by Jason Dixson -

Corporate Conference Professional Headshots

Last month I photographed about 350 business professionals attending the 2015 Oracle HCM World Conference at the National Harbor, near Washington, DC. The professional head shots, a benefit for folks attending the conference that needed a new profile photo, were done on-location at the Gaylord National Convention Center.

The headshot experience, or “professional portrait gallery,” was sponsored by Deloitte. Individuals attending the conference first were given the opportunity to have their makeup done by Bobbi Brown Cosmetics before making their way over to me to have their headshot captured.

During the conference, participants provided their contact information via a form on my iPad. Immediately following the conference, I directly emailed each individual their edited headshot. Anyone planning a corporate conference, convention, or meeting should consider doing this. With the rise of LinkedIn and other social media in business, this is a great idea to give something back to your attendees!

Below are a few images of the conference headshot portable setup and final head shots:

Professional corporate headshots at Oracle HCM World Conference.
On-location professional conference headshot.On-location professional conference headshot.
On-location professional conference headshot.On-location professional conference headshot.
Professional corporate head shots at Oracle HCM World Conference.

Learn more about booking Jason for headshots, either at your office or at a conference.

by Jason Dixson -

Conference Photography: National League of Cities

President Barack Obama adressing the NLC conference.

This past week I had the privilege of photographing the National League of Cities (NLC) 2015 Congressional City Conference. The conference was packed with excitement and a range of activities including large plenary sessions, musical performances, networking receptions, and small group meetings.

The highlight of the conference was the Monday morning keynote address delivered by President Barack Obama. This was followed by an impressive showing by his cabinet and staff including HUD Secretary Julian Castro, Homeland Security Secretary Jeh Johnson, Department of Labor Secretary Thomas Perez, Secretary of Energy Dr. Ernest Moniz, EPA Administrator Gina McCarthy, and Director of Intergovernmental Affairs Jerry Abramson. Following the main events of the conference were a visit to Capital Hill and a summit at the White House.

All-in-all, the NLC team led the conference to be a huge success with many memorable moments. There was wide spread media coverage of the event by hundreds of publications. One of my images alone appeared on over 200 websites and was viewed by over 21,000 people, according to NLC’s press wire data.

Below are a selection of photos from the President’s Speech:

President Obama addresses the 2015 NLC Conference in Washington, DC.

President Obama addresses the 2015 NLC Conference in Washington, DC.
President Obama addresses the 2015 NLC Conference in Washington, DC.
President Obama addresses the 2015 NLC Conference in Washington, DC.
President Obama addresses the 2015 NLC Conference in Washington, DC.
President Obama addresses the 2015 NLC Conference in Washington, DC.
President Obama addresses the 2015 NLC Conference in Washington, DC.
President Obama addresses the 2015 NLC Conference in Washington, DC.
President Obama addresses the 2015 NLC Conference in Washington, DC.
President Obama addresses the 2015 NLC Conference in Washington, DC.
President Obama addresses the 2015 NLC Conference in Washington, DC.
President Obama addresses the 2015 NLC Conference in Washington, DC.
President Obama addresses the 2015 NLC Conference in Washington, DC.
President Obama addresses the 2015 NLC Conference in Washington, DC.

Here is a selection of other photos from the main plenary sessions including Administration cabinet members:

