Posts from the ‘Sports’ Category
Please be my assistant for a day.
If you’ve ever dreamed about being on the sidelines of a Seahawks game or a Sounders FC match at CenturyLink Field, you now have your chance.
One caveat, you have get to do so with me.
Thanks to both teams, my good friend Mike Gastineau of Sports Radio 950 KJR-AM in Seattle is auctioning off opportunities to join me on the sidelines as part of his 17th annual Kares-a-Thon. There are myriad great sports memorabilia and once-in-a-lifetime experiences up for auction, with the proceeds going to charity.
One of those charities is Gloria’s Angels, of which I have a special affinity. Jerry Brewer, a great friend and former co-worker, wrote a book about young Gloria Strauss, who died of a rare form of cancer, but not before she touched the lives of the local community at large.
If you come to work with me, you’ll work as my assistant, which has about three total duties — carry an extra body and lens, carry a towel if it’s raining, and laugh at my jokes.
That said, there are some great benefits, too. You’ll see football (either our kind, or the rest-of-the-world kind, depending on which item you bid on), from a very unique vantage point. You’ll get to experience genuine media food and eat as much of it as you like (c’mon, you’ve seen some portly members of the media and wondered, “what the hell do they eat?” — no, not you, Gasman). Sure, you can bring your camera and try your hand at what I do as well (it’s alternately very easy, and very hard, as you will see).
At a Seahawks game you’ll be working right next to the Sea Gals (yes, they will smile at you, and no, not because they think you’re cute, but because they have to), and you’ll be amazed at both the speed and power that NFL players have to bring to the table each and every time they take the field.
If you bid on the Sounders match, we’ll be less than five yards from the pitch, and you’ll get to witness the grace of Mauro Rosales, the tenacity and leadership of Kasey Keller, and the finishing skills of Fredy Montero and Lamar Neagle.
Come join me on the sidelines. I promise you’ll have a blast.
Bid on the Sounders FC package
UFC — Fight Night 24 in Seattle
Had the great opportunity to photograph UFC Fight Night 24 at KeyArena in Seattle, WA. Shooting UFC is definitely a challenge. Shooting through the cage forces you to manual focus much of the time, and to add to the degree of difficulty, there is light falling onto the chainlink fence, making focus even more challenging. In this photo, Chan Sung Jung, aka “The Korean Zombie”, takes a flying leap at Leonard Garcia.
Seahawks: Smoke and Fire in the Pregame Tunnel.
(Nikon D3, Nikkor VR 24-70mm/f2.8 zoom lens @ 70mm, ISO 1600, 1/1000th sec., f2.8)
One of the many great things about working behind-the-scenes for the Seattle Seahawks is the private moments I get to witness. Here, Seahawks safety Lawyer Milloy exhales on a cold Seattle day before leaving the tunnel during pregame introductions to the roar of 60,000 fans at Qwest Field. His eyes are on fire with concentration and he is at this point of the day clearly focused on the job at hand. The light is dramatic which always helps — backlight and sidelight are bouncing around, highlighting his breath, and there’s just a touch of daylight to let us see his eyes.
Seahawks: Playing with Shadows
(Nikon D3, Nikkor 24-70mm/f2.8 zoom lens @ 29mm, ISO 400, 1/1000th sec.,f5.0)
Seahawks cornerback Marcus Trufant stretches during pregame warmups and the low winter sun provides an interesting shadow. A sunny winter’s day in Seattle? Really? As the kids say, “I know, right?”. Took me a minute to find the right angle. So many of us photographers want to “see” in horizontals, especially when working with a wide-angle lens, that I find myself having to mentally “step away” in order to find the photo right in front of me.
Meet Jake Olson, a true hero.
Nikon D3, Nikkor VR 70-200mm/f2.8 zoom lens @ 80mm, ISO 500, 1/1600th sec.,f2.8)
Meet Jake Olson. In a world where the word “hero” is thrown about all too easily, this 14-year old from Southern California exemplifies the traits of a hero every day. Jake battled eye cancer since birth until doctors removed his eyes last year in an effort to stem the disease. Since becoming blind, Jake has become a motivational speaker and inspiration to many, including Seahawks head coach Pete Carroll. Olson, a lifelong U.S.C. Trojans fans, met Carroll last year, and made the trip to Seattle to be around the team as they prepared for this week’s game against the Carolina Panthers. On the field before the game, Olson ran with a football towards his family in the end zone as cameras from ESPN’s Outside the Lines recorded a followup to a documentary piece they did on Olson a year ago. I was lying on the ground to shoot this photo, which helps the composition by clearing out the background and giving the image a sense of place.
