Storm Coming In - January 31, 2007

The forecast is for yet more snow. We are supposed to get another couple of inches today and tomorrow and seven to ten more inches Friday. I'm afraid the storm tomorrow may cancel some events like the two basketball games I am supposed to shoot for Friday night. We are also supposed to get high winds so there is a "snow and blowing snow" weather advisory and people are advised to stay home and out of the weather tonight and tomorrow night.

But for right now, it's peaceful. The snow flurries add to the ambiance and I find myself back at one of my favorite places. The red walls will be covered if there is as much blowing snow as they predict. I'd love to see it then, but I won't be able to return until Sunday at the earliest.

Hope all of you are staying happy and warm, and that all your dreams for this new year are coming true. One month is already over. Let's see what the next one will bring :)

Basketball - January 30, 2007

The basketball game tonight was hard-fought and once again went into overtime. The outcome this time was different, however, and the local team lost by one point in the last 4 seconds. What a heart-breaker! I've been asked to cover both the girls and boys games on Friday and the wrestling tournament on Saturday. I'm enjoying this a lot. It's work and it takes me awhile to go through the pictures. I wish I was better at it. I talked to man tonight who says he just sets up the shots and can use about 80% of his shots. I'm not that good. However, I'm pleased with this shot and hope it's the one they use in the paper.

Monday Still Lifes - January 29, 2007

It's a "blah" Monday. We desperately need some sunshine. I'm barely moving today. Was struggling with some nausea this morning and really didn't want to do much of anything. I did, however, manage to get to work and felt better as the day progressed.

I thought I'd let you see that the snow is still around and try to do something "artsy" with objects in the snow. Hmmmmmm.

Chaco at Red Canyon - January 28, 2007

Chaco checks out a way up the sides of the canyon.


Today started as a cold and foggy day. The puppies were adamant about going for a W-A-L-K anyway, so we took them up to Red Canyon because it is close and because we figured the road would be open. It was something of an ordeal to get to our usual walking place. Even though it was cold, the road was muddy from previously melting snow, and so was fairly slick. We made it, however, and the pups had a wonderful time frolicking in the snow, climbing up the sides of the canyons and sliding down. Bear usually leads the way and Chaco follows closely behind, but today she struck out on her own a few times. She is 7 months old and still growing. Such fun!!

And Then There Was South - January 27, 2007

It snowed off and on all day today. I covered my last game for the week this afternoon, which was the 5th event covered this week. The team was pumped up after back to back wins; however, South is ranked 3rd in the state and they pretty much steam-rollered the local team. There is a long-standing rivalry between the local high school and South in most every sport played at this level. Once it became apparent the local team was so far behind there was little chance to catch up, the coach rotated in his younger players. I thought that was a good move. It gave the older players a chance to rest and revitalize and gave the younger players excellent experience on the boards against a top-notch opponent. They will learn to be better players by playing against superior teams. The younger team members played with heart and inspiration. They took their opportunity and ran with it. They didn't win (according to the scoreboard); however, they never quit. They played as hard as they could until the final whistle blew. I think that showed a lot of character.

This picture (I hope) shows the intensity of their play.

Basketball - January 26, 2007

Trying to get past the defender.




It was an amazing basketball game tonight. It was back and forth and back and forth and the local team finally won in overtime. They were ecstatic as they had back-to-back wins and they fought so hard! I had to scramble to get the pictures into the newspaper as I had only an hour to download the cards, pick the pictures and get them e-mailed into the editor. Not much time to clean them up or photoshop. I still am having issues with figuring out how the play is going to go and where to anticipate the shot. So I shoot a lot and know that i will "probably" get something useful from sheer volume. Not the best way to do things, I know.

Wrestling - January 25, 2007

Wrestler, all tied up, trying to get free.


Take down. Trying to kick free.

Near pin. A very tough match. One of the two the local team won.


The wrestling match was tough to photograph this evening. It was parent's night - the last home dual, and the night that the senior wrestlers honor their parents prior to their matches. The guys usually present their moms with flowers, and there are tears of pride and of a feeling of loss - because it is nearing the end of the season - these young men will soon graduate and most will leave home. It was hard for me too as it brought back memories of last year when it was my turn, for the last time, to receive those flowers from my youngest son, and to know it would soon be time to say good-bye to this part of my life. The team was wrestling for the league championship against a fairly new school's team. Only two wrestlers from the local team won their matches - and none of the seniors won. The team leaves for a big, very tough, tournament at 5 a.m.