NLC 2015 Conference Photography. Washington, DC.NLC 2015 Conference Photography. Washington, DC.NLC 2015 Conference Photography. Washington, DC.NLC 2015 Conference Photography. Washington, DC.NLC 2015 Conference Photography. Washington, DC.NLC 2015 Conference Photography. Washington, DC.NLC 2015 Conference Photography. Washington, DC.NLC 2015 Conference Photography. Washington, DC.NLC 2015 Conference Photography. Washington, DC.NLC 2015 Conference Photography. Washington, DC.NLC 2015 Conference Photography. Washington, DC.NLC 2015 Conference Photography. Washington, DC.NLC 2015 Conference Photography. Washington, DC.NLC 2015 Conference Photography. Washington, DC.NLC 2015 Conference Photography. Washington, DC.NLC 2015 Conference Photography. Washington, DC.NLC 2015 Conference Photography. Washington, DC.NLC 2015 Conference Photography. Washington, DC.NLC 2015 Conference Photography. Washington, DC.NLC 2015 Conference Photography. Washington, DC.NLC 2015 Conference Photography. Washington, DC.NLC 2015 Conference Photography. Washington, DC.NLC 2015 Conference Photography. Washington, DC.NLC 2015 Conference Photography. Washington, DC.NLC 2015 Conference Photography. Washington, DC.NLC 2015 Conference Photography. Washington, DC.NLC 2015 Conference Photography. Washington, DC.NLC 2015 Conference Photography. Washington, DC.NLC 2015 Conference Photography. Washington, DC.NLC 2015 Conference Photography. Washington, DC.NLC 2015 Conference Photography. Washington, DC.NLC 2015 Conference Photography. Washington, DC.NLC 2015 Conference Photography. Washington, DC.

Here is a selection of other photographs from around the conference, including breakout sessions and the White House summit:

NLC 2015 DC Conference.NLC 2015 DC Conference.NLC 2015 DC Conference.NLC 2015 DC Conference.NLC 2015 DC Conference.NLC 2015 DC Conference.NLC 2015 DC Conference.NLC 2015 DC Conference.NLC 2015 DC Conference.NLC 2015 DC Conference.NLC 2015 DC Conference.NLC 2015 DC Conference.NLC 2015 DC Conference.NLC 2015 DC Conference.NLC 2015 DC Conference.NLC 2015 DC Conference.NLC 2015 DC Conference.NLC 2015 DC Conference.NLC 2015 DC Conference.NLC 2015 DC Conference.NLC 2015 DC Conference.NLC 2015 DC Conference.NLC 2015 DC Conference.NLC 2015 DC Conference.NLC 2015 DC Conference.NLC 2015 DC Conference.NLC 2015 DC Conference.NLC 2015 DC Conference.NLC 2015 DC Conference.NLC 2015 DC Conference.NLC 2015 DC Conference.NLC 2015 DC Conference.NLC 2015 DC Conference.NLC 2015 DC Conference.NLC 2015 DC Conference.NLC 2015 DC Conference.NLC 2015 DC Conference.

by Jason Dixson -

Event Photography and Headshots for the National Disability Institute

Last month, the National Disability Institute (NDI) brought me on to photograph two of their events: A press conference at the National Press Club releasing a study on the financial capability of many Americans with disabilities, as well as their annual team meeting where they hosted an on-location headshot session, taking the opportunity to update the headshots of each of their team members while they had everyone from across the country in town.

In photographing their events and headshots, I was able to learn more about the great work that NDI does to promote the rights and economic success of individuals with disabilities in this nation, as well as meet everyone on staff. Whenever I work with a team of passionate and dedicated individuals, it always comes across in the photos, and it really shows with NDI. To learn more about NDI or the results of the study that they just released, check out their site. Also see some of the photos from their events and their team portraits below.

Here is some of the event photography from their press conference at the National Press Club:

Crowd photo of the National Disability Institute press conference event at the National Press Club. Event photography by Jason Dixson Photography.
National Disability Institute press conference event at the National Press Club. Event photography by Jason Dixson Photography.
National Disability Institute press conference event at the National Press Club. Event photography by Jason Dixson Photography.
Michael Morris, Executive Director of the National Disability Institute, speaking at the press conference event at the National Press Club. Event photography by Jason Dixson Photography.Bob Williams, Senior Advisor, Social Security Administration, speaking at the National Disability Institute press conference event at the National Press Club.

Below are a few of the team headshots captured during NDI’s staff gathering later in the week:

Head shots for NDI hosted on location during their annual staff retreat.Head shot of Michael Morris, Executive Director of the National Disability Institute, taken on location during their annual staff retreat.
Head shots for NDI hosted on location during their annual staff retreat.Head shots for NDI hosted on location during their annual staff retreat.

