Austin Fashion Week (AFW) kicks off in less than a month on May 3rd and runs through May 11th. I can't wait. Austin is an incredibly creative place, and most of the personal photography projects I've done over the past two years have been with the wonderful people I've met during AFW.

Speaking of wonderful people, Gerry Hanan, an amazing fashion and runway photographer from Round Rock, got me involved two years ago in the AFW mash-up team competition. My team won that year with this image of Britany Walker, whose team one the 2012 competition as well!

In 2011 there were 19 teams. This year there are over 40! I'm looking forward to seeing each team's creation.

Last year I also had the opportunity to shoot the opening night runways. 2012 was the inaugural year for F1 Racing in Austin, so AFW teamed up with the Circuit of the Americas (COTA). Ross Bennett's COTA Girls Collection was the highlight of the opening night.

Ross Bennett's COTA Girl's Collection

The COTA Girls

Here are a couple of the other creations on the runway that night:

I also shot the Wednesday night showcase event at the Driskill Hotel on behalf of Bella Salon and Spa. Bella did the hair styling for the models that night:

A Creation from Tess Dress

Again, hat tip to Gerry Hanan. Gerry does amazing runway photography, is one of the nicest guys in the world, and was kind enough to give me a few pointers on how to shoot runway images.

I hope to see you all at one or more of the AFW 2013 events!