Slightly Out of Focus

My dad and I were talking about someone famous today and all the trouble they seem to get into. We agreed that being famous isn't all that appealing. I assured him that I wouldn't achieve stardom. Even the most famous of photographers aren't widely known (except to other photogs).

I'm posting this photo in honor of Robert Capa, a WWII photographer. One of his books was entitled, "Slightly out of focus" because his battlefield images always seemed to be just that.

More Please

Another Dow basketball game. They begin to look the same after awhile. If it's true for me it's probably true for the readers looking at the photos as well. Ideas?

Meet Mr. Roznowski

I met Harry Roznowski, an 85 year old painter, on a quick assignment the other day. He's passionate about the season and it's meaning and could barely speak about Christmas without getting choked up. "What is Christmas about?" he asked rhetorically. "Jesus."

Purple and Yellow

These are two outtakes from a story about David and Nancy Young, two pastors in Midland who are moving soon. They have had a huge impact on the community over the past decade and will be very missed.

To read the story click here.

Bowl It

Tonight at a 24 hour bowlathon I found myself taking pictures of cute kids yet again. I think I need to diversify to get better at gaining access in more difficult situations. Something to think about. Anyway, Curt Zastrow, shown in the top image, bowled his heart out. If I had to pick something to do for 24 hours straight I don't think I'd pick bowling. I don't even think that's healthy. But Curt was going strong 14 hours into the endeavor.

BBall

Midland's two high schools, H.H. Dow and Midland, faced off in basketball tonight. The girl's game was a blowout in Midland's favor, but the guys game went into overtime after Dow came from behind to tie it with less than ten seconds on the clock. They lost it in overtime but it made for an exciting ending.

Saginaw Spirit

Shop 'til you drop

I sympathized with the police officer. Give an indecisive five-year-old a hundred bucks at a huge retail store and well, you get the picture. They were one of the last ones done with the shopping spree.

Silverstick

Lapeer Storm player Barry Braun reacts after missing a goal against the Westland Warriors. Lapeer went on to win the game 7-5 in the International Silver Stick Regional Hockey Tournament.

Half a Story

At the Mountain Workshop I drew a story about a rodeo happening at Murray State University. I contacted the rodeo coach and met a few members of the team that afternoon. We only got 600 photos for the week, so I didn't take any right away. I wanted to narrow down the story to follow just one or two of the cowboys through the week.

While waiting around for practice to start, a horse pulled back on a fence crushing Will Stites' pinky finger. I followed him back through the rodeo arena to the restroom where he ran some water over his finger and I made my first photo (the first one below). He's used to pain. Last year he broke his hand, ankle, and collar bone riding broncs. I ended up doing the story about his roommate Ian, a rodeo clown, but here is a mini essay on Will.

Cute Kids and Fuzzy Bears...

...at the Santa Parade. I got to the Midland High parking lot around 8:15 to take photos of some Red Cross volunteers gathering Christmas cards for our military men and women overseas. I saw Sam and Jake in their bear suits on my way to the Red Cross truck and made a mental note to return later. The Red Cross volunteers were a fun crew and after getting a few photos of them I turned my attention back to the bears. I also ran across stars, angels and a guy in a giant chicken suit (no photo on that one sorry).

Guard

Same people, two very different moments.

Nostalgia:

a wistful or excessively sentimental yearning for return to or of some past period or irrecoverable condition

Rodeo Outtake

Meet Ian Mathes, my photo subject for the week. This didn't make the cut for the story so I get to subject ya'll to it. Yes, that's right, I said ya'll. Back to Michigan tomorrow.

Reaction

I had two personal goals for the Dow volleyball game last night: to get a portfolio image and to write more complete captions. The caption writing I'm still working on, but I met one goal. After losing the first game against Bay City Western, Dow won the next three. The team was ecstatic, and some of them were pretty emotional. Chalk up a W, Dow is going to districts.

Bullock Creek Equestrian

While the Bullock Creek football team may be struggling this year, the equestrian team certainly isn't. This year is the third straight year that they've competed at States. I got to hang out with them for a few hours yesterday to make some images.

Right before...

...getting a loitering ticket. Guess we should have read the sign.

So I should probably elaborate a little on the circumstances of said ticket. This photo was taken in front of the old train depot of a wedding party who thought the building was an interesting as we did. The ticket came on our way out, when we pulled into a vacant lot behind the building. We didn't see the sign, as it was just after sunset. Within five minutes of being in the parking lot, a train station security officer arrived and informed us of our trespass. Apparently, no grace is given to outsiders.

Update: 12.15.09 - The charge was dropped.

Bullock Creek Football

Last night was my second attempt at shooting high school football for the Midland Daily News. Unlike last week, where it only sprinkled in the second quarter, the rain was light but steady. Another change from last week is that the D3 I was using worked, which was vital as the Bullock Creek field isn't lit nearly as well as Midland High's.

(Bullock Creek lost. It was a David vs. Goliath type game, except that David got stomped on. Creek had half as many players as Shepherd, and most of their guys played offense and defense. They had a lot of heart.)

Light it up

Yesterday Ryan showed me how to set up strobes to light a gym. It was so much better than my usual "1600 and a prayer" method. Here are the results.

Are you ready for some football?

Hooah

This past weekend I boarded a helicopter with the ROTC to and flew north to Camp Grayling. It was their annual field training exercise and CM-Life usually sends a reporter and a photographer to capture the action. I first got interested in photojournalism by looking at images from war photographers like Capa and Leeson. This is as close as I'll get to being embedded for now. It was a good time, and the ROTC really laid out the red carpet for us. We even got to choose what MRE we got to eat!

At Home

Saturday was CMU's first home football game. Fire Up Chips.

Silhouette

Cutline: Emily Bartlett, 7, of Midland, tosses a ball inside a retired hot air balloon envelope at the REMAX Balloon Festival. Emily's parents, Tony and Heather Bartlett, crew for Steve King, a hot air balloon pilot who has a chance to complete internationally. The balloon pictured was the only balloon filled Friday evening due to high winds.