Baseball season arrives

The shoot just before I figured out how CS6 was changing my photos color profile. This was my first baseball shoot of the year, done last month. I really enjoyed shooting baseball last year, so I was looking forward to this game. It ended up being a bit of a struggle, shaking off all the dust from last year and dealing with equipment issues. I was also shooting with a bigger lens than I'm used to, as another photographer was using the 300mm for some state championship games. Using the 400mm was a bit of a squeeze, frame-wise. While it's a gorgeous lens, I prefer the room for error that the 300mm provides.

But blah, blah, blah. Here are some photos from that game, starting with my favorite shot:

The Tennessee Volunteers' batboy elicits some laughs from stadium security along the first base line as he stares them down after retrieving Nick Senzel's arm padding, having successfully made it on base. The Missouri Tigers lost their second game of the day against the Tennessee Volunteers as the Vols beat them 4 - 1 to end the day at Taylor Stadium in Columbia, MO Saturday, March 15, 2014.

That 400mm lens... just couldn't quite fit those feet in there.  

Belated basketball post

Well, basketball season has come and gone and I've neglected to post anything from it, so I figured I'd pull from the archive and do a summary post. Throughout the entire season I was battling it out with CS6, trying to figure out why my colors in my photos were completely different from what they were in my camera. It wasn't until after the season was over, and then some, that I figured out that the Camera RAW editor messes with your color profile, something I don't have to worry about with my personal CS4. 

That struggle definitely dulled my photos and created frustration galore. But let's talk about the photos. They're a bit of a mixed lot. Some highs and some lows. My best game was my first one, which wasn't actually an assignment but just a chance to shoot a men's game - a rarity for me. I didn't include those photos in this post because they were a post of their own. Overall, it was kind of a "meh" season for me photographically. I didn't get a ton of great shots, but I did learn a lot and each game was an opportunity I used to focus on one particular aspect of shooting. 

My mind is wandering too much to continue writing, so without further ado, here are some photos:

Spring Break in New Orleans, LA

I was recently fortunate enough to road trip down to New Orleans a few weeks ago with some friends and some relative strangers. While the drive was a bit elongated and cramped, it was worth it. New Orleans was an interesting town to see.

It had its highs and lows, as every trip does. The highs included a lengthy first night on Bourbon Street that included a stream of Snapchat videos streaming from my cell phone and a kayak adventure through the Pearl River Swamp (a few pictures from the swamp on my film blog). The lows included an energy sapping sunburn and the seemingly endless tourist trap that Bourbon Street actually is.

I always seem to forget how uninspiring it can be to try and create photos on vacation while everyone else is taking photos at the same time of the same thing. It just saps the energy right out of me when I put up my camera to take a picture while my travel mates simultaneously pull out their iPhones to do the same. In the end, that seemed to shut down my photo-making drive.

I think all of these photos are from the same evening. Most nights I didn't want to take my camera out for fear of consuming too much alcohol and damaging it. This night, though, was the first night I felt drained by the sunburn I earned paddling through the Pearl River Swamp. I decided to keep alcohol consumption to a minimum and work on some low-light shots and video instead.

I haven't made a short clip from my video yet, but here are my photos from the night on Frenchmen Street.

P.S. If you're ever in NOLA and looking for Frenchmen Street, don't Google it. We learned that the hard way, taking a long drive to a dark street which nearly ended with us jumping the tracks at somewhere other than a railroad crossing. In short, it's a short skip and a hop from Bourbon Street.

Now, back to the photos:

The most expensive, filling dinner I've ever eaten: Shrimp, catfish, oysters, and onion rings... and some fries at Deanie's Seafood in New Orleans, LA.

The Spotted Cat Music Club, Frenchmen St. in New Orleans, LA.

The Spotted Cat Music Club, Frenchmen St. in New Orleans, LA.

The Spotted Cat Music Club, Frenchmen St. in New Orleans, LA.

Patrons sit on a bench while taking in the live music inside The Spotted Cat Music Club on Frenchmen St. in New Orleans, LA.

Schnelle and Kholood putting some wear on the dance floor at The Spotted Cat Music Club on Frenchmen St. in New Orleans, LA.

Carl takes a puff of his cigarette while doling out life advice to a man on Frenchmen St. in New Orleans, LA.

A man traveling from bar to bar claps to the music at The Maison on Frenchmen St. in New Orleans, LA.

Three women take in live music and drinks at The Maison on Frenchmen St. in New Orleans, LA.

Clare receives an energy reading from a fortune teller on Frenchmen St., New Orleans, LA. I would follow suit later.

Thanks to Carl, Nick, Chris, and Clare for putting up with the overly sunburnt 23-year-old tag along.

You can see my Instagram stream from that trip, starting here: http://instagram.com/p/l7swGnAWta/ and ending here: http://instagram.com/p/mDfiXzgWpB/

The Burr Oak

This image is a month old or so. I tried to create an image different from your typical "Burr Oak" photo. I didn't feel terribly successful, but it does indeed seem different. You can't win them all, I suppose.