Commencement 2009

I always look forward to shooting commencement now. It's brings me back to my days as a newspaper photojournalist because I'm shooting a real event where there is usually a lot going on. But I have to admit I got myself into a weird funk on the first day of commencement this year. Everything I shot felt like it was the same reaction, the same hand wave, the same smile. I didn't find anything different! I kept trying to find a new shot or a new angle but nothing was working. I went home a little frustrated on Friday and started asking myself if I should just go for the best smiles and waves to the crowd when Saturday rolled around, ... because it seemed obvious to me at that moment that I all I was doing was wasting time by waiting for a different shot or moment to catch my eye. When Saturday's commencement started I didn't know how I was going to shoot, (until I got into my "shooting mode" as people call it). But after taking a deep breath I told myself... "I can't just go for the normal shot!" I couldn't let myself do it. ... and as luck would have it... I took my two favorite shots within 60 seconds of each other. After waiting for almost 10 minutes for a girl to look in the direction I was hoping for... I ran into another great moment when I started walking downstairs. I saw two students playing cards together on the steps... I couldn't have set it up any better even if I had tried. After I got these shots... I let out a huge sigh of relief and walked away with some satisfaction for the first time in awhile.

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Cardinals vs. Giants

Here are a couple of shots from the Cardinals Giants game yesterday. Albert Pujols hit a couple of home runs in the to put the game out of reach for the Giants.

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Promise Scholar Portrait

Just posting a photo from an early morning photo shoot I did the other day featuring one of our Promise Scholars on campus. We're highlighting a few students from the group to run as the cover story which will come out in our alumni magazine later this year. This was my favorite photo of the day with Terrance who was very easy to work with. I decided to take him out to to a church based on something I read in the story. At one point when Terrance and his family were going through some tough times they were forced to sleep in their car to make it through the night. They primarily parked in the safest areas they could find... which were usually in the back of a church parking lot. When I told Terrance about the photo idea he had no problems with taking the photo. I think it turned out pretty well.

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The David Wright Show

I couldn't believe how good this guy played during the two games I shot of the Mets-Giants series over the weekend. I saw him steal four bases in one game while driving in the winning run in the ninth (later scoring as seen in the picture below which was on USA Today's web-page)... and then saw him get a hit and draw a couple of walks in the other one. It was fun for me to watch but I'm sure the Giants didn't enjoy it too much considering they lost 3 of 4 games to the Mets in the series.

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Class Field Trip

I had the opportunity to go on a class field trip to the middle of nowhere recently. One of my favorite professors on campus is Stuart Wooley who mainly teaches courses in botany. Wooley, who is seen carrying his gear in the bottom photo, is always up for having me come to his classes.. and he is just a real down to earth guy who is super passionate about what he does. I highly recommend that students sign up for his courses if they're at all interested in learning everything there is to know about plants. As for the class shoot... well, the funniest part of the day was going on the trip itself though. I guess I was expecting to jump in a state car or van, but after standing around with some of the students I finally caught on that certain students had volunteered to drive. Next thing I know I was riding out with three students I'd never met over dirt roads and fields. To make a long story short, let's just say I enjoyed all of the jokes they were making in the car... especially on the way back. I gotta say working with students so often definitely keeps me feeling young :)

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Dodgers vs. Giants

Here are a few shots from a Giants-Dodgers game I shot last month. Always fun to get something a little different of Lincecum, including one of him coming on deck to hit.

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