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Quidditch for Muggles

Posted in Journalism, Pennsylvania, Photography, Photojournalism, Sports, The York Dispatch, York on February 28, 2011| 1 Comment »

I’m not shy about admitting I know nothing about Harry Potter. I was a firm Lord of the Rings fan when the Harry Potter franchise started to take over the world, and as a matter of principle (and adolescent tenacity), I neither read nor watched anything related to Harry Potter.

So I was at a distinct disadvantage when my editor assigned me to photograph the first-ever Central Pennsylvania Open Quidditch Tournament on Sunday.

© 2011 by The York Dispatch. Ursuline School senior Sean Watson, of New Rochelle, N.Y., scores against Trinity High School in the Central Pennsylvania Open Quidditch Tournament on Sunday, Feb. 27, 2011, at Roof Park in New Cumberland. Ursuline was the only out-of-state team in central Pennsylvania's first-ever Quidditch tournament, and was also the tournament winner.

Going into the tournament — right after covering Daren Hidalgo’s memorial service (talk about a messed-up emotional state) — I knew only a few things about Quidditch:

  1. It involves balls.
  2. It involves goals.
  3. It involves flying.

© 2011 by The York Dispatch. Spare brooms lie on the ground during downtime in the first-ever Central Pennsylvania Open Quidditch Tournament on Sunday, Feb. 27, 2011, at Roof Park in New Cumberland. While a broom is necessary in playing Quidditch in Harry Potter's universe, the brooms for Muggles (non-witches) are of little functional use, except when the human Snitch is defending himself.

Since Muggles cannot fly, these high school and college students instead ran. And tackled. It was basically a combination of rugby, dodgeball, basketball, tag and soccer. There was a thick International Quidditch Association handbook available, but the game still made no sense — but it was fun.

© 2011 by The York Dispatch. Ursuline School senior Amanda Ungco passes the quaffle against Trinity High School in the Central Pennsylvania Open Quidditch Tournament on Sunday, Feb. 27, 2011, at Roof Park in New Cumberland.

(more…)

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College basketball: York College in the Capitol Athletic Conference tournament

Posted in Journalism, Pennsylvania, Photography, Photojournalism, Sports, The York Dispatch, York on February 23, 2011| 2 Comments »

Last night, I shot my first doubleheader. It was also the first time I’d shot college basketball in about a year, and — despite the facts that this is not Division I basketball and that I’ve covered a lot of high school basketball — I felt out of practice.

© 2011 by The York Dispatch. York College's Aja Wallpher tries to work around St. Mary's Jasmine Jones' and Taylor Petrisko's defense in the second half of the first game in the Capital Athletic Conference Women's Basketball Tournament at York College on Tuesday, Feb. 22, 2011. York College defeated St. Mary's 74-61 and will continue to the tournament's second-round game against Marymount on Thursday, Feb. 24.

Also: I haven’t really had a problem with referees getting in my way at high school games, but that was definitely an issue with both games I shot last night, no matter where I moved or sat.

© 2011 by The York Dispatch. York College's Julian Watson drives the ball against Salisbury's Justin Taylor during the first-round game of the Capital Athletic Conference Men's Basketball Tournament at York College on Tuesday, Feb. 22, 2011. After tying 2-2 early in the first half, York College never gained the lead over Salisbury and lost 77-64.

Then again, my custom for high school games was to sit right under and behind the basket — where refs never go — whereas for these games, I made a point not to do so, to alleviate my backfocusing issues. As it turned out, backfocusing wasn’t such a big problem last night, but I know I missed a lot of great shots and great emotions because of the refs.

Long story short? I can’t win.

© 2011 by The York Dispatch. York College's Jaimie Sapp shoots against St. Mary's in the first half of the first game in the Capital Athletic Conference Women's Basketball Tournament at York College on Tuesday, Feb. 22, 2011.

But dammit, I’ll keep working and trying.

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Video: Bringing Wii into gym class

Posted in Journalism, Pennsylvania, Photography, Photojournalism, Sports, The York Dispatch, York on February 15, 2011| Leave a Comment »

Last week, I went to Dallastown Area Intermediate School, where one rotating unit of the gym class features Wii games and HOPSports videos.