Here’s a behind the scenes shot of the on-location lighting setup for the headshots. There were roughly 20 staff members photographed in about two hours. Each team member that was photographed had the opportunity to review the images on a laptop display and select the one that they wanted edited:

Behind the scenes photo of the lighting setup for head shots at the NDI annual staff meeting.

Finally, below are a few event photos from their annual team meeting, which took place in Lansdowne, Virginia:

NDI annual staff retreat event photos, a non-profit corporation based in Washington, DC.NDI annual staff retreat event photos, a non-profit corporation based in Washington, DC.
NDI annual staff retreat event photos, a non-profit corporation based in Washington, DC.NDI annual staff retreat event photos, a non-profit corporation based in Washington, DC.
NDI annual staff retreat event photos, a non-profit corporation based in Washington, DC.NDI annual staff retreat event photos, a non-profit corporation based in Washington, DC.
A team portrait photographed at the end of NDI's staff retreat.

by Jason Dixson -

Conference Photography in Dallas

Last week I wrapped up a four-day endeavor to photograph BBYO’s International Convention 2014 in Dallas, Texas. BBYO is a Jewish youth organization with the mission of providing Jewish teens with meaningful Jewish experiences. The list of events ran the gamut and required a range of versatility to photograph the variety of scenes that the convention had to offer, including concerts, small group sessions, the convention stage, and 2000 teens spelling out letters on a football field (photographed from 2000 feet in the air).

Photographing the conference was a great experience, and really pushed me to see what I could accomplish in documenting this conference and the experiences of its attendees. Days sometimes lasted 20 hours, with every moment of it offering something new.

Here are some conference photography highlights below.

The first are shots from the sky of 2000 teens spelling out letters on the ground after training in CPR, as well as photos of the field in the distance as we flew into position.

2000 teens at a CPR training day, photographed from 2000 feet above.

Here are some images from the convention main stage:

Conference photography of the main stage.
Conference photography of the main stage.
Conference photography of the main stage.
Conference photography of the main stage.
Conference photography of the main stage.

Conference photography of the main stage.

Photos from the breakout sessions:







Finally, photos from the main concert events:

American Authors performing on concert stage.
B.o.B. performing on concert stage.
3LAU performing on concert stage.
Aloe Blacc performing on concert stage.
Teens waiting for the next concert performance.
B.o.B. signing autographs for teens who made significant volunteer contributions.

by Jason Dixson -

Opening Day at Photoshop World 2012

Today was day one of the 2012 Photoshop World Conference and Expo, the world’s largest photography and lighting conference!  It provides an opportunity for photographers and designers of all levels to meet each other, learn skills, test products, and exchange ideas.  While it’s fresh in my mind and before I get some sleep (things kick up again at 8:15am tomorrow), I wanted to share a few details about the conference.

Adobe gave the opening keynote, presenting new features in Lightroom 4 and Creative Suite 6.

I was really impressed with the presentation delivered by Adobe’s Julieanne Kost on the new features in Lightroom 4 (keep in mind that Lightroom is my main editing tool).  New features included video editing within Lightroom, improved control over shadows/midtones/highlights, drag and drop GPS tagging of photos (you literally drop them onto a Google Map to tag them!), and in-application photo book design.  There was also a very cool demonstration of countless new features in Photoshop 6.

Classes I attended today covered a wide range of topics including flash lighting techniques, shooting and editing portraiture, design and composition, stock photography, and surviving in today’s marketplace.  Each class was very informative, and the instructors were completely approachable and happy to talk one-on-one after their presentations.

Also, the expo floor is very cool if you’re even remotely into photography.  Most of the major photography related companies were present demonstrating gear and software, as well as a live models to photograph and test out lighting equipment.  As a special note for me, I got to test out the new Canon 5D Mk III (!!!) with a 200mm f/1.8 attached.  The combination of the two must have weighted 15 pounds, and my life will never be the same again (it was so fast and quiet compared to the Mk II).  The expo floor is open to the public Sunday the 25th and Monday the 26th, and you can register to attend here.

With two more days left in the convention, I’m looking forward to all the amazing tips, ticks, and techniques that will be covered as well as all the creative minds to be inspired by!

To follow more of the conference, check on twitter for posts with the hashtag #PSW12.