Posts Tagged ‘event’

Ice-Skating Fashion Show

Skaters out on the ice skating rink on the Plaza at Tysons Corner Center
Skaters out on the ice skating rink on the Plaza at Tysons Corner Center

Tysons Corner Center

If anyone asked me if I would ever photograph and ice-skating fashion show, I would ask them to check their globes. This sounds like something that would happen in Canada or Norway, not in metropolitan DC. But here I was last January covering a fashion show held on the ice rink on the Plaza at Tysons Corner Center.

If any of the models look like they are cold, they were! I know because I was extremely cold. And with the large buildings going up around the Plaza, the wind was also a player in the extreme weather! These models were definitely troopers going through with the show in these conditions like they were out on a beach in the Caribbean.

While the models were changing and getting a little blood back into their extremities, the audience was treated to some talented ice skaters! They have a similar look to the ballroom dancers that I have a lot of experience covering, but they move so much faster! They have beautiful lines and lifts that look so daring from the sidelines. I tried to keep up with the skaters, but I would love the chance to photograph them again now that I know a little more of what to expect.

When I was given this assignment, I definitely went in with only a small amount of confidence that I would be able to pull it off. I had a few more frames that were not worth keeping. I should not think of it as a failure as I know my percentage of ‘keeper’ photos was much smaller from the ice skaters. That is the challenge of doing action photography. There are so many difference conditions and circumstances that you would not have the opportunity to set things up perfectly for the camera. But you bring as much knowledge as you can as the music starts to play, and you do your best. I’m still looking for the next time to be much better.

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2014 Dance-o-Rama Sidelines

Standard dancers at Arthur Murray National Dance-o-Rama
Standard dancers at the 2014 Arthur Murray National Dance-o-Rama

Gaylord National

Dance-o-Rama events are undoubtedly the signature gatherings for Arthur Murray dance students. They occur in different cities throughout the year and they make sure that the production is above all of the highest quality. I photographed the local DC area Showcase and Freestyles events, but these Dance-o-Rama events really take it to the next level. On this occasion, the National Dance-o-Rama was held at the Gaylord National right outside of Washington, DC.

Dancers in line prior to going on the dance floor ©TimeLine Media
Dancers in line prior to going on the dance floor ©TimeLine Media

We decided to participate earlier in the year. The preparation to dance at this kind of event starts months prior to the event. They pack a lot of dancing into the weekend, and we really wanted to show well for our studio in front of crowd that stretched much farther than our local area.

Professional Competition

Ashburn, Virginia Arthur Murray professional competing at the National Dance-o-rama ©TimeLine Media
Ashburn, Virginia Arthur Murray professional competing at the National Dance-o-rama ©TimeLine Media
New Jersey Arthur Murray professional competing at the National Dance-o-rama ©TimeLine Media
New Jersey Arthur Murray professional competing at the 2014 National Dance-o-rama ©TimeLine Media

At this time, the professional competition was one of the best reasons to attend a Dance-o-Rama. We saw a lot of familiar faces from the local studios that are friends and customers of our photography. However, we also got to see studios from New York, Canada, the Carolinas, Florida, etc. We were able to see how different our dancing can be stylistically giving us different ideas that we can use and play with. All of us learn from the same base core curriculum, so we have a common place from which to start.

Alexandria, Virginia Arthur Murray professional competing at the National Dance-o-rama ©TimeLine Media
Alexandria, Virginia Arthur Murray professional competing at the National Dance-o-rama ©TimeLine Media
Maryland Arthur Murray professional competing at the National Dance-o-rama ©TimeLine Media
Maryland Arthur Murray professional competing at the National Dance-o-rama ©TimeLine Media

We really enjoyed our time at this event! We placed well within our division, and we hope that we made our instructors proud. We hope to go to another Dance-o-rama as soon as we get to another level of dancing!

Personal photos from the Dance-o-rama ©TimeLine Media
Personal photos from the Dance-o-rama ©TimeLine Media

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Blue Raster – GIS Day

Stephen Ansari - Co-Founder of Blue Raster speaking at GIS Day 2014
Blue Raster - staff and high school students at their office for GIS Day 2014
Staff and high school students at the Blue Roster office for GIS Day 2014

Arlington, VA

Last year, I covered the GIS Day activities for Blue Raster in Arlington, VA. GIS stands for Geographic Information Systems. Blue Raster is an advanced mapping technology company that uses satellite imaging, and data to help their clients find solutions. They have applications in health, environmental studies, financial impact, and other needs where mapping data can be useful for visualizing and conveying impacts for wider audiences.

Stephen Ansari - Co-Founder of Blue Raster speaking at GIS Day 2014
Stephen Ansari – Co-Founder of Blue Raster speaking at GIS Day 2014
GIS Day Demonstrations at Blue Raster ©TimeLine Media
GIS Day Demonstrations ©TimeLine Media

Blue Raster GIS Day

On this day, they brought in a group of enthusiastic high school students that are studying GIS as part of their course work. They were able to talk to the developers and staff at Blue Raster to see how they use the mapping data and make it useful for their clients. While we were there, a presentation at the White House used some of their visualizations for a live address!

GIS Day Demonstrations at Blue Raster ©TimeLine Media
Viewing a map application with students ©TimeLine Media

A demonstration of their capabilities was even tried in real time as the students went outside with mobile devices. Outside the offices, they were able to use the Blue Raster software to mark the type of trees in the area. With teams working together, they were able to generate some interesting data very quickly about the vegetation in the area. It was easy to see how this kind of application would be helpful for those wanting to do something similar to study farming, water resourcing, or any other application that would rely on accurate mapped data that could not be found from satellite imaging alone.

Staff Headshots

Michael Lippman - Co-Founder of Blue Raster ©TimeLine Media
Michael Lippman – Co-Founder of Blue Raster ©TimeLine Media
Stephen Ansari - Co-Founder of Blue Raster ©TimeLine Media
Stephen Ansari – Co-Founder of Blue Raster ©TimeLine Media

While I was at their headquarters, I took some time to make some headshots of some of the staff. Luckily, they had some nicely colored blue walls to match with their corporate branding. With some lighting setup it was easy to get a nice consistent look to all of the photos for their website. It would make for a nice cohesive look to their staffing photos.

Headshots on location at Blue Raster ©TimeLine Media
On location headshots in Arlington, Virginia ©TimeLine Media

Thanks to the team at Blue Raster! I really enjoyed learning about the power of GIS data and I received a nice education on how it can be useful for solving larger problems. Viewing maps had been a hobby with mine. My father impressed the importance of reviewing things like maps for trips, and development for new buildings. Since the early internet, satellite imagery starting with the Microsoft Terra Server and onto the newest mapping apps that we have today has been useful not only for my business, but for my own curiosity. What an interesting job the people at Blue Raster have!

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