As a survivor of gym classes where I endured playing endless volleyball drills, running countless laps and embarrassing myself in tennis and badminton, I can now appreciate my coaches’ efforts to introduce us to various sports and means of athleticism. I can also see the appeal of bringing wired technology into gym class — especially if it helps kids like Quinten.

© 2011 by The York Dispatch. Dallastown Area Intermediate fourth grade student Quinten Redelberger, of Dallastown, plays Wii bowling against fifth grade students Austin Wildasin of York Township and Mia Rexroth of Red Lion at school on Monday, Feb. 7, 2011. The school received funding via a state grant to install Wii and other interactive fitness technologies for use during students' physical education classes. Redelberger, who has scoliosis, said he feels motivated to exercise using the Wii program because it helps him forget his pain.

Please be sure to check out the video I shot and edited, too, as it features an interview with and more information from one of the coaches.

(And special, special thanks to Jeff for buying me Final Cut Express. After using another video-editing program, using FCE for this project was a godsend.)

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Outtake: Diving

Posted in Journalism, Pennsylvania, Photography, Photojournalism, Sports, The York Dispatch, York on February 13, 2011| Leave a Comment »

The swim meet I shot on Thursday also had diving. I’ve never shot diving, and tried to make some interesting images. None of them really turned out, except one. It was a mistake — overexposed and backfocused — but I still like it.

© 2011 by The York Dispatch. A Dover Area High School diver warms up before competing in a swim meet against York Suburban High School on Thursday, Feb. 10, 2011, at Dover Area Intermediate School. York Suburban's team does not include any divers.

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High school swimming: Dover defeats York Suburban

Posted in Journalism, Pennsylvania, Photography, Photojournalism, Sports, The York Dispatch, York on February 12, 2011| 3 Comments »

Shot swimming on Thursday, for the first time in almost exactly a year.

(On a related note, my portable hard drive died that weekend, and I worked all day on Valentine’s Day. Easily one of the worst weekends of my life.)

© 2011 by The York Dispatch. Dover Area High School's Summer Dacheux swims the butterfly as the third swimmer against York Suburban High School in the 200-yard medley relay at Dover Area Intermediate School on Thursday, Feb. 10, 2011. Dacheux's lane won the event with a time of 1:58:43.

Several things that made shooting this high school meet interesting and different from my experiences at the Missouri Grand Prix:

  1. They didn’t have a heat sheet — a list of all the races with all the lane assignments — available at the beginning of the meet. The York Dispatch writer told me they withhold this information so the swimmers don’t know against whom they’re competing until they’re on the diving blocks.
  2. The heat sheet that was available at the end of the meet, complete with results, didn’t have the lane assignments. Instead, the swimmers for each race were listed by how they placed. So it’s a damn good thing I only photographed the first- or second-place swimmers in each event, and took careful notes.
  3. The swimmers and their classmates were really, really cheering each other on. (At the Prix, usually it was only the coaches who were doing any yelling.)

© 2011 by The York Dispatch. Dover Area High School swimmers cheer as fellow members win the boys 400-yard freestyle relay as the last event against York Suburban High School at Dover Area Intermediate School on Thursday, Feb. 10, 2011. The Dover girls defeated the York Suburban girls 107-76; the Dover boys defeated the York Suburban boys 96-87.

© 2011 by The York Dispatch. Dover Area High School's Scott Tilley swims the 200-yard freestyle against York Suburban High School at Dover Area Intermediate School on Thursday, Feb. 10, 2011. Tilley won the race with a time of 1:59:01.

© 2011 by The York Dispatch. Dover Area High School swimmers congratulate fellow team members for winning the girls 400-yard freestyle relay against York Suburban High School at Dover Area Intermediate School on Thursday, Feb. 10, 2011.

So that was fun.

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High school basketball: York Suburban defeats Susquehannock 65-41

Posted in Journalism, Pennsylvania, Photography, Photojournalism, Sports, The York Dispatch, York on February 11, 2011| 8 Comments »

I need help.

Oops.

I shot high school basketball on Tuesday night, just as I have a few other times so far this year. And, no matter what I do or change or try, I can’t stop backfocusing.

© 2011 by The York Dispatch. York Suburban's Kevin Donahue shoots a free-throw in the first quarter at York Suburban High School on Tuesday, Feb. 8, 2011. Donahue scored his 1,000th point in the game's third quarter. The York Suburban High School boys basketball team defeated Susquehannock High 65-41 at home.

