Student Night!

All of a sudden, as if a rush of shoppers on Black Friday, students flooded into Beau Photo on Thursday, September 18th, turning our Vancouver store into a hub of curiosity and creativity. Student Night, so far my favourite event of the year, was all about introducing students to the store, showcasing our products, and offering hands-on opportunities to learn from industry professionals.

The purpose of the night was clear: give students a space to explore gear, connect with photographers, and discover workshops and resources available at Beau Photo. Attendees got hands-on experience with top brands like Canon, Fujifilm, Sony, and Lowepro, while interacting with leading photographers right here in Vancouver.

Inside, the store was bee-hive-buzzing, the atmosphere: dorm-mixer reminiscent. Party trays of ham-and-cheese stuffed croissants, bags of gear swag, and raffles to win Fujifilm Instax cameras, Think Tank bags, and Profoto swag kept the energy high. The students fumbled through tripod legs, squeezed their eyes to viewfinders, touched the texture of softboxes, and chatted enthusiastically with reps.  The gasps at the prices of professional gear? Classic.

The evening featured talks and demos from photographers like Noah Asanias and Alastair Bird, as well as an incredible Elinchrome lighting demo from headshot photographer Aaron Aubrey, who shared insights from his experiences in the field. Students also had the chance to try out the newest Fuji and Nikon cameras firsthand. Fashion photographer Jayme Dunn chatted with infectious enthusiasm while John Goldmith, who runs Gallery 881 / Printmaker, informed students of the gallery opportunities in Vancouver. With roughly fifty attendees, the room was alive with conversation, curiosity, and the energy of young creatives networking and learning.

I am so super duper proud of our team — the store was still serving customers while hosting this bonanza, and everyone handled it with grace and aplomb.

I loved that we created an inclusive space for connection, inspiration, and discovery. Building on the energy of the event, I also want to highlight some of the ongoing workshops we offer here. These include our black-and-white film developing workshop, where you’ll learn how to process your own film; our print workshop, which teaches you how to use our two Canon printers; and If you want to get beyond taking photos on the ‘P’ setting, an introductory course that covers the nuts and bolts of using your camera more effectively. Want to learn how to clean your camera’s sensor? We’ll teach you that too. Want to master those bulky, intimidating field cameras? Guess what . . .

Student Night reminded us why we do what we do, and left us eager to host even more events in the future. So stay tuned, stay engaged, and please come visit us (if not only to pick up your raffle prizes but also to say hello). Who knew us photographers would love company. 🙂

Boris Riabov