Long Live Imaginat10n!

Well it's been a week since I got back from my second whirlwind trip to New York City, and I've finally just found a free moment to sit down and write about it! For those who don't know, I went to NYC for the Project Imaginat10n premier, which is sponsored by Canon Inc. and Ron Howard!

My friends and I on the RED CARPET at Project Imaginat10n!! From left to right: Cameron Sarradet, Brad Wagner (whose photo also won the competition), Rob Woodcox, and me :)

 I went as a lucky date to the incredible photographer and my awesome best friend, Rob Woodcox, whose image, "Blue Ridge Mountains" won the competition (along with several other photographs) to inspire a short film! Rob took the gorgeous photo last year in Vancouver, BC, where he and I were attending a meetup along with some other incredible photographers! He used me and our friend Peter Jamus as the models, and I still remember the feeling of standing in that freezing cold lake, surrounded by majestic mountains in the cool blue light of twilight. Who would have thought that photo would lead to all this?! It's so crazy, and I feel so lucky to have been a part of it!

The Premier was held at the Lincoln Center in downtown Manhattan, and I was on cloud 9 all night long! It was such a ritzy event, and I couldn't believe I was lucky enough to be able to attend with my friends. It was definitely a night I will never forget :)

The short film that took the most inspiration from Rob's photo is called "Here and Now", directed by Julian Higgins! It's a beautiful film about a young married couple who are having personal struggles, and reminisce about the beginning of their relationship and the love they once shared. I suggest you head over and watch it here :)

I met some pretty awesome folks at the premier, including Aaron Tviet (you might remember him from Les Miserables as Enjolras), Bryce Dallas Howard (one of my favorite actresses), and the couple who played us in "Here and Now"! 

Rob, Peter, Josh Pence, Abigail Spencer, and me! So cool to meet "us" ;) Thank you Peter for the photo!

The next day, we headed off on a mini meetup in the city to do some exploring and photographing! We met up with Ben Zank, Cynthia Wong, Evan Walsh, and Lissy Laricchia, to name a few. They're pretty awesome. 

We crossed the river over to Dumbo, where we saw the most gorgeous view of the city that I have ever seen! I definitely fangirled a little over it with Evan ;) I couldn't resist getting some portraits with the city as a backdrop. 

Cynthia wanted to take some fashion photos of Cameron, since he is an American Eagle model, after all ;) and I followed along. I took some behind the scenes images that I actually ended up liking quite a bit! Here are a few:

Cynthia being the awesome professional photographer that she is :) I love her hat so much. Go check out her work here: https://www.facebook.com/cynthiawphotography

Next we walked to the Brooklyn Bridge, which I have only seen in pictures and movies until then! Gah it was the most beautiful thing ever! It was composed so perfectly against the setting sun, with the sparkling city behind. It seriously felt like I was in a dream the whole time. I took some photos of my friend Brad, who looked so perfectly British in his hat and green plaid coat. 

I got some more photos of Cameron, of course, because he's stupid attractive. That's all. 

We finished off the night by walking across the bridge and wandering through the city until we stumbled upon Little Italy and found this adorable restaurant with twinkle lights all over the ceiling. It was beyond magical, and it was so fun to just spend the evening with some of my favorite people in the world, eating delicious pasta and sharing stories and memories.  

I love New York City, and I have no doubt that I will be back again soon--and whether that's to live or not has yet to be determined ;) For now though, I feel like the city is already home to me, and I can only imagine all the adventures I could have living there! This weekend was seriously such a crazy wonderful whirlwind of a trip, and I am feel so blessed that I was able to go. Memories were made that I will never forget.

Until next time, NYC! :)

-Whit