Here are the facts:

  1. I’ve always owned a Canon, but now use a full-frame.
  2. Because of not-so-ideal high school gym lighting, I shoot at 2.8. (Which I also did for college basketball, in better lighting.)
  3. I use back-button focus.
  4. For focusing modes, I’ve tried using AI Servo and One Shot at different games. One Shot used to work well for me when I shot with a cropped-sensor Canon. Now, neither mode is helpful in alleviating my backfocusing issues.
  5. I miss Nikon’s pro-body focus-point options, but that’s a moot point.
  6. I use center-point focus.

© 2011 by The York Dispatch. York Suburban's Ted Hinnenkamp shoots against Susquehannock High in the first quarter at York Suburban High School on Tuesday, Feb. 8, 2011.

Timing and framing aren’t problems. Backfocusing is. I can’t count how many great photos I’ve had to pass because they were backfocused. And I’m not a bad basketball photographer. I’m not the best, but when I shot college basketball with a Nikon or cropped-sensor Canon, I never had any technical issues.

Now, I’m shooting high school basketball with a full-frame, and I’m overwhelmed by how many awesome moments are ruined because I couldn’t focus fast enough.

Help. Please.

(And no, I’m not switching over to Nikon. Or using my 30D for these low-light gyms.)

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Rasslin’: Spring Grove loses quarterfinals to Cumberland Valley

Posted in Journalism, Pennsylvania, Photography, Photojournalism, Sports, The York Dispatch, York on February 7, 2011| Leave a Comment »

Last Thursday, I drove over to Spring Grove, photographed Spring Grove’s wrestling bouts for about 30 minutes, drove back to York to cover another assignment and then returned to Spring Grove to cover the team in its second match of the night in the District 3-AAA quarterfinals.

© 2011 by The York Dispatch. Penn Manor's Colby Graham wrestles Spring Grove's Neal Grudi in the 189-pound bout at Spring Grove Area High School on Thursday, Feb. 3, 2011. Grudi pinned Graham; Spring Grove defeated Penn Manor 44-19 in the first round of the District 3-AAA Team Tournament.

This was the same team in the same gym that I covered a few weeks ago, and I was glad I returned later in the evening for the quarterfinals — because that’s when they turned out all the lights.

© 2011 by The York Dispatch. Cumberland Valley's Kevin Novick (right) wrestles Spring Grove's Dakota Laughmann in the 125-pound bout at Spring Grove Area High School on Thursday, Feb. 3, 2011. Novick defeated Laughmann 5-3; Cumberland Valley defeated Spring Grove 35-19 in the quarterfinals of the District 3-AAA Team Tournament.

© 2011 by The York Dispatch. Spring Grove's Trey Duncan (right) wrestles Cumberland Valley's Wills Long in the 145-pound bout at Spring Grove Area High School on Thursday, Feb. 3, 2011. Duncan defeated Long 7-5.

© 2011 by The York Dispatch. Cumberland Valley's T.C. Warner (top) wrestles Spring Grove's Tyler Miller in the 140-pound bout at Spring Grove Area High School on Thursday, Feb. 3, 2011. Warner defeated Miller 15-1.

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Packers nation

Posted in Journalism, Pennsylvania, Photography, Photojournalism, Sports, The York Dispatch, York on February 6, 2011| 1 Comment »

As I predicted two weeks ago, I spent the first half of tonight’s Super Bowl game photographing Pittsburgh Steelers and Green Bay Packers fans in two different sports bars. Here are a few photos; check out some more at the York Dispatch‘s site.

© 2011 by The York Dispatch. Green Bay Packers fan Teresa Filipelli (foreground), of Dover, cheers at Jamie's Courtside Sports bar after the Packers got two consecutive first downs in their third drive of the first quarter of the Super Bowl game on Sunday, Feb. 6, 2011. The Packers fan club gathered at Jamie's to watch their team take on the Pittsburgh Steelers in the 45th Super Bowl game.

© 2011 by The York Dispatch. Pittsburgh Steelers fan Bob Roland, of York City, intently watches the Super Bowl game at Stockade Tavern on Sunday, Feb. 6, 2011. Roland said he has been a Steelers fan since the 70s, and proudly sported a Steelers watch and necklace.

