How ya doin' out there, sports fans? I'm freezing my rear end down here on the field...
Image by Ed Yourdon
Note: this photo was published in a Feb 2, 2011 The Atlantic blog titled "Can Men and Women Watch Sports Together?"
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In mid-October, I attended my second professional football game, with a photographer's press pass that let me get down on the field to photograph players, referees, cheerleaders, other photographers, fans in the stand, and anyone else who looked interesting. (My first such game was a pre-season contest between the New York Jets and Philadelphia Eagles, which you can see by clicking here.)
I learned some lessons from photographing the Jets-Eagles game, and I showed up this time better prepared, and with some new equipment. It was great having the Nikon D700 with the capability of shooting at ISO 6400; but the 2X extender that turned my 70-300mm FX lens into a 140-600 lens seemed incapable of focusing automatically; I finally gave up and removed it. Overall, probably the best improvement came from the monopod that I dragged along on the trip; it greatly improved the stability of long shots with a telephoto. Ironically, it may also have created the illusion that I was a professional photographer, for the "real" professional photographers (who had studiously ignored me during the previous game) actually chatted with me a couple of times. I didn't have any of the bazooka-sized monster-telephoto lenses they had, but maybe they thought I wasn't a completely unprepared hobbyist...
Anyway, I shot the first half of the game with the D700 and the 70-300mm zoom lens by itself; and I shot the second half of the game with my older D300, whose half-frame body turned the 70-300mm zoom into a 105-450mm zoom. The stadium was sufficiently well lit that I could shoot at a reasonably high speed (typically 1/640 second) without having to go above ISO 3200 most of the time.
But technical details aside, this game was very much like the last one: I was down on the field, surrounded by 76,000 roaring fans who made conversation virtually impossible. I'm accustomed to watching most sports on television these days, with magical close-up shots provided by TV cameras like the very ones I saw strategically placed around tonight's football game; and when I'm befuddled by something complex or unexpected in whatever I'm watching, I know I can always depend on multiple instant replays (from various angles) and the incisive commentary from a TV sports anchor who knows far more about the players, the rules, and the details than I ever will.
Down on the field, all I could do was try my best to follow the action, and shoot anything that looked interesting. It usually (though not always) started with a snap to the quarterback -- but it was sometimes on the other side of the field, or down at the other end of the field. Like the other photographers, I scurried back and forth from one end of the field to the other to be as close to the action as possible ... but in many cases, all I ended up with was a picture of a tangle of bodies, and no clear idea of what had just happened.
After watching the Flickr statistics associated with my previous Jets-Eagles set, I was amused to see that the most popular photos were those of the cheerleaders ... so I included about 5 photos of the cheerleaders in this set. (And for whatever it's worth, I certainly did not envy them in their skimpy uniforms, while they did their best to cope with the 45-degree weather, and the chilly wind that whipped across the field.) I also found the fans interesting and occasionally picturesque, so you'll find about 10 fan-related pictures in this set.
Since I was on the field through the generosity and permission of the New York Jets, I naturally rooted for them to win. But they played pretty sloppily, and their rookie quarterback (Mark Sanchez, whose #6 jersey appears prominently in some of the photos) was intercepted five times. The regulation game finished in a 13-13 tie, so the game went into overtime ... and I'm such a dummy about football that I didn't even realize that it was a sudden death overtime. But when the Buffalo Bills kicked a three point field goal with 2:44 remaining in the overtime period, and all of the players immediately walked off the field, I quickly figured out what was happening...
Anyway, I took a little over 1,200 images and whittled it down to 60 "keepers" that I think you'll enjoy looking at. Another 200 had to be deleted immediately because they were out of focus, or because a referee decided to run in front of my camera just as I was pushing the shutter button ... but I've still got roughly 940 images of jumbled piles of football players that will probably continue to sit on my computer until I run out of space on my hard disk. C'est la vie...
Floating Elemental
Image by darkwood67
Created for The Knight and his Princess - special photo contest
Original image by haikus ~ Sabine
model by Lisajen-stock
I don't like flashy awards, since they're mostly given because of an obligation to stupid group rules. If you got something to say, say it in your own words and not by copying and pasting. I don't follow such rules, so if you have the sweaper running, don't even bother to invite me please. As of now the flashy awards will be removed, no offence!
Enter Jonny's Par-tay DoodleFest 2008!
Image by jonny goldstein
The deadline is swiftly approaching to get your doodle in for DoodleFest2008! Get your doodle to Jonny Goldstein by Monday, June 30, Midnight, Eastern time for the chance to win a) glory, b) a MIMOBOT USB collectible Boba Fett flash drive and c) the winning doodle will be included in the Jonny's Par-tay promo for the next two months!
Here are the rules:
1) Draw a doodle that has the words "Jonny's Par-tay" in it. It can be on paper any surface or it can be done using a computer.
2) Upload the image to flickr (or just send me an image attachment)
3) Send jonny the link jonny(dot)goldstein@gmail.com
4) You can submit as many doodles as you like.
We are lucky to have a the hilarious and talented South African artist Roy Blumenthal as our contest judge. The creator of that doodle will win the prizes specified above. Of course the main thing is having fun and sharing your own brand of creativiity, Share your doodle magic with the rest of the Par-tay at DoodleFest '08!
Thanks for playing!
--Jonny
Note: The doodle above was created by Alex Choo all the way from Malaysia! If he can do it, so can you!
FAQ:
Q: Do I need to draw an actual picture that actually looks like something?
A: No! You can draw scribbles, geometric patterns, whatever, as long as your doodle contains the words "Jonny's Par-tay"
Q: Do I have to upload my photo to Flickr?
A: Nope. You can upload it to anywhere on the web and send Jonny a link OR just send the image as an attachment to jonny(dot)goldstein@gmail.com
Q: What if I am insecure about my doodling skills? How do I summon up the courage to be part of DoodleFest 2008?
A: Take a deep breath. Now exhale. Now take a piece of paper and write the words "Jonny's Par-tay" on it. Then proceed to start moving your pen/pencil/crayon/marker in random directions as you keep breathing. Inhale. Exhale. Keep doing this for five minutes. Take a picture of the doodle and upload it to the web and send the link to jonny(dot)goldstein@gmail.com. Or just send the image as an attachment. Congrats, you have overcome your fear of doodling! Thanks for being part of DoodleFest 2008!
Shoot Wibaut Photo Safari - Dwarsweb.nl
Image by Stewart Leiwakabessy
Today I participated in the Shoot Wibaut Photo Contest. We had to apply for a specific neighbourhood where we would be sent out to shoot photos. The rules were strict:
a) no postprocessing allowed (!!!!!)
b) 8 photos only
c) JPG only
and some more.
Have a seat!
Image by swisscan
This photo is dedicated to the PritzkerArchitecturePrizeOnFlickr group!
I decided to concentrate all my volunteer work just for one group, the one that I always loved the most, the PritzkerArchitecture group!
I encourage you all to have a seat and watch the show, it is not clear yet, what will be on stage, but there will be changes! We already started with a contest on skyscrapers and a new photo of the month!
The rules have been simplified as well.
I encourage you to stand up and participate, comment on photos, leave constructive critic, participate in the threads, make suggestions, what you would like to see in the group!
Do you want to help out backstage, become a moderator or administrator? Please let me know!
Last but not least, thanks to all my Flickr friends and all the members of this group who make the PritzkerArchitecture group so great! Let's keep the quality high and make the group more interactive!
www.flickr.com/groups/pritzkerprize/
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