I'll be taking pictures at a basketball game tonight.

Girl's Basketball - January 24, 2007

Images from a girl's basketball game.. The local team played very hard, but the opposing team prevailed. The local team is very young, with many freshmen and sophomores and only a few seniors. They will improve significantly with experience. They are, however, very enthusiastic and I have never seen them give up.

Tomorrow I cover another wrestling match - this one for the league championship. Friday and Saturday I'm assigned to cover boy's basketball again - a different high school closer to home.

I'm glad to see so many young people participating in sports. They need to do all they can to keep healthy and strong. In our system, there is a strong emphasis on academics as well. Kids can't play unless they maintain a certain academic standing, and there is a competition for academic team champions as well as the regular athletic championships.

Boys Basketball - January 23, 2007

It was a fast-paced, very physical game tonight.


I wish I had been able to get the ball in this picture too. It would have been a much more effective picture. They really are able to "get some air".

The main problem with this picture is that the guy in the air, about to make a basket, is from the opposing team.


Tonight I covered a boys basketball game for the newspaper at a high school near here. It was a real heart-breaker. The home team lost in the last 6 seconds of the game. Basketball is difficult to photograph because it is so fast, and most high school gyms are not so brightly lit. I don't like to use a really bright flash because I am always afraid of temporary blinding the young athlete during a game. It was an exciting game. I'm shooting sports at both high schools for the rest of the week, so hope you enjoy :)

Birds - January 22, 2007

We have a big pack porch that extends across the entire length of our house. It has large screened in windows which we usually cover with plastic in the winter to conserve energy. This year we didn't manage to accomplish that task, and we find that all sorts of birds are finding their way into the porch. They seem to hop in through the "doggy door" and then fly around trying to find a way out. Chaco thinks they are some sort of amazing toy, so I have to monitor her constantly. We go out every morning and open doors to help the birds find their way out. I liked the way this one's feathers looked backlit by the sunshine. The second one was a cheeky little sparrow who chattered at me while I was trying to usher him through the door.

Sunset - January 21, 2007

It was another cloudy, snowy, rather dreary Sunday. We cozied in, watched the playoff games on TV (and edited pictures). This evening, the sky cleared just enough to provide a beautiful sunset.

Wrestling - January 20, 2007

I used to get upset at all the bloody noses. However, it is winter in Colorado and the air is dry and people get nosebleeds a lot more easily than when the air is more humid. The little guy on top is a freshman who has already made the varsity team. The little guy not on top is about to be pinned.
Another wrestler about to pin his opponent.
It's called a headlock for fairly obvious reasons. The young man in yellow came in 2nd in his weight class out of 14 teams.
The freshman wrestler again with his opponent all locked up. He got another pin here and came in 3rd in his weight class.

They say wrestling is the toughest 6 minutes in any sports competition. I have never actually participated, but I have watched more high school and middle school wrestling matches than I can count. Both my sons were varsity wrestlers in high school, and both competed with their hearts and souls. Wrestling is one of the only sports I have witnessed where two people can compete with every ounce of their beings on the mat and once the match is over, shake hands and discuss the match like they are best friends. Wrestling is allegedly a team sport, but in each match there is a winner and a loser and each competitor has only himself (and in a few rare cases, herself) to blame if he loses. I have seen so many kids exhibit tremendous courage - get backed into a corner and find some way to come out on top. If they don't, I have seen them be equally courageous in accepting responsibility and working harder and coming out the winner the next time. I think the lessons my own sons have learned from wrestling have helped them overcome adversities and to know they can count on themselves to do what they need to do to accomplish whatever they want. I attended a tournament today to take pictures for our local paper. It was strange to go and to not have one of my sons competing, but it was great to see the kids and see how they've grown up this past year. They are nice, polite, kind young men when off the mat; and when they are competing..... well, as their mascot name implies, they are Tigers!

Snow and More Snow - January 19, 2007

I bet you are sick of snow pictures. I promise I'll do something different tomorrow. I'll try to post some wrestling pictures :)

This is the front walkway - even after shoveling. The wind keeps blowing more snow in. Isn't that the way of some things in life? You have to keep shoveling just to keep up. I guess that's lame, but I am totally exhausted tonight.

