Shutterfest 2018 was not just a conference.  It’s was experience.  Just ask Photographer Matt Nelson.  In this feature Matt recounts his experiences at Shutterfest and how he met and got to photograph model Sabrina Dawnn.  Music, theatre, film, dance, photography drawing, painting, sculpture, design, and fashion, are all appreciated for their beauty and emotional power right here at Elan Vital.  Your one stop shop for all things art related.

Sabrina is an inked model and this year at Shutterfest 2018, my first Shutterfest and photography conference, she approached me to do this impromptu shoot wearing some Elan Vital apparel. I thought it was an epic idea so this is what we did: Grabbed my gear and started walking around the downstairs of Union Station Hotel looking for some great background to accent with her style. We used the walls on the first floor by the main stairway as our first location. Using my Flashpoint Evolv 200 flash as on OCF with some MagMod accessories and my Canon 1DX Mark ii we started shooting away. We then started to change locations upstairs when I saw the oversized chair over against the wall that I knew would make for a killer prop for this shoot. So, after some maneuvering of objects around, I found the perfect angle to get some great shots. Once we finished there, we went upstairs to the 4th floor that overlooks the hotel lobby. I knew I wanted to get a couple shots of her standing in one of the archways on that floor but before making it to any I had her stop to take a few pics by the large window using all natural light to give a bit of a different vibe to the entire shoot.

Shutterfest is a huge photography convention that brings photographers of all skills levels together from all over. This event is all about giving you the chance to learn, practice, learn some more, and shoot a lot more. If you’re a model or photographer, this is the conference to be at with no questions asked. Photographers and Models get to work with each other through multiple classes or even collaborate using Shutterfest’s RAH (Rent-A-Human) program. This program is meant for photographers to find certain style models for shoots they have envisioned in their minds and want to bring to life. This program is also a huge benefit for models and gives them the chance to shoot with many, many photographers and build their portfolio. 

This shoot with Sabrina was awesome! We got some creative lighting techniques done and I was able to expand upon my knowledge of off camera flash while learning new settings for darkening out background for practice. Our goal was to showcase EVM apparel to show it off to the masses. Sabrina is definitely a unicorn, like the shirt says, and working with her can only be described as epic. She is a well-experienced model., knowing how and when to move to ensure I was capturing the best images I could. She didn’t even need coaching! I just snapped the pictures and let her do what she does best all the way through the session. Sabrina is definitely a shining star and I will never forget the experience! I’m truly humbled and ecstatic I had the opportunity to work with such a great model.  ~Matt Nelson

Model/HMU-Sabrina
Instagram @tattooedxxrebel
FB www.facebook.com/sabrinagokrogers

Photographer-Matt Nelson
Instagram @matt.nelson.photography @five9creations.photo.video
FB www.facebook.com/five9creations