Just back from a whirlwind trip to the windy city – Chicago. The circumstances were most unusual, as I found myself en route to the airport less than 24 hours after learning about two silhouette cutting gigs. I was filling in for a silhouettist friend in Texas who had a death in the family. When she told me that a New York agency had a client who needed a grand opening party for her posh store and was paying all the expenses plus a very nice fee, I couldn’t resist. I never in my life was photographed so much while cutting profiles, and hope to have a few of those shots sent to me. Most exciting of all was meeting the Weddings Editorial Director Senior Vice President of Martha Stewart Living Omnimedia, having a long chat with him about my work, and having my photos taken holding one of my silhouettes! One never knows what future path an event might lead one to.
Another reward of the experience was that my agency contact reported today that the client at the opening was “thrilled” with my work. Certainly the guests seemed delighted with their complimentary portraits. This was the kind of grand opening party that was by invitation only.
Another thing I learned by traveling to IL was the importance of having more than one event to make the journey and expense worthwhile. Again, filling in for my friend, I cut all morning and most of the afternoon at a lovely toy store that same day and then drove an hour and a half to downtown Chicago through heavy traffic, arriving just in time. It was an exhausting day, but very worthwhile financially, and will probably lead to future business. One parent at the toy store even said I’d definitely hear from her about a portrait of her daughter!
