What I learned at the Maui Photo Festival--Part 1

Aloha All!
  Yes, I may be back in the Bay Area after the fabulous Maui Photo Festival, but I still have the aloha in me! It was time to come back to start the serious coordination neccessary for the 2010 SFWC, but damn we had such a great time going barefoot on the beach and working with the best photographers in the country. Not too many conferences allow that glorious freedom and opportunity.
  What I learned at the Maui Photo Festival (does this sound like the start of a grammar school essay?) is that it is time to dust off my point-and-shoot camera. According to Zane Mathias, a master photographer/ artist/writer, the technology is no longer 'trickling down' from the more expensive cameras to the point-and-shoot models. Oh no. The more expensive cameras are incorporating the best features on the less pricey cameras. That make photography more accessible to the masses.
  So what does photography have to do with the San Francisco Writers Conference or to writers in general?  Hello!  The photos that illustrate an article often earn you more money than the story you just spent weeks researching and editing. I'm not suggesting just anyone can take magazine-quality photos right off the bat, but I sure am experimenting with my tiny Kodak I bought at Costco.
   Why am I so optimistic that I can take saleable photos? I did have the pleasure of sitting in on a late-night photo competition judging during the MPF that included Terrie Eliker and Beth Mathias (my partners) and Lori Barbely who is the photo editor for ISLANDS Magazine.  While we all thought an image of the Maui coastline taken from a helicopter was the clear winner for the 'Best Cover Shot for ISLANDS Magazine' category, it took Lori about 10 seconds to crop it and plop the image into a dummy cover for the magazine. That excellent image became newsstand worthy when Lori took control of it.
   So get out there and not only think--that would make a great article.  Pull out the camera and take some shots. Worst case, you will document the time and place to better recall details for that article.