friday night lights

I think high school sports are something that large papers tend to overlook in their sports sections. There almost always seems to be big sporting events happening on any given day around the country. Professional and College. But to me, highlighting high school sports is a huge necessity in today's crazy newspaper world.

I really believe that newspapers can dominate coverage on high schools. We have the ability to cover and report them like no other news organization. I also believe that our readers really care about high school sports. I know back home, many of the high school kids specifically bought the paper specifically for the sports section and reading the high school statistics. Frankly, I did the same thing in high school.

Overall, I think we do a good job with high school sports. But I also think we can branch out of the normal mode and really take it to another level. We don't always put high school football on the cover of Sports on Saturdays. But I love it when we do. And hopefully, we can do more of that.

sack

I love it when the quarterback gets sacked- does that make me a bad person? It is one of my favorite plays in football. Although my favorite play in tennis is the service let---well, when it drops in for another serve. So, I guess those even out.

Defense was a big factor in this game, with Darryl Tapp logging four sacks. Qwest is well known for being a loud stadium which forces the other team into false starts. This was a factor of the game as well. Made for a different type picture for the paper. Which I love being able to run.

Anyways---here are a few pages.

QB or RB?

It's always an interesting dilemma. Oregon, a huge team in the Pac-10 playing very well and just over the state border, was playing the Washington Huskies at home. The Huskies freshman QB has been very hyped all year. He has given the team a spark where people think anything is possible. The RB from Oregon is from the Seattle area. He is having a huge year---people are talking Heisman.

And we have two good pictures of each one. It might be hard to read the QB sack picture from this screen, but it is really unique and gripping. The RB picture shows the dominating nature, running through the line easily. So, what do you do? I don't think there is a right or wrong answer---at least I hope not.

I went with the QB as the cover lead---and the RB as the inside lead. Both were good, story telling pictures and both pictures ended up running 6 columns. But how did I make that choice? I guess it comes down to two things, since most other things in this situation were equal. I felt the QB sack picture was more unusual. He is about to get pounced from 3 different angles----with no help and no where to go. And you can read his eyes clearly---the look says it all.

the fans

This page came together at the seriously, the last minute. Unlike last year, we just don't have the space (or money) to run color photo pages anymore. It is such a shame because I feel it adds a lot to the coverage. I feel this huge pressure all the time to try and match up the theme or the story with the pictures. This can frankly be a total drag. Sometimes there are great pictures---that maybe don't speak to the game itself but are very valuable and let the reader see something completely different. Our past photo pages gave us that extra freedom to run those pictures.

So, for some reason we had some extra space and we were able to pull this off last minute. There are some little quirky things I am not thrilled with when it comes to the design of the page and some pictures---but I really like the main fan shot. Many of these pictures probably wouldn't have made it into the paper otherwise---doomed for a life online. But I am happy that we were able to do it.

inspiration

"Not everybody can read a newspaper, magazine, or book. But everybody can read a photograph. The most powerful weapon in the world has been, and can be a photograph. Military weapons can only destroy. Cameras in the hands of photographers with hearts can capture love, hope, passion- cradle lives and make the world a better place. And it only takes one 500th of a second. Life goes on- we photograph it, but its even better with love...." ----Eddie Adams.

Where do you find Inspiration? I find it all around me. Usually in the most unexpected places. But for me, it can always be found when I am surrounded by people looking for the same thing.

I went to two workshops in the beginning of October, both in New York State. Both inspired me personally and professionally. And both inspired me in very different ways.

Both of these workshops aim at helping inexperience photographers grow. Learning from the people that went before them, they enhance their own vision and take it to a higher level.

I love attending workshops for this purpose. Coming back with a new insight into this field I love---and always, always coming back with some new dear friends.