Digging Out - January 18, 2007

I have to go to a doctor's appointment in Pueblo tomorrow, so we shoveled snow to see if we could get the Toyota out tonight. We finally freed it from the drift, but it was a struggle getting it up the hill. We decided that I will have to leave very early in the morning so that we can work together to get the car out. Once we get it onto the road, I think it will be o.k. I drove to Colorado Springs for a meeting today (in a car from work) and the main roads seem to be fine.

The dogs found the whole process greatly entertaining.

Dealing with Snow - January 17, 2007

We're trying to dig out. The first picture is of my husband shoveling a path to the gate. We also got a shot of the snowplow finally coming down our road. The only problem with the plow is that the snow scraped off the road gets piled up at the top of the driveways. Our driveway was not very well planned as it is downhill from the road, so we have to go uphill to get out. I have a feeling it will be awhile before the Toyota moves :)

Basketball - January 16, 2007

It was an exciting basketball game last night. Our team lost, but the kids never gave up. It was a close score and an aggressive, physical game. I took lots of shots and some came out better than I expected. I spent a lot of time sorting through and deciding which I'd send on the paper. These are some of the "out takes". The little boy was overcome by the music from the band and couldn't help dancing. The young ladies are members of the dance team and performed during the half time break. A gym isn't the best environment in which to take dance pictures, but here's an attempt. Actually, the basketball picture is one that I submitted, but I think they are probably going to print one of the others. I'll let you know. It's late and I'm exhausted, so much try to get some sleep. I have to go to work early tomorrow. :)

Red - January 15, 2007

The snow has stopped, but it is very, very cold today. It was below zero (f) last night and the wind is blowing this morning, so the snow is drifting. It's too cold to be outside for very long and it is a holiday (Martin Luther King's birthday) so we are home from work. We have a big pot of soup cooking in the crock pot, and our intent is to cozy in today and just stay warm and comfy. The dogs would love to go for a walk, but they don't want to stay outside very long either.

I was looking for something bright and cheery to shoot today, and decided to try the poinsettia my daughter gave me at Thanksgiving. It is still bright red. I tried a number of different angles and some different lighting. I'm still not quite satisfied with this, but it IS bright!!

Tomorrow it's back to work. And basketball tomorrow evening. I'm leaving the polarizer at home!!

Basketball - January 14, 2007

Opponents talking smack.

Well, I could say the action was just so fast that it couldn't be captured, but that would be wrong. Stupid polarizer filter..... no stupid photographer :(


I do some freelance photography for the local newspaper. Usually I'm called when the regular photographer can't make it to one of the high school sports events, or if there are so many events going on at one time, that they don't have enough staff to cover. It helps me to step out of my comfort zone and hopefully help the kids out a little too. These are from the game last night. I'm so embarrassed. I was having a lot of trouble with the speed. I had my ISO set at 1600, and my aperature down to 3.5 and I was still having trouble with the light. Today I figured out why. Of all the stupid things to do, I left my polarizer filter on from the snow pictures. I think I got enough decent ones for the paper to use, but I should have had more. I should have figured it out last night. I decided to play around some of the ones I didn't use and see how they turned out. So these are my experiments.

Snow for Talj - January 13, 2007

The cliffs at Sand Gulch. Rock climbers gather here to scale these walls during nice weather.

Pinon trees and cedars covered in snow.

We started losing the light on the way down from the hike but were rewarded with a lavender sunset.

I thought I'd post some "pretty snow" pictures for Talj - since she's missing snow. We got some sunshine today, so my husband and I took the dogs for a run. We went to Sand Gulch, which is a couple of miles from our house, and hiked the trail down to the creek bed and up to the other rim -- well my husband did. I stopped a little short of the other rim because it got so steep I was sliding a bit. The puppies had a great time plowing through the new snow. I hope you like these :)

Snowy Foggy Morning - January 12, 2007

It was a dark, foggy morning. This was taken through the screen on our back porch. The temperature was around 8 degrees (F). The sun tried to come out, but failed. It snowed off and on all day, and the high was only 15. Right now it is close to 0 degrees and is still snowing. This is an unusual winter. Usually we have a few days like this, but most of the time our temperature is in the 50's and the sun is out almost every day. This winter the snowstorms are coming one after another after another. I shouldn't complain. This winter will probably help alleviate the drought problems we've had the last few years. Our power and internet are more stable today. (Knock on wood)

Just wanted to say thanks for all the nice comments. You guys are great!!