© 2011 by The York Dispatch. Alan Brown of West Manchester Township and Jeanne Behnke of Manchester hug in celebration of the Green Bay Packers' first touchdown in the 45th Super Bowl, as Pittsburgh Steelers fan Mary Krause of Dover remains seated in Jamie's Courtside Sports bar on Sunday, Feb. 6, 2011. Behnke is the Packers' local fan club organizer. Despite her being a Steelers fan, Krause sat among the club's members, as she is a friend of many of them.

© 2011 by The York Dispatch. Ralph Preston, Jr., (center right) raves to Bob Roland, Ray Brown, Louis Calhoun and Samuel Layer, all of York City, that the Pittsburgh Steelers need to score a touchdown before the Super Bowl's halftime in order to gain any momentum in the game. A small crowd of Steelers fans gathered at Stockade Tavern on Sunday, Feb. 6, 2011, for a Super Bowl watch party. Shortly after Preston's rant, the Steelers scored their first touchdown - before the game's half.

© 2011 by The York Dispatch. Joe Powers, of Springettsbury Township, relishes the Green Bay Packers' first touchdown in the Super Bowl game against the Pittsburgh Steelers on Sunday, Feb. 6, 2011. Powers was one of several dozen Packers fans who gathered in Jamie's Courtside Sports bar to watch the game.

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High school basketball: Dallastown loses 57-49 to York High

Posted in Journalism, Pennsylvania, Photography, Photojournalism, Sports, The York Dispatch, York on February 3, 2011| 3 Comments »

Shot more high school basketball last night.

© 2011 by The York Dispatch. York High's Tavon Parker attempts to score at Dallastown Area High School on Wednesday, Feb. 2, 2011. Dallastown was behind 23-9 near the end of the first quarter and tied York High 29-29 in the third quarter, but was never able to take the lead. Dallastown lost 57-49.

True to form, I was run over by a basketball player mid-game. Namely, this one:

© 2011 by The York Dispatch. Dallastown's Four McGlynn scores a free throw at Dallastown Area High School on Wednesday, Feb. 2, 2011. During the game, McGlynn claimed the school's all-time record in points scored by besting Bill Rutecki's 1976 record of 1,616 high school career points.

This brings my total #occupationalhazard record to five, as I’ve previously been barreled by a pig, run over by two wrestlers, hit by a tree and almost had my camera eaten by a horse. (More on that horse later.)

© 2011 by The York Dispatch. York High's Kelvin Parker shoots against Dallastown's Emmanuel Mossengo at Dallastown Area High School on Wednesday, Feb. 2, 2011.

But yep. It was a good game. And I still need to figure out how to avoid backfocusing on this full-frame camera.

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High school basketball: Dallastown defeats Red Lion 43-36

Posted in Journalism, Pennsylvania, Photography, Photojournalism, Sports, York on January 26, 2011| 1 Comment »

Last night, I was supposed to shoot girls basketball. I arrived early — and saw wrestlers on a wrestling mat.

Turns out they rescheduled the girls basketball game to tonight, and the paper hadn’t been notified. I called the reporter, he called the sports editor and soon we were rushing over to a boys basketball game going on a few miles away.

I’ll say it now: I had a pretty rough off-night. This was not one of my best games. In fact, this was probably my worst game. This happens to every photographer, though, so I’m not concerned about being in a rut or out of shape. That said, here’s the shot that ran:

© 2011 by The York Dispatch. Dallastown's Cori Ebersole drives the ball past Red Lion's Mike Fox and Tanner Klinefelter during the second period at Dallastown Area High School on Tuesday, Jan. 25, 2011. Dallastown defeated Red Lion 43-36.

…And here are shots that would belong only on a blog, if anywhere at all.

First: layers. Oh my goodness, layers.

If you look closely, you can even see another photographer way in the back.

Second: oops.

Would've been better if his head had been replaced instead by the basketball.

Yep. Pretty rough off-night. John, who shot the night’s other game, said he had an off-night, too. There must’ve been something in the water.

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Steeler country

Posted in Journalism, Pennsylvania, Photography, Photojournalism, Sports, The York Dispatch, York on January 23, 2011| 4 Comments »

Well, the Steelers defeated the Jets tonight, and are moving on to the Super Bowl.

