Images by Kirstin Vignes

As one of the youngest members of LHSA, I don’t have a great deal of society meet ups under my belt, but I’ve attended enough to know that the recent Spring Shoot in Asheville, NC was different. Over the last few years, our board, under the leadership of past president Gary Hough and current president Alan Weinschel, have made great strides in growing our membership and ushering in a new era of Leica enthusiasts. For this spring shoot, it was clear their hard work has paid off. New faces brought a new energy and a love for all things Leica ran deep.

The first day in Ashevillecommenced at the Biltmore Estate, a historic house museum that once served as asummer getaway for the Vanderbilt family. The opulent Gilded Age mansionprovided not only a photographic backdrop, but also a stage for members tocatch up and get acquainted with one another. A constant hum of camera shuttersand Leica talk was heard as we meandered through the Biltmore’s decadent roomsand vast halls. Outside, the gardens were alive with song and bloom. Spring wasever present and the change it brought reflected our society’s forwardprogress.

The second half of the day provedequally as exciting. Guest speaker, David Spielman, gave a lecture on stayingphotographically inspired and avoiding clichés before breaking us into groupsand sending us out on assignment. I was lucky to have Jon Kidder in my groupwho was an Asheville frequenter and knew the city well. We wandered past recordshops and street performers, through bookstores and a community garden.Asheville, although small, left nothing to be desired when it came to streetphotography. This sentiment only grew as day shifted into night, and the cityreally started to wake up. Live jazz drifted from speak easies, buskersserenaded passersby, and the beating of drums echoed from Pritchard Park.Asheville’s night scene allowed us to push ourselves and our ISO’s to capturethe rhythm and atmosphere of the city.

John Kral opened the second daywith a keynote on his career in photojournalism. As a local to South Florida,Kral’s work particularly resonated with me. In his years with the Miami Herald,he captured moments and subcultures rarely documented in the Sunshine State.Both Spielman and Kral have published books on their work and gave us insightinto the importance of personal projects.

After a photo walk with John Kraland lunch, board member David Knoble educated the group on using the LeicaFOTOS mobile app. With the rate at which technology changes these days, eventhe savviest of society members appreciated this session. As the graphicdesigner of Viewfinder, I’ve had the honor of laying out several ofKnoble’s articles but had never actually met him. One of the most rewardingparts of society meet ups is getting to meet people in person and putting aface to a name.

Of course, like every societymeet up, the highlight of the weekend was the closing banquet. Tom Smith ofLeica Akademie and our Executive Director Richard Rejino duetted a heartfeltclosing speech and pointed out the successes and progress our society hasachieved. We owe a round of applause to all our appointed officers for theirdedication to expanding the society and bringing in a new generation. In 2018,we celebrated LHSA’s past fifty years. In 2019, the focus has shifted and we’relooking forward to the next fifty.

Hoping to see everyone in Boston!