Evil.

So i got a call from my boss an hour and a half before my shift starts. Turns out that today is the day that they're going to hear the guilty plea of serial killer Gary Michael Hilton for the murder of Meredith Emerson. He showed no emotion except for looking down once. He offered no remorse.



He is an absolute scumbag and the judge wanted to execute him right there on the spot. (I don't think anyone would have disagreed with it.) The judge allowed two TV cameras in the jury box but none of us 4 photographer were allowed anywhere near that. Maybe it had something to do with the 3 GWC's (guy with cameras) in the gallery as well.

All four of us got bad shots in the courtroom; we were blocked by other people and were in a bad spot against the wall. Secuity was very tight. The swat team was out and had snipers on rooftops, which amused us.



And in the end, the local Sheriffs ran him from the courthouse, up a set of stairs and to an awaiting cop car.

Spot News out the Window

So I was getting ready to walk out of the office when i look out the window and see the ACC Police pulling these two gentlemen out of their car right in front of our office. So i sprinted down there and go so-so spot news photos, especially knowing what i saw from my window. Had i had my camera actually with me, rather than in the car, i should have gotten something better.

These two gentlemen were riding around in a green Lincoln that was BOLO'd as being stolen the night before.

Hoops. Hoops. Hoops.

After looking at many people's work, i'm really wanting H.S. Hoops to be in black and white but strobed. I just like the contrasts and the feel of the photos. There's some serious warmth in the photos, or thats how i look at them.

Anyways, this was my 2nd take on H.S. basketball and again its mainly the ladies. Made for good photos.

Globe-al Warming.....

I was asked by the BOSS (big boss, not little boss) to do a simple illustration of global warming. He wanted to do a play on words and literally have a globe being warmed, kind of looking like Kenny in South Park.

Tech Specs - Three white lightnings. Softbox Camera right, 30 degree grid left (to fill in some shadows) and a rimlight from behind. And a PITFA smoke machine that doesnt always want to work.

I took the illustration a step farther and tried to morph it to our model's face.

Everyone who's seen it finds it disturbing in one form or another, tho my boss and the BOSS liked it. Global warming should be disturbing i suppose.

Of course this was on "The Day of The Portraits" where i did this, a business portrait and the Hangin' With that's below.

Random Equipment Complaining....

So in their infinite wisdom, Nikon has come out with a full-frame sensor camera that does incredible things in the dark but also costs $5000. No noise at ISO 3200, minimal noise at 6400 and 12,500. Finally we have a tool that is slightly better than Canon. Its taken 8 years but finally, its there.

The problem is, its $5G. Five large. Over ha;f my established credit limit. Takes amazing pictures that blow away anything else on the market. Its just expensive. And my employer can't afford them. Heck, our employer has us running around with 10 year old 17-35s and 80-200s. Its nice and i'm a big believer in making do with what you have and that a camera is just an extention of yoru own creativity but %$@# I'd really like to be able to compete on even ground with the kids coming out of college that only have a Canon 5D and a 28-70. Heck, i've got a 24-85 f/2.8-4 (its nice, really) but hey, a Canon kid drops $3500 and they get a Nice 5D (full frame camera) and a 28-70 while to get the same in Nikon, you're dropping $6800. Thats pretty much twice the price.

Our industry keeps getting the most out of people for the least amount of money. Its the New American Way (unintentional Murphys reference), i suppose. We nearly had layoffs at our paper and our editor did a little raindance and saved everyones jobs. When i tell people what i make, they're shocked given the effort i put in. (I take that as a compliment) I guess with the continuing desire for profit margins by my employers, i shouldn't be shocked by getting the short end of the stick. I suppose that's my the Murphy's music appeals to me. I just want to get paid for somewhere close to the effort i put into it.

So what are the odds of actually getting updated equipment? Slim. There's a chance, because it comes out of another budget. Really. I make do with my stuff and i supplement it with my own stuff. Lightstands, lenses, pocket wizards, softboxes and all the other sundry equipment. And i'll continue to make do. I'd just be doing much easier if my pay went up.

Hangin With.....

Athens Academy Spartans senior Claire McDonald on Wednesday, January 23, 2008.