Tonight, as part of my Sunday late-ish shift, I was sent to photograph fans watching the game at a bar.

© 2011 by The York Dispatch. Pittsburgh Steelers fans Mike and Kim Harkins, of Dallastown, cheer and New York Jets fan Joey Rivera, of Red Lion, grimaces, after the Steelers made a run during the second quarter of the American Football Conference championship game. Rivera, the Harkins and dozens of other fans gathered at Tailgaters Grille and Drafthouse on Sunday, Jan. 23, 2011, and watched the Steelers win the AFC championship to move on to the Super Bowl.

This isn’t the first time I’ve had to make pictures of sports fans cheering on their team at the local watering hole, and since the Super Bowl game falls again on my Sunday shift, this probably won’t be the last time, either. That said, these kinds of assignments always present a few challenges:

  1. As a photographer wanting to get fans’ reactions to the game, you absolutely need to stick around for a while to make sure you get enough reactions to enough plays. This is because…
  2. …Chances are, frames with really good moments are also going to have quite a few mid-blinks or arms in front of faces, etc.
  3. Also, sports bars typically have multiple TV screens installed, which means fans at any given table will at any given time be looking in any given direction, depending on whichever screen they choose to watch. This can make for some pretty odd-looking photos, what with people looking in all directions.

All of this means… you absolutely need to stick around for a while. (Which you should do anyway.)

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Rasslin’: Spring Grove defeats Red Lion 46-12

Posted in Journalism, Pennsylvania, Photography, Photojournalism, Sports, The York Dispatch, York on January 21, 2011| 1 Comment »

I had my first night shift last night, which meant I shot high school sports. Specifically, high school wrestling.

© 2011 by The York Dispatch. Spring Grove's Paul Smith, left, wrestles Red Lion's Rustin Lehr in the 189-pound bout at Spring Grove Area High School on Thursday, Jan. 20, 2011. Rehr defeated Smith 2-1 in their match; Spring Grove defeated Red Lion 46

High school sports, especially wrestling and swimming, are known to feature poor lighting conditions that frustrate the hell out of photographers. John warned me about Spring Grove’s gym: For varsity bouts, they turn off all the lights in the gym except for a single spotlight above the mat.

© 2011 by The York Dispatch. Red Lion's Austin Holloway, top, wrestles Spring Grove's Toby Allison in the 135-pound bout at Spring Grove Area High School on Thursday, Jan. 20, 2011. Holloway defeated Allison 7-6 in their match

Fortunately, the mat is white, so it’s basically one big bounce card or reflector or what-have-you. That said, the exposure on the edge of the mat isn’t so great — but I never felt tempted to pull out my flash. I was pretty happy with my first time shooting high school wrestling, but I know I won’t be so fortunate in every gym. (Alas.)

© 2011 by The York Dispatch. Spring Grove's Mike Hartman, top, wrestles Red Lion's Patrick Kluyber in the 145-pound bout at Spring Grove Area High School on Thursday, Jan. 20, 2011. Hartman defeated Kluyber 4-0 in their match.

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The face of disappointment: A young Steelers fan

Posted in Journalism, Pennsylvania, Photography, Photojournalism, Sports, The York Dispatch, York on January 15, 2011| Leave a Comment »

The Pittsburgh Steelers and the Baltimore Ravens are playing right now in the AFC playoffs. In anticipation of tonight’s game, my editor sent me to a local sports merch store on Thursday to photograph fans getting geared up.

Because York is about an hour north of Baltimore and, obviously, in Pennsylvania, the local fandom is split pretty evenly between the Steelers and the Ravens. This meant I had to make sure to get Steelers and Ravens fans in the store — no matter that it was noontime on a weekday.

I spent about two hours in the store, waiting for Ravens and Steelers fans to come in, and got one Ravens fan (who had to cross county lines in search of a Ravens T-shirt fitted for women). Finally, when a grandmother entered with her two young grandsons, I knew I could get the assignment done. With the grandmother’s permission, I followed the boys as they searched for shirts they could wear while watching the game.

