The Sports Shooter

Its fall – and that means high school sports.  I do a little freelance photography for the Progress-Times, our local weekly newspaper, and most of the work is of high school sports.  Doing this kind of freelance shooting won’t pay many bills, but its fun and keeps me out of the bars.

In Texas, it is against the law to play high school football at any other time than Friday night.  (That’s why both the book and the movie are titled “Friday Night Lights.”)  Okay – that’s not totally true –local school districts that have more than one high school may have more than one school using the football stadium, but Thursday night games are rare.

Friday nights usually finds me at a football game.  There are four schools in the newspaper’s readership area, so I have some variety and work at three different stadiums.

(As always, be sure to click on each photo to see a larger version.)

My Vietnamese friends may be saying “That’s not football – what are they playing?”  This is American football – what you call football is called soccer in America.  To the best of my knowledge, American football is only played in Canada and a few schools in Mexico.  There was a league in Europe, but it folded.

What makes this so much fun is that I am right down on the field where the game is played – and I get in free because I am a member of “the press.”  Even the coaches don’t mess with me – they want their team’s pictures in the paper.  (I do try to stay out of the way, though – its their game, not mine.)  The downside is that its hot down there on the field – and this old man sweats almost as much as the hard working players sweat.  (Thanx for the pix, Mike.)

Access to the playing field offers the chance to get some good shots.  The lights in high school stadiums are located at the sides of the field – none on the ends – which means that any shot taken inside the end zone is going to be in shadow.  Still – the only way I could have gotten this shot was to be just outside the end zone.  By the way  -you tell me whether this was an incomplete pass or pass interference.

As you can see on my mug shot above, I use a fairly long lens – it was the New Toy  mentioned back in June.  Of course, it obviously lets me get closer to the action, but the best benefit of a long telephoto lens is that the background is blurred and the subject stands out from the rest of the photo.  When I do my part, the camera and the lens do theirs – and the editor buys another photo.

The girls are not left out.  Fall is also the time for volleyball.  As I have mentioned before, I enjoy watching girl’s sports more than the boys – the girls seem to be having a lot more fun than the boys, and I seldom see them showboat like the boys.  That doesn’t mean there aren’t some very skilled athletes – some are awesome.  This young lady could jump out of the gym.

However, skilled as she is, I have my doubts this hard-hitter will want this photo shown to her prom date.  Through out the game, she had a “Michael Jordan” look as she usually stuck her tongue out just before she hit the ball.

There is no college football around here – and that’s okay with me.  I’d rather watch the kids play anyway.  Fall is a great time for a high school sports shooter.

Comments

[Sam]

The first time I ever watched the American Football was way back in Thanksgivings of 1975, when my sponsor inviting us over for dinner and watch the "tradition" TV show. Back then I thought the game must has been "fixed", because I saw the team can go up & down the first 99 yards so easily then it take forever to get inside the last 1 yard!
That was almost 32 yrs ago, and I learned quite a lot about American' sports since then. Nowadays, I like to watch Baseball more than Football, except when it get into
the playoff season and my local team was in the contention. Otherwise, I rather watch the ever boring History channel instead.:-)

Sam

[Brian Haworth]

Doug,

I still owe you an email reply to your response to my first question about your camera ( doh...anyone still with us?).

Suffice to say I'll follow up on that if I may, privately, to save space here. You are getting really good. Simple as that. So is Ourmaninhanoi ...now back home in Newcastle ( think you guys mutually respect...) - dramatically better crafting of shots, great confidence in the camera...really good shots!

I feel that being relieved of the cost burden of 35mm film rolls, but with compensatory near-35mm output / print quality, then the crash n' burn mentality does and should kick in.

Take a hundred, crop six, love two, sell one. But, if one doesn't have the eye in the first place...doesn't matter.

You do. Be nicely proud. You're really good.

best to OMGB and touch your mum for us :)

brian & mino

[Tom Murray]

I love the light blue and white uniforms. I bet the kids in that school are so proud of their unique look. Football is big in FLA where my PH. D. (USF)school and current employer (UCF) are both pushing past traditional powerhouses UF, FSU and Miami. It was said last week that Florida has over 400 division 1 scholarships for football each year, AMAZING.

[Russ]

Awesome photos! Face guarding? I didn't tell you that as soon as Bruce and I arrived in Miller S. Dakota for dove season, I was instructed to head for the National Guard Armory for a high school volleyball match in which Brittany was playing in. I've known her since she could shoot a BB gun and she requested my presence when she heard I would be in town. I was honored to get the invite and it was a whole lot of fun to watch. It was a pretty good crowd for a hot Tuesday night. In a town of 1,000 what else are you going to do in South Dakota ... that's legal.