Last week, I attended the 5th Annual ILEA – San Antonio Chapter Antonian Award Ceremony. ILEA is the International Live Events Association. The Antonian Award Ceremony is a local competition in which event professionals compete head-to-head in different categories. They can go on to compete in regional (STAR) and national (ESPIRIT) ILEA-sanctioned events.
I submitted to three categories this year:
- Industry Innovation (same-day services for my wedding clients)
- Marketing/Design Collateral–under $25k (my book www.panowedding.com)
- Non-Profit Event–under $75k (a composite group of wedding pros for Badges & Bouquets annual charity wedding)
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Industry Innovation Award
I won my first Antonian Award back in 2017 when I submitted with a group of wedding professionals for a charity wedding we all contributed to. That Antonian was for Best Non-Profit Event Under $75k.
While I would have loved to have won all three categories this year, I’m still super happy to announce that I won a second Antonian Award for industry innovation. It’s incredibly satisfying to be recognized for all the effort I put into being different, unique, and invaluable when it comes to being a wedding photographer. It’s also extra meaningful to stand in a room, celebrate this extraordinary industry, accept these nominations, and receive this award with so many other equally talented, gifted, generous, like-minded entrepreneurs and small business owners! Truly honored to know and work with all of these gifted professionals.
While I take no credit for creating the same-day services I offer to my wedding clients, I do take full credit for having the courage to combine ALL of these services and successfully pull them off. I don’t know any other wedding photographer who does this! (Also, couple this with the fact that I guarantee to deliver your digital image gallery within 10 days of your wedding!)
In a day and age where the trend in professional wedding photography is to reduce the size and weight of cameras and equipment, reduce the actual amount of gear hauled to each wedding, and basically to also simplify offerings, I am literally going in the opposite direction—upstream if you will. I am augmenting my wedding night workflow with extras and add-ons that are virtually unheard of. This does not decrease; this increases the amount of gear I load into my car to perform this job. I do this so I can increase my clients’ intimacy and satisfaction with their own wedding nights and to do my best to stand out in a crowded and oversaturated market of professional photographers.
The number one complaint from guests at a wedding is that they usually never get to enjoy the images from the photographer. They see a photographer or two running and gunning all day and through the night. They know they’re capturing amazing images of the fun and excitement. However, unless the guest happens to be immediate family, they usually never get to fully enjoy those images
This is the foundation of why I started these services. The sooner I can deliver my goods, the better.
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I am San Antonio’s most unique wedding photographer. I specialize in a 10-day image delivery, same-day prints, same-day slideshows, Italian handcrafted wedding albums and I have a mobile meeting space.
I am a full-time, internationally-awarded and WPPI-C certified professional wedding and senior photographer based in South Texas near San Antonio. I offer a premier and personal service coupled with an unforgettable photography experience. I cater to clients who appreciate quality photography and help them to create family heirlooms that will last for generations.
I started Ata-Girl Photography Co., LLC in 2010. I firmly believe that the unique set of circumstances I have faced in life has prepared me to take a personal and genuine interest in my photography clients. I enjoy documenting the important milestones and captivating moments in people’s lives. I love being a part of people’s journey and consider myself privileged to document their legacies.
When I’m not photographing a wedding, family or high school senior, I love to spend my spare time hiking, camping, cycling, reading, listening to Elvis and Prince. The most important things in life are for me to see my two daughters happy and to create a family history my grandparents and grandson would be proud of!
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