© 2011 by The York Dispatch. Darius Kuentzler, 10 of Manchester Township, tries on a youth-sized version of Pittsburgh Steelers linebacker LaMarr Woodley's jersey at Bleacher Bums in York Galleria on Thursday, Jan. 13, 2011. Kuentzler was visibly disappointed that the store's selection of youth-sized Steelers jerseys included only Woodley's and Ben Roethlisberger's numbers.

(Darius did eventually find a jersey he liked — Willie Parker’s. He also got quoted in the accompanying article.)

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High school basketball: Central York defeats Red Lion 66-43

Posted in Journalism, Pennsylvania, Photography, Photojournalism, Sports, The York Dispatch, Weddings on January 5, 2011| 2 Comments »

It’s been almost a year since I last shot basketball, but on the evening of my second day at The York Dispatch, I tagged along with John to photograph a high school game.

This was my first time…

  1. shooting high school basketball
  2. using my new full-frame camera to shoot sports
  3. having a lot of mobility and access during a game

For example, there was a wheelchair-access space cut out in the bleachers right in front of one of the baskets. Because no one in the crowd had a wheelchair, a photographer could sit there and shoot. So I did.

© 2011 by The York Dispatch. Central York's Jalil Ford attempts a shot during the third quarter against Red Lion on Tuesday, Jan. 4, 2010.

A drop-down curtain separated the full court from a half-court, so that made for a nice, clean background on one side.

© 2011 by The York Dispatch. Central York's Corey Hartz attempts a shot against Red Lion on Tuesday, Jan. 4, 2010.

The gym also featured a track that ran above and around the entire court. I spent most of the first quarter up there, and wished the whole time that I had at least a 300mm lens.

© 2011 by The York Dispatch. Red Lion's Eric Althoff unsuccessfully attempts to score at Central York High School on Tuesday, Jan. 4, 2011.

One thing I’ll have to wrangle: how to avoid back-/front-focusing with my new full-frame. I’ll be experimenting with different focus modes and techniques every chance I get.

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Missouri football in Aggieland

Posted in Journalism, Missouri, Mizzou, Photography, Photojournalism, Sports, Travel on October 18, 2010| 3 Comments »

I’m pretty excited that I’ve now shot college football on Texas soil. (Apart from last year’s Texas Bowl game…)

Members of the Missouri football team take the field for some pre-game drills at Kyle Field in College Station on Saturday, Oct. 16, 2010.

Jeff and I shot Missouri’s game against Texas A&M in College Station on Saturday. It was only my second time on A&M’s campus — my younger brother is a sophomore there — but I was looking forward to witnessing the Aggie spirit.

Also for the first time:

  • I used my new full-frame camera.

Texas A&M junior wide receiver Jeff Fuller catches the ball for A&M's first and only touchdown against Missouri on Saturday, Oct. 16, 2010, at Kyle Field. Note: This photo has been highly sharpened, due to some backfocusing.

  • I didn’t have a lens longer than my 70-200/2.8.
  • Which meant I shot a lot more features than I have ever before at a football game.

Will Lowe of Houston, right, is reflected on the side of a car as he watches the Texas A&M Corps of Cadets -- the university's student military organization of 2,002 members -- marching to Kyle Field in College Station, Texas, on Saturday, Oct. 16, 2010. Texas A&M is one of five U.S. colleges classified as a senior military college and, apart from the service academies, produces the most military officers of all U.S. schools.

  • It was a sunny, clear day. (With the exception of a cloudy daytime game, every other football game I’ve shot has been at night and/or indoors.)

Travis Nault, center, stands ready to sing the Aggie War Hymn as Wendell Nault, left of center, and Kevin Kenefic, right of center, remove their hats before the Texas A&M-Missouri football game at Kyle Field in College Station on Saturday, Oct. 16, 2010.

Largely because of all of the above, I had a blast photographing the game — but mostly, the game outside of the game.

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The 41st annual Peachtree Road Race

Posted in Atlanta, Atlanta Journal-Constitution, Journalism, Photography, Photojournalism, Sports on July 10, 2010| Leave a Comment »

Last week, on the Fourth of July, I was one of three AJC photographers to cover the 2010 Peachtree Road Race. Bob would spend the day in the helicopter to get aerial photos, and Jason would be along the 10K race itself and in the media truck.

This meant I had finish-line and post-race duty.

