Words and Light

Somehow, Missouri got it together and knocked the socks off of Kansas State yesterday, when the Tigers pulled off a 38-12 victory in Manhattan, Kan. This was a victory completely unexpected by almost everyone I talked to before leaving for the “Little Apple” to photograph the game.

A player (yet to be identified) embraces Missouri junior tailback Derrick Washington (No. 24) after Washington ran a 13-yard touchdown in the fourth quarter.

But I’m not here to ponder, consider or explain how or why the Tigers secured their victory.

Senior Leslie Horn reaches out to senior linebacker Sean Weatherspoon after Missouri defeated Kansas State 38-12 at the Billy Snyder Family Stadium in Manhattan, Kan.

Rather, this entry’s title refers to the facts that:

• I’ve overcome my massive insecurity about shooting football, especially with equipment previously unfamiliar to me,
• my actually decent job at shooting the Nebraska game in inclement weather conditions was not a complete fluke, and
• I am (surprisingly) reasonably comfortable shooting college football now.

All this means that, now that I know the game and know I can get the action, I can and should focus on working different angles and getting shots unlike what editors, fans and readers expect to see from a football game.

But as it is for now, I’ve got a few action shots from the game I’d like to share with you.

Missouri sophomore defensive linemen Terrell Resonno and Jacquies Smith take down Kansas State senior quarterback Grant Gregory during the first quarter.

Kansas State sophomore linebacker Tyler Crane brings down junior tailback Derrick Washington at the start of the fourth quarter.

As has been the case with every other game I shot, I used equipment unlike the gear I usually use. (“Usually use”? Ew.)

This time, I shot with Nikon and Canon. David — who also shot the game for The Missourian — said he could never do that, especially since the dials and light meter go in different directions between the two brands. I’d never shot with both brands before, but it worked out well. I used the Missourian‘s D2Xs with the 400/2.8 lens, as well as David’s MarkII (because my 30D’s battery unexpectedly lost a lot of its charge before the game) with my own 70-200/2.8 and 16-35/2.8 lenses.

Missouri sophomore quarterback Blaine Gabbert searches for a receiver during the first quarter.

Kansas State junior defensive back Joshua Moore brings down Missouri sophomore tailback De'Vion during the fourth quarter.

I think one thing that I did comparatively well — and this may be an utter fluke and may not ever happen again — was deciding where on the sidelines and in the endzone to go. While I was on the wrong side of the endzone for Danario Alexander’s touchdown at the end of the first half, I was at the right place for each of Missouri’s touchdowns in the second half.

Senior wide receiver Danario Alexander runs the ball 80 yards to bring Missouri's score to 23 points in the third quarter.

For example, Danario’s 80-yard touchdown (above). I don’t think anyone could have seen that coming, which is why every photographer except three or four (including Parker, Jeff and me) was at the other endzone.

And Derrick Washington’s 13-yard touchdown that brought Missouri’s total to 38? Happened right in front of me. (Unfortunately, I’d quickly switched to the Canon, which wasn’t metered for the ten minutes of sunlight during which Washington’s touchdown happened. So that and the victory hug shot are overexposed.)

Anyway, so that’s that. I’ve thrown in my name to shoot the bowl game if Missouri gets the Independence Bowl or the Texas Bowl. If that doesn’t work out, then I’ll have just shot my last college football game of the 2009 season. If it does — well, then we’ll see how well I do at finding different shots as I wrote earlier.

As always, you’re welcome to view more photos from the game.