Sounders FC: U.S. Open Cup Champions Again.
Nikon D3, Nikkor 24-70mm/f2.8 zoom lens @ 24mm, ISO 1600, 1/400th sec.,f4.0)
Sounders FC made history as the first M.L.S. team to repeat as U.S. Open Cup champions with a 2-1 victory over the Columbus Crew on a memorable night at Qwest Field. After the game, I took a somewhat risky position right beneath the players as they received their medals. Most of the photographers were 20 yards away shooting straight on with telephotos lenses, and I sought something “different”. The only place I found was behind a sign, lying on the turf right below the players. For the most part, I was basically looking right up their noses, but when the confetti cannons let loose, Steve Zakuani raised his arms and the photo was right in front of me.
Seahawks: A Golden Flip
(Nikon D3, Nikkor VR 200-400mm/f4.0 lens @ 240mm, ISO 400, 1/1000th sec.,f4.0)
Seattle Seahawks rookie receiver Golden Tate flips upside-down after a reception against the San Diego Chargers at Qwest Field. Photos like this are unusual in pro football, as the players have the strength and agility to usually avoid being out-of-control in mid-air. Photos like this really are the epitome of “peak action”. Even though we don’t have the typical “two faces and a ball” type of action, the sight of a player completely inverted tells the story.
Seahawks: Head coach Pete Carroll in the team’s draft room.
Nikon D3, Nikkor VR 70-200mm/f2.8 lens, ISO 1600, 1/200th sec., f2.8)
Seahawks new head coach Pete Carroll examines a computer screen along with vice-president of football operations Will Lewis between the team’s selections in the NFL Draft. Carroll, back in the pros after a decade-long hiatus, oversaw his first draft with his new team. Shooting in the draft room is tricky — it’s a tense environment where the future of an entire organization can be at stake. I would come in only occasionally, and usually along with a member of the football operations team. As a photographer, this is very much a “fly-on-the-wall” situation — for this photo I was backed into a corner of a the room, trying to be very still and small (those of you who know me, know I am not a big person to begin with). I was shooting single frame, and shot less than ten frames in the five minutes I was in the room. Still, this images captures the concentration, intensity and seriousness of the draft room as selections are being made.
Mariners: See You at Home
(Nikon D3, Nikkor VR 200-400mm/f4.0 lens @ 200mm, ISO 500, 1/1250th sec.,f4.0)
The thing about photographing baseball is you can go innings, no — make that games — no, make that ENTIRE HOMESTANDS without having an opportunity to make a great action photo. When Seattle’s Eric Byrnes tried to score from third and the throw home beat him by a couple of yards, he had no alternative but to try to bowl over Detroit catcher Alex Avila, who held onto the ball for the out. I was on assignment for Sports Illustrated magazine, so I uploaded the frames to them right away since their deadline was that day.
So much of baseball is routine — routine strikeouts, ground balls and fly outs, that when something spectacular happens, one has to be prepared. Or lucky. I guess I was a little of both with this frame. I got even luckier when Sports Illustrated published the photo over two pages in their “Leading Off” section, with the headline, “Tools Shed”.
Seattle Sea Gals Tryouts
- (Nikon D3, Nikkor 24-70mm/f2.8 lens @ 24mm, ISO 1600, 1/40th sec., f2.8)
Annual tryouts for the Seattle Sea Gals were held last weekend, with 28 women making the team out of the 52 finalists. The Sea Gals are the sideline dance troupe for the Seattle Seahawks, and finals were held at Qwest Field, where the aspirants performed two dance routines and answered questions from the judges.
(Nikon D3, Nikkor VR 70-200mm/f2.8 lens @ 102mm, ISO 1000, 1/250th sec.,f2.8)
- (Nikon D3, Nikkor VR 70-200mm/f2.8 zoom lens @ 86mm, ISO 1000, 1/250th sec.@ f2.8)