© 2010 by The Atlanta Journal-Constitution. (Click on the image above to view the full photo gallery at ajc.com.) Duane Morrow of Hoschton, Ga., is cheered on by volunteers after completing the AJC Peachtree Road Race on Tuesday, July 4, 2010.

My editors gave me a few warnings:

  1. It’s 55,000 participants. That’s a lot of people.
  2. The wheelchair racers are super fast. (They were.)
  3. It’s 55,000 participants. That was definitely a lot of people.

© 2010 by The Atlanta Journal-Constitution. Masses of participants continue to cross the AJC Peachtree Road Race finish line as finishers (in the foreground) make their way toward the exit and the nearest MARTA station on Sunday, July 4, 2010.

But it was a lot of fun. And waking up at 3:30 a.m. to be at work at 5:30 a.m. meant I was done for the day at 1 p.m. Which was kinda nice, in a weird way.

Be sure to check out the full staff photo gallery!

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Introducing: Georgia State’s inaugural football team

Posted in Atlanta, Atlanta Journal-Constitution, Journalism, Photography, Photojournalism, Sports on July 8, 2010| 4 Comments »

Having attended Mizzou, where football reigns supreme as a time-honored tradition, I was immediately intrigued when I learned that Georgia State has its inaugural football season this fall.

© 2010 by The Atlanta Journal-Constitution. (Click on the image above to read the related article on ajc.com.) Members of Georgia State's new football team run short sprints during weight and conditioning training in the athletic department's workout room on Thursday, July 1, 2010. The team will play its first game against Shorter University on Sept. 2.

© 2010 by The Atlanta Journal-Constitution. Georgia State junior center Ben Jacoby lifts free weights as junior running back Malcolm Smith spots, in the Georgia State workout room on Thursday, July 1, 2010. The university started recruiting players two years ago in anticipation of its inaugural football season this year.

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What’s better than a press conference? Skateboarding.

Posted in Atlanta, Atlanta Journal-Constitution, Journalism, Photography, Photojournalism, Sports on June 23, 2010| Leave a Comment »

On Monday morning, I photographed a press conference wherein the city of Dunwoody announced its formal takeover of the parks system, which was previously under the jurisdiction of DeKalb County.

Pretty dry stuff. I did what I could with the press conference. But my editor asked me to find something more visually interesting to photograph in any of the parks, so later in the afternoon, I drove to four of the seven parks. Unfortunately, Monday was also the first day of summer and the temperature was soaring — so nobody was outside.

Except for the skaters.

© 2010 by The Atlanta Journal-Constitution. (Click on the image to read the article on ajc.com.) Fighting the heat on the first day of summer, Ross Lanning performs a few tricks at the Brook Run Skate Park on Monday, June 21, 2010.

This photo didn’t make it on-line — but it did make the Metro front in Tuesday’s print edition.

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Mexico 2, France 0

Posted in Atlanta, Atlanta Journal-Constitution, Journalism, Photography, Photojournalism, Sports on June 18, 2010| 2 Comments »

Yesterday, Mexico defeated France 2-0 in a World Cup match.

I was assigned to photograph fans watching the game. So, after consulting with the veteran photogs, I went to a bar in a Hispanic neighborhood. After my flash batteries died — it was completely dark in the bar — right after the first half of the game, I left and bought more batteries at a gas station…

…And then accidentally ended up at a small Mexican restaurant. Where I crouched in a corner for the rest of the game, during which Mexico scored two goals against France.

© 2010 by The Atlanta Journal-Constitution. Click on the image to read Mundo Hispánico's recap (in Spanish).

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Studio time

Posted in Atlanta, Atlanta Journal-Constitution, Journalism, Photography, Photojournalism, Sports on June 14, 2010| Leave a Comment »

So, why was I modeling — and jumping — for myself in the studio last week?

A seventh grade student at M.D. Roberts Middle School has been working on a project about foreclosures and the consequential issues that newly homeless kids face. She presented her award-winning project a school board meeting… and one of the AJC reporters opted to profile her.

So I snapped a few quick shots of Darrielle McCray in the studio after the reporter interviewed her.

Click on the image to read the ajc.com article about rising seventh grade student Darrielle McCray. © 2010 by The Atlanta Journal Constitution.

And that is why I jumped.

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