Wednesday, March 26, 2008

Seeing Gold

Today was quite the ridiculous roller coaster of events. It began with a nearly two hour car ride on a packed solid I-25 en route to Aurora. But it didn't matter. I was seeing gold.

Collegian reporter Kaeli West and myself were meeting 6-time Olympic Gold Medalist in Swimming (50m Free, 100m B-fly, 4x100m Freestyle relay (2x), 4x100m Medley relay(2x)) for an interview and photo shoot at the Aurora Public Library.

And it was a BLAST! Amy was quite possibly one of the most amazing people I've ever met, a lively, energetic woman with funny stories galore and a wicked sense of humor. I had some really kinda cool ideas for photos, but unfortunately she didn't have any of her swim gear or medals with her, so I settled for a less-than-original way of photographing her.

The remainder of the day was spent in class, shooting a feature photo, and doing a pair of annoyingly difficult to set up photo illustrations, one for the magazine and the other for our A&E issue tomorrow. Alright, so maybe they weren't that bad to set up, but I typically don't do those kinds of things, and it shows in the results.

I was planning on writing a longer, more in-depth post, particularly on our interview/photo shoot with Van Dyken, but unfortunately tomorrow's another early, long day and so I'm thinkin' it's bedtime. 'Til next time.

Quote for the Day: "The only time I've seen him run fast was when i pressed 'fast forward' on the VCR!" -Amy Van Dyken, on a banter session with former radio co-host Charles Barkley
Song for the Day: "Bad Boys" -Inner Circle
Word for the Day: Gold Medal - a medal, traditionally of gold or gold color, awarded to a person or team finishing first in a competition, meet, or tournament; championship medal.

Sunday, March 9, 2008

As Quickly as it Began...


As quickly as it began, Sports Shooter Academy V is over. And I must say, I couldn't have been more pleased with how it went down.

I learned a lot from just being in a new environment and working with some of the best photographers and the best gear around.

Donald Miralle led an underwater photo class, utilizing thousand-dollar+ underwater housings by AquaTech. I shot baseball with a 600mm f/4L lens, softball with a 400mm f/2.8L, and set up multiple remotes slaved to a single hardwired trigger at basketball.

But the gear wasn't everything.

What I think I took away from the Academy more than anything else was a heightened sense of what I'm doing and why I'm doing it. Composition, lighting, angles, backgrounds, the works. It really made you think: "What am I looking for? Why? What can I accomplish by it?"

Hopefully those lessons are powerful enough ones I can take home with me and really utilize more fully in my daily work. That, and I am really happy about all the contacts I made in the industry, incredibly useful resources for critiques.

Awards? Great, my "team" of Justin Edmonds, Michael Sasser (both of DU) and myself won an award. Big deal. The efficiency and importance of teamwork was what really made the whole workshop possible. Just ask Bert Hanashiro, he attributes the whole workshop to teamwork.

Thanks to everyone at SSAV for the great experience. Bert Hanashiro, Jordan Murph, Wally Skalij, Donald Miralle, Susanica Tam, Crystal Chatham, Myung Chun, Matt Brown, Sean Haffey, Michael Goulding. My "teammates" (Team Colorado) Justin and Michael. Good times all!

Quote for the Day: "See better, shoot better" -SSAV Motto
Song for the Day: "Sexy Love" -NeYo
Word for the Day: Legacy - anything handed down from the past, as from an ancestor or predecessor

Friday, March 7, 2008

SSA V - Day One


SportsShooter Academy has officially begun.

The weather has been beautiful here in Orange County, nothing short of phenomenal. Everything seems to be cooperating with us, so far.

It's intimidating to be around so many talented photographers, but the experience of meeting some of my favorite photographers have been sobering.

They're human, too.

It's so easy to forget that everybody has a face, a voice, a personality, when all you have to go by is a name and some pictures on a website. It's kinda cool, actually.

So far I've had the opportunity to work with some of the best in the business, and it's exciting to see the kinds of resources they have available to them. It's also interesting to really watch and get a feel for the kinds of ideas and things they look for just come to them like nothing.

I'm a bit of a pushover when it comes to portraits, so don't be surprised if you see a lot of them in my takes from SSAV because I could use all the practice I can get. Ditto with remotes.

For a lot more photos and probably more regular updates (every night, I'd guess), visit my Flickr site: http://www.flickr.com/photos/biwamoto/

Quote for the Day:
Me: "I could get used to this"
Robert Hanashiro, USA Today and SSA Founder: "Let's see... A beautiful Olympic volleyball player for a model and a USA Today photographer for an assistant... You could get used to this...."
Song for the Day: "Never Ending Story" -DJ ACDC
Word for the Day: Stunning - of striking beauty or excellence

Tuesday, March 4, 2008

California Promises



Giving y'all a midnight update with only 8 hours between myself and that land of dreams and promises they call California. Helloooo warm weather, and good riddance snow!

I'm a mixture of excitement, nervousness, exhaustion and confusion. And I'm loving every minute of it.

But I haven't updated in a while, so here's what you may have missed:

- Got into a telephone argument with a CSU athletics Media Relations director. Bad Idea. Result: Banned from Moby Arena for the year.

- Had a meeting with the CSU athletics Media Relations directors. Good Idea. Result: Moby Arena credentials reinstated.

- Forsberg and Foote are back. Avs are winning games. Life is good.

- It was announced I won a pair of SPJ Region 9 Mark of Excellence Awards. Not quite sure what that means, but it's nice to know someone likes what I'm doing. No word yet on what place they grabbed in their respective categories, that has to wait til Apr. 12.

- Gone to California for SSA V (Sports Shooter Academy) to work with some of the best in the industry, including Donald Miralle (Getty) and Wally Skalij (L.A. Times).

Tune in for more updates from sunny California, I'll be sure to throw a few photos up once I get something interesting!

P.S. Congratulations to Collegian Visual Editor Aaron Montoya for being hired as the 2008-09 Collegian Editor-in-Chief.

Quote for the Day: "Who's scruffy looking?" -Han Solo
Song for the Day: "California Dreamin'" - DJ Sammy
Word for the Day: Insomnia- inability to obtain sufficient sleep; difficulty in falling or staying asleep; sleeplessness.