Blog

Above the Rim

Fri, 5 Mar 2010 20:25:32 -0700

Features can be a grind to hunt down. But there are days when the photo is just there.

After shooting a basketball practice session for a team heading to the state tournament in Thoreau, I packed it up and began to drive back to the freeway.

On the way out of the high school, there was a kid taking passes from teammates in an unorthodox manor. I parked the car and ran out to grab it. The light was awful and he jumped down after I got two or three frames, but not something you see every day.

It’s not clear if goal tending was called on the play.

Welcome home

Fri, 5 Feb 2010 14:51:42 -0700

A decade back after I had just graduated from high school, I was a student at a technical school in Wyoming for my first career as a automotive technician. We got snow up there. Lots of it. But it was the endless days of subzero temperatures and punishing winds that got to me. There comes a point to walking out in -40 degree weather just isn’t fun.

Here in Gallup it gets chilly some days, but never to a punishing degree. However, this year, the snow just can’t stop falling. As I said about Wyoming, the snow never bothers me. And though here it never drops to -45, there is no shortage of mud.

It’s a petty complaint, but when most of my shoes are nubuck leather, save a pair of beaters and some rough hikers, its frustrating to not to be able to wear the shoes that feel and fit the best without outright ruin. I’m a sun lover, tropical or desert, but this winter has been a perpetual infinity of snow, mud and ice.

Bring on Global Warming.

Perpetual infinity

Wed, 3 Feb 2010 18:05:39 -0700

New School Needed!

Wed, 27 Jan 2010 17:23:25 -0700

Cubero Elementary is made up of 15 buildings. Twelve of them are portables. Many times when you go to an assignment, you never know how much content will be part of the photos, and how much will come down to fancy footwork to sell an idea. But there are always times you get there and find out there is a real story to tell here.

Many people take their schools for granted. I know just in the last ten years or so, there have been dozens of new or refurbished schools of all levels built around the state. But out in small Cubero, they really make do with the majority of classes being portables.

A new building doesn’t always translate into a better education, in any walk of life, appearances can be fleeting. However, it is good to note, nobody likes to read, write and listen all day in a tiny room with a few fluorescent lights and one tiny window.

Winter ain’t going anywhere

Thu, 21 Jan 2010 17:30:14 -0700

Just as I was saying, it looked like winter would be on the run, we got hit. Big time. Over two days, depending on what part of the county, we got several feet of snow.

My car, god bless it, was near completely buried in the driveway. While my Bridgestone Pole Positions are making mince meat of the road conditions, it can still be dicey out there on the longer drives.

Well, I like snow and I like winter. But when you have to work or get someplace, seriously, it can be a pain in the ass.

Rivalries

Fri, 8 Jan 2010 22:42:47 -0700

Gallup High School was packed to the brim. Local rival Window Rock and Gallup were due to face off in a semi-final tourney match and there was many on hand for the event.

Because Friday is a early deadline deal for us, I typically shoot the first half and run back to the office. To make sure I got enough coverage, I just wired in both our heavy batteries to the roof strobes on both end and just did laps around the court to get as many angles as possible.

The game was a blow out. Gallup steamrolled Window Rock, which is a shame, because the Scouts have a solid group of guys. But, there can be only one at the end.

Microcosm

Mon, 4 Jan 2010 22:40:32 -0700

I haven’t had much to write about. Long hours of baskeball tournaments on the horizon, however when weather and snow features have kind of all been done, there is no harm i pulling out the macro lens.

Things always get more interesting the closer you get.

Diné New Year

Thu, 31 Dec 2009 21:56:03 -0700

The shoe game, they call it.

I had no idea what was going on, but they were having a good time, and bar none, the music they were singing, no matter I know not a word of Diné, was pretty awesome stuff.

Happy New Year.

Game face

Fri, 18 Dec 2009 22:00:42 -0700

Tohatchi is a small town about 20 or so miles north of Gallup. But don’t let the quiet veneer fool you. The Tohatchi Cougar High School basketball team are a force to be reckoned with.

They run and gun as good as any team I’ve seen. If anything, like many teams of this type, they seem to get out front by 20 points then have no idea what to do with a lead. The Rehoboth Lynx played sloppy but they clawed back to within four points.

The Cougars woke up, and as any winning team does, ran away with the prize.

New Glass(es)

Wed, 16 Dec 2009 23:38:20 -0700

Well it finally happened. Last week my 80-200mm zoom finally gave up the ghost. For the Nikon inclined, this is the lens with the radial zoom ring. The lens that came after the push zoom, but before the AF-S.

The dang thing had been giving me intermittent problems for the past few months. I was getting random black frames and lots of trouble focusing, not least the mega stiff zoom ring in the cold. Turned out one of the electronic pins on the lens collar finally came off the circuit ribbon. Normally I just use my 85mm f/1.8 for short telephoto work and bag the 300 from the office when I need longer glass. However, there is always a time where the 135-200mm focal length come in handy.

Sure we could have just sent it off to be repaired, but what else would go wrong after that? Brian amazingly found an AF-S 80-200 example that was in absolutely pristine condition. For all practical purposes, despite being two revolutions behind the current lenses, the thing is brand spanking new.

I have shot with the newer 70-200mm line. And while the 70-200 models have VR and seem to acquire focus quicker, the corners tend to be soft at wide apertures and the lens is really freaking long. Hard to fit in most medium-sized camera bags, in my experience.
 No this “new” 80-200 AF-S is pretty sweet. When I was waiting for the special election returns in Window Rock, I grabbed a quick silhouette on the way into the arena.
 The image above is right off the camera @ f./2.8 and 1600 ISO on my D700. Inky contrast, buttery color, its like solid metal silk.