Sports
Bowling with Craig
Earlier this week, I went on a feature hunt. The Special Olympics had a tournament in town, so I went to the bowling alley and met Craig and his mother, Bonnie. I spent a few hours hanging out and it was a joy to spend the afternoon with them.
Craig Wilson celebrates after bowling a strike late in his third game during the Special Olympics doubles bowling Oct. 20, 2011 at Sunrise Lanes.
Craig and Bonnie watch as other bowlers compete.
Fools-ball
The Snake River Rattlers prepare to take the field before their game against the Midwest Oliers Oct. 14, 2011 at Midwest School.
Back in the Pool
After a brief hiatus, I’ve started shooting high school sports again. It’s a love/hate relationship, but mostly love.
Kelly Walsh senior Logan Smith stretches her arms out before competing in the Girls’ 50-meter Freestyle during a meet between the Trojans, Natrona County and Cheyenne East Sept. 16, 2011 at Kelly Walsh High School.
Swimmers dive off the platform at the start of the Girls’ 200-meter Freestyle Relay.
GoPro at the Rodeo
I attached a GoPro to a Wild Horse Racer earlier this week during the Central Wyoming Rodeo. Basically three guys try to saddle a wild horse and ride it. Trust me, it’s harder than it looks.
The Rodeo
The College National Finals Rodeo started this week in Casper. Yesterday I managed to make a frame after getting my press pass.
Two Views of On Deck
In ten months here at the Tribune, I’ve shot more sports than I even imagined. Don’t get me wrong – I love sports, but sometimes it can feel like I’ve been shooting the same thing over and over again and it’s a challenge to see something different or in a new way.
I try to use the “five points of view” exercise I learned while in school to liven things up. (Basically, this involves shooting the same subject from five different perspectives.)
Yesterday while covering softball, I saw this view of a batter warming up on deck while walking across the stands:
Later, with the game decidely in hand (Missouri won, 10-0) I tried thinking of other ways to shoot the batters – maybe shooting the batter on deck and in the batter’s box from the same angle as before – and while resting along the fence trying to figure it out, I saw this:
Best Seats in the House
Because really, what’s better than driving your seat around?
From the Women’s Big 12 Golf Championships last weekend here in Columbia. I always hate shooting golf; it reminds me how much I’d rather be playing.
Missouri’s Hannah Lovelock walks back to her ball after surveying the green as spectators watch near the 18th hole during the Women’s Big 12 Golf Championships Apr. 23, 2011 at Old Hawthorne.
The Ol’ Ball Game
I can’t remember a time when I wasn’t a fan of baseball. I started playing at age 5 and didn’t stop until high school. I was never the best player on the team, but I always loved the game.
Certain things about playing stick out: the smell of the grass, the way the dirt would stick into my palms when sliding into second base, the clicking of cleats in the dugout. Whenever I get the chance to photograph it, I always try to remember what the game was like when I was a kid.
Earlier this week in Boonville, I had the chance to shoot a game at a really old school park. It reminded me of the makeshift diamond near my dad’s home in New York where I played on lazy summer nights growing up. (Just for fun, I google mapped the ol’ park to see if it was still there. It is.)
The Loss
It was a short tourney stay for the Tigers this year. Having never been in a locker room following a loss in the NCAA Tournament, I can safely say that it sucks.
Dead quiet. Tears. Kids that were joking with you the day before can’t even stand to look at you. It wasn’t the highlight of my evening.
Missouri guard Michael Dixon hides his head in the locker room following the Tigers’ 78-63 loss to the Cincinnati Bearcats during the second round of the NCAA Men’s Basketball Championship at the Verizon Center in Washington, D.C.
After the Fall
Call me a homer (which I’m not) but I like Kim English. He may not be the best player on the court this season, but he plays like he loves the game, and he isn’t afraid to sacrifice his body.
Missouri guard Kim English grimaces after being knocked to the court during the second half of the Tigers’ 86-71 loss to the Texas A&M Aggies in the quarterfinals of the Big 12 Men’s Basketball Championship Mar. 10, 2011 at the Sprint Center in Kansas City, Mo.