Out of Office

I'll be out of the office for awhile and don't expect to post any images until sometime in the 1st week of April.  Embarking on a ski trip soon.  Taking the camera, of course, but I don't know what opportunities there will be to get action shots.  We'll see.

Marching Band

This image was taken at the last home game, in November, 2007.  I had been shooting almost entirely from the sidelines during the season and was slow to recognize this vantage point.

I put myself in the end zone at the start of the pregame show.  From this spot I could see the drum major as she faced the band and the eye follows the line of marchers right to her.  The low angle helps, too.  I used the monopod in the shortest length possible and was down on my knees.  The goalpost and scoreboard are both visible in the background but fortunately not exactly behind the drum major.

Marching Band

This photograph was shot in November, 2007, during the halftime show of a high school football game.  It's one of my favorites as the trumpet player stands out so clearly from the rest of the marching band and he stands at perfect attention.

I like to use available light for these shoots because we can see the surroundings much better and get a sense of what is going on.  Even the bright floodlights, though, do not give enough light for me to get a very fast shutter speed.  I use a monopod but when the band members are in motion it is very difficult to get a sharp image.  Using a flash would allow for a faster shutter speed on the subject but would not illuminate the background sufficiently.

70 - 200 lens, f2.8

Slush Cup

These photographs were taken at Pine Knob during the winter carnival on March 2.  In the Slush Cup event the skiers attempt to ski across a small pond.

This skier is my son, Scott.  There are about 25 images in the full sequence of him approaching the water and stopping.  The elapsed time between entering the water and coming to a stop was about 2 seconds.  It is fun to have a blazing fast motor drive!

The volunteer judges awarded him the highest scores because of the entertainment value of his show.

Oops Moment

This photograph was taken during one of the high school races this winter.  It is probably my favorite "oops" image because of the very awkward position of the skier.

I was fortunate to get the focus locked on in time to capture the moment.  Too bad the snow gun was in the background to clutter things up.

Giant Slalom Racing

Giant slalom racing action from Pine Knob at the SEMSL championships.

The top photo is of Hannah Wolf, skiing for Clarkston, who ultimately won the GS race at the state finals later in February.

I was positioned slightly below the knoll, one of my favorite spots when the course is set there.

The bottom photo is Steve Megahan, skiing for Rochester High School.

Slalom ski racing

These three images show one of the more aggressive skiers from one of the teams I photographed this winter.  The course was set so skiers came over the knoll at Pine Knob.  I was positioned lower and directly facing the gate in the first photo.

The second and third photos show the next gate, which was across from me at the same elevation.

This was one of the few times during the season that we saw the sun.