Performance from Bangladesh -

Thai girl dancing with Bengali song -

Trancefusion Dance Company from India -

Linda Parker School of Dance from US -

Mother Mayhem Band from US -

Dance group from Bangladesh -

Linda Parker School of Dance from US -

Princess Bride!

Just a week ago I was shooting Jenny and Eric's wedding with Jeremy Underwood at the Granite Bay Country Club. Thankfully it was a gorgeous day(unlike the usual rainy winter days in the valley), so we were able to get some great outdoor shots.

Jenny was looking like Cinderella and Eric was his perfect prince charming. Really, the bride was looking just like a princess! She had crystal jewels, shiny shoes, white gloves and blood-red roses to add more to her beauty!

Right after the ceremony we headed to the golf course for some nice romantic shots. The sun was going down pretty fast, however, I was able to capture a few nice ones of the couple.

While Jeremy was busy with the family formals, I was getting some fun shots of the bridesmaids. They were looking absolutely hot in their bright red dress.

Hawaiian Hula @ the wedding

A week ago I was shooting a wedding with Jeremy Underwood. Bride was Hawaiian, therefore, Hula was a 'must have' at the wedding. Bride's relative put out a beautiful and emotional performance on the dance floor.

Here are a couple more I like.

The gorgeous couple!

Diana weds Andrew

It was my priviledge to shoot Andrew and Diana's December wedding in Folsom, CA. They were super cute together! I had loads of fun working with them. It was a gloomy day, therefore, most of the photos were shot inside.

Here are just a few of my favorites. Enjoy!