A long and winding road...
posted by Gameshots, 9/19/2008 04:49:00 PM
A bridge to nowhere...
Just what the photog ordered. I headed for Spartanburg county as I wanted to shoot some interesting bridges for an upcoming photo contest. I wanted the bright sunlight at it's mid-morning angle. Everything worked out perfectly. Shooting began a few minutes before 9AM. It seems like I am always experiencing something new that forces me to pay attention and learn something new. This morning was no exception.
My cameras and lens are heavy to carry around so since this wasn't a game where I would need everything at my fingertips, I worked out of the trunk of my car. All went well initially, I got my telephoto (both medium telephoto and my long lens) pictures taken and the equipment put in the trunk. So I was about two hundred feet away from the car shooting with a super wide angle lens when I noticed something. On the other side of the river, four deer entered the picture. With the camera and lens I had just secured in the trunk, I would've gotten some great shots. I snapped a few shots with the wide angle and then got my exercise by running to the car and retrieving the equipment and running back up the hill. You guessed it, the deer were history!
The pictures turned out well. It was an old bridge, with character, that had been passed by when a new bridge had been constructed to replace it. The bridge was overgrown with Kudzu and had substantial trees growing on it. It was time well spent.
Next back on the road to head to Williamston, South Carolina in Anderson County. I was told that there was an interesting covered bridge behind the city park. This bridge is over a small river and is only for pedestrian traffic. That photo shoot went well but the only animal excitement was dog that ran across the bridge at top speed chasing a squirrel on the other side. The squirrel got away.
ASMP - American Society of Media Photographers meeting all afternoon...
The afternoon was entirely different than the morning. The South Carolina ASMP had a seminar at the BMW Zentrum in Greer, SC and was attended by people from Georgia, North and South Carolina. The subject was 'Creative Tools and Techniques for the Digital Photographer' presented by Jim DiVitale.
Jim just completed a tour of Canada. He did this seminar and lectured in all fifteen major cities. He belongs to the 'Explorers of Light' organization and the tour was highly subsidized by Canon. I say subsidized because attendees had to pay to attend but it was more reasonable because Canon had picked up the tab for Jim's traveling expenses, etc.
I won't, especially at this time, go over all that was discussed and that I learned but suffice it to say, it was time well spent. I had thought that if I could come out of there with three or four areas of knowledge that would be useful to me in my work, it would be time well spent. Well, the vast majority of the four hours was VERY useful. I was glad that I had attended. Jim's wife works as a wedding photographer so there were even good tips for working in that setting.
What I did find especially curious was who did and didn't attend. I've been shooting games constantly for about seven years and know many of the photographers by organization and often by name. Of the twenty-six in this seminar, guess how many I knew? None. Not one even worked for a South Carolina newspaper.
Induction of new members into South Carolina Athletic Hall of Fame...
Next was the drive from Duncan, South Carolina to Columbia, South Carolina to cover the induction of eight new members into the Hall of Fame. It was a great experience that I thoroughly enjoyed. Some of it was like working a 'Wedding Reception' with the mingling of the people and some of it was similar to a 'Rehearsal Dinner' and then finally it was similar to various press conferences. Regardless it was a fun and educational assignment to listen to the stories of various people over the last fifty to sixty years.
Tonight it's back to High School ball...
The game I'm covering tonight is Spartanburg at Greenwood. So I've got all the camera gear ready, now got to get out the door and make it happen!
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Yesterday was definitely not a typical day in the life of this photographer. I left the house around 8AM and returned home around 11PM. A photographer is always interested in light. What angle is the sun at this moment in time? Is it a bright day, partly cloudy, overcast, rainy or potentially rainy, etc. Well this day broke as forecast, sunny and clear. I was happy.
A bridge to nowhere...
Just what the photog ordered. I headed for Spartanburg county as I wanted to shoot some interesting bridges for an upcoming photo contest. I wanted the bright sunlight at it's mid-morning angle. Everything worked out perfectly. Shooting began a few minutes before 9AM. It seems like I am always experiencing something new that forces me to pay attention and learn something new. This morning was no exception.
My cameras and lens are heavy to carry around so since this wasn't a game where I would need everything at my fingertips, I worked out of the trunk of my car. All went well initially, I got my telephoto (both medium telephoto and my long lens) pictures taken and the equipment put in the trunk. So I was about two hundred feet away from the car shooting with a super wide angle lens when I noticed something. On the other side of the river, four deer entered the picture. With the camera and lens I had just secured in the trunk, I would've gotten some great shots. I snapped a few shots with the wide angle and then got my exercise by running to the car and retrieving the equipment and running back up the hill. You guessed it, the deer were history!
The pictures turned out well. It was an old bridge, with character, that had been passed by when a new bridge had been constructed to replace it. The bridge was overgrown with Kudzu and had substantial trees growing on it. It was time well spent.
Next back on the road to head to Williamston, South Carolina in Anderson County. I was told that there was an interesting covered bridge behind the city park. This bridge is over a small river and is only for pedestrian traffic. That photo shoot went well but the only animal excitement was dog that ran across the bridge at top speed chasing a squirrel on the other side. The squirrel got away.
ASMP - American Society of Media Photographers meeting all afternoon...
The afternoon was entirely different than the morning. The South Carolina ASMP had a seminar at the BMW Zentrum in Greer, SC and was attended by people from Georgia, North and South Carolina. The subject was 'Creative Tools and Techniques for the Digital Photographer' presented by Jim DiVitale.
Jim just completed a tour of Canada. He did this seminar and lectured in all fifteen major cities. He belongs to the 'Explorers of Light' organization and the tour was highly subsidized by Canon. I say subsidized because attendees had to pay to attend but it was more reasonable because Canon had picked up the tab for Jim's traveling expenses, etc.
I won't, especially at this time, go over all that was discussed and that I learned but suffice it to say, it was time well spent. I had thought that if I could come out of there with three or four areas of knowledge that would be useful to me in my work, it would be time well spent. Well, the vast majority of the four hours was VERY useful. I was glad that I had attended. Jim's wife works as a wedding photographer so there were even good tips for working in that setting.
What I did find especially curious was who did and didn't attend. I've been shooting games constantly for about seven years and know many of the photographers by organization and often by name. Of the twenty-six in this seminar, guess how many I knew? None. Not one even worked for a South Carolina newspaper.
Induction of new members into South Carolina Athletic Hall of Fame...
Next was the drive from Duncan, South Carolina to Columbia, South Carolina to cover the induction of eight new members into the Hall of Fame. It was a great experience that I thoroughly enjoyed. Some of it was like working a 'Wedding Reception' with the mingling of the people and some of it was similar to a 'Rehearsal Dinner' and then finally it was similar to various press conferences. Regardless it was a fun and educational assignment to listen to the stories of various people over the last fifty to sixty years.
Tonight it's back to High School ball...
The game I'm covering tonight is Spartanburg at Greenwood. So I've got all the camera gear ready, now got to get out the door and make it happen!
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Paul Collins. Paul has been a GamecockCentral photographer since 2005, with a focus on Gamecock football, men's basketball and baseball. He may be reached by email at paul(at)gamecockcentral.com. Replace (at) with @.