Editorial

Peoria Manual-Chicago Marshall basketball

November 27, 2010

On Friday I covered high school basketball for the first time this season. The paper sent me over to Canton, Ill. to shoot a portrait then cover Peoria Manual in the basketball tournament there. The gym where the tourney was held isn’t very well illuminated so I strobed it up. I had never strobed basketball with speedlights before coming into the game. I ended up sticking a couple Nikon SB-800s on light stands in the bleachers on each side and aimed them at the top of the key. On the stands each speedlight ended up being elevated about 10 feet above court level and were about 10 feet off the court perpendicular to the baseline. They were fired at 1/4th power at 70 mm zoom. That gave me an exposure of 1/250th of a second, f/2.8 at 400 ISO. I made it into the third quarter before I killed the batteries on one of them. Always remember to bring some extra batteries if you’re using speedlights.

Chicago Marshall's Marshon Sykes (5) reaches in as he tries to force a turnover from Manual's Landis Farmer (25) during a game on Friday, Nov. 26, 2010, in Canton.

Chicago Marshall's Marshon Sykes (5) chest bumps teammate Shamon Mock (24) before a game against Manual on Friday, Nov. 26, 2010, in Canton.

Thanksgiving at the South Side Mission

November 25, 2010

I’m not a fan of working on holidays, but it’s much more bearable when you have a cool assignment to photograph. Such was the case today as I headed down to the South Side Mission in the morning to photograph volunteers preparing meals for the needy. Later in the day, I tagged along with the Reist family as they delivered meals to some elderly folks in Peoria. It was incredible to see how grateful people were to receive one of the mission’s meals.

Dorothy Hathaway talks with the Reist family after receiving a Thanksgiving meal from the South Side Mission on Thursday, Nov. 25, 2010. The Reist family were one of several volunteers to deliver 1,950 meals in Peoria on Thanksgiving.

A volunteer unwraps pumpkin pies as they are prepared to be sliced into pieces and delivered as part of a Thanksgiving meal for the needy on Thursday, Nov. 25, 2010, at the South Side Mission.

Rivermen-Ice Hogs hockey

November 22, 2010

I don’t cover hockey often. And by not often, I mean Sunday was the first time ever. I don’t think I have even been to a hockey game since I was in middle school. It was also the first time using the Journal Star’s strobe setup in Carver Arena. I’ve used strobes before for basketball, but hockey is entirely different. I had a decent day, but I’m looking forward to shooting more games there before the end of my internship.

Peoria players celebrate with teammate Nathan Oystrick, center, after Oystrick's goal in a sudden-death shootout propelled the Rivermen to a win over Rockford on Sunday, Nov. 21, 2010, at Carver Arena.

Rockford goalie Alec Richards watches as a Peoria shot flies wayward of the goal during a game on Sunday, Nov. 21, 2010, at Carver Arena.

Civil War winter encampment

November 20, 2010

I only had one assignment today so my co-worker suggested I look for some wild art (photos that run without a story in the paper). I noticed an event listing in the paper about a Civil War winter encampment at one of the local parks. After finishing my first assignment, I took a drive out to check it out. I ended up staying for a couple hours, shooting about 50 frames (not to mention a full roll of 120 film on my Holga) and talking to a half dozen re-enactors from the Central Illinois Living Historians. I was a history minor in college so I naturally found the encampment and the re-enactors very interesting. If you’re into Civil War history, I suggest checking out a project my good friend Jay Seawell worked on a few summers ago documenting American Civil War re-enactments in England.

Tim Varvil, the president of the Central Illinois Living Historians, rests his rifle over his shoulder after a demonstration of Civil War military exercises for a group of bystanders on Saturday, Nov. 20, 2010, at Sommer Park. The re-enactors created a Civil War winter encampment to show how soldiers lived through the winter months when fighting generally stopped in the war.

Civil War re-enactors prepare to march in formation during a drill on Saturday, Nov. 20, 2010, at Sommer Park. The re-enactors, from the Central Illinois Living Historians, created a Civil War winter encampment to show visitors how soldiers lived during the winter months in the war.

Behind the scenes at Goodwill

November 19, 2010

I was recently assigned to photograph a “behind the scenes” type of story looking at Goodwill of Central Illinois. The story is for the Journal Star’s Heartland section. The section is a weekly feature page that runs in Sunday’s paper. As those who have photographed inside stores and businesses know, making pictures while being showed around by a public relations person or executive can be difficult. That was the case here to an extent although our guides were very nice and didn’t tell me what I could and couldn’t photograph.