Every Friday our Sports section runs a feature called "Hangin With" wherein they have a silly-ish Q&A with a high school athlete. They want a portrait that's a little more unusual or goofy or silly or something that shows some personality. I ran out of creativity so i went for the multiple-exposure trick and i think it works well.

Post 71: UGA vs Arkansas Men's Hoops

Billy Humphreys goes up for a layup.

Well its a heck of a Tuesday. I'm 0-for-2 on breaking/spot news today. But here's photos of this weekend's men's game. I went with 3 remotes - one backboard, one floor and one pole one that i forgot to triple-check the focus. Hense 400 out of focus remote shots... not like thats the first time i've done that.



Arkansas' Steven Hill blocks the shot of Georgia's Jeremy Price.



Georgia's Chris Barnes gets trapped in the corner.



Dave Bliss goes for a layup.



Billy Humphreys celebrates a three-point-shot.

Happy Trails, Marc Orell

Today is was announced that Dropkick Murphys' guitarist Marc Orell is leaving the band.

I've had the privilege of photographing DKM twice and Marc is one of the most high-energy musicians I've ever gotten the chance to be around, let alone photograph. I wish him luck and the photos just wont be the same without him.

Womens Hoops and Happy Remotes

Well sports fans thats the same play from two different cameras, one hand-held and one remote. Looks nasty either way.

Georgia's Angel Robinson (33 in white) gets her hand in the face of Alabama's Camilla Blands as they scrap for a rebound as the Lady Bulldogs beat Alabama 71-53 in Athens on January 20, 2008.

So we went for two remotes. A 17-35 by the press table (there was TV so under the basket just wasn't realistic) and a pole remote, as there will be NO around the rim action so a backboard one is pointless. In an effort to get consistant color out of ambient light, i preset the white balance on all my cameras off the same white towel the other day. I can't stress enough how important setting the white balance is when you're shooting ambient inside an arena. It takes 30 seconds per camera, and yea you could miss a Tom Brady Touchdown in that amount of time but really... preset the stuff and that will make you a much happier photographer in the end and much less to correct later.

Georgia played a very sloppy 71-53 victory. They had stretches of bad/not rebounding and dumb turnovers. Anyways, here's some photos.

Tubariffic

Well, I figure someday that public high schools will find a way to work well with the press, what with their desire to have media releases and other silly paperwork on file before you even bring a camera into the school. In short, its this: it's not my responsibility nor my news gathering organization's responsibility to know whether or not the subjects of documentary photography in a public school have all of your required paperwork taken care of.



So after some skillful negotiating, I ended up going for some environmental portraits of the subject who is quite the tuba player. I lit it with two flashes, one acting as a fill and one acting as a rimlight and just asked him to play his tuba. I think the shots ended up better than him playing in band class.

Disney Trip 2008.

Main Street USA reflects in a christmas ornament.

So i took a brief vacation to Disney World. I'll spare the ugly details suffice that it was the worst vacation ever, highlighted by a 30-minute response time to a smoke-alarm activation. Anyone who has covered spot news or works in or around firefighters will tell you that a hotel room can be gutted in under 10 minutes.

Highlights: Champagne on the beach and taking a business phone call right after getting off of "Its a Small World."

I mainly stayed away from the camera, except for a few pictures here.



A dancer twirls two flaming batons.




Dancers dance under a blacklight.

Last Post before vacation.....

Its time for a much-earned vacation. Aside from a few days off around Thanksgiving, I've been going non-stop since.... well since i moved here. My last vacation was... Boston. Murphys. I think that should become a tradition.

Alright, so this is the last post for about a week. I will be away from a computer and off in sunny Orlando, immersing myself in the zen of relaxation and trying to get away from the world. So for those trying to reach me, email won't work starting Friday morning.

Last night i photographed Girls basketball. I was going for a different look. And this is what we have.

Weather features

Air bubbles are frozen on a leaf.

We've had some crazy weather here in the past week. Lots of rain, dense fog and then some very cold (for Georgia) weather.

So i went out and tried to make a few photos.




Rain explodes like fireworks as they fall against ornamental stone.





(Ed. Note. - I really hate birds. Really. I hate bird pictures. But there was something so Hitchcoch like when i saw this seen, i had to shoot it.)