A Cross Country Race

Last Saturday was a very cold December day here in Portland. Really cold. Frost on the ground, ice on the windshield, three layers of clothing cold. A great day to grab the cameras and head out at 6:30 am to Portland Meadows, which is a horse racing track. No, I was not betting on the ponies. In fact, I was betting on getting some really nice images of a field of 22 seven-person clubs and an additional 45 individual competitors, both male and female, running in three cross country races sponsored by Nike. This is the second year I have shot the Nike Cross Nationals. I love this event. And my main goal both times was not to so much document the race, but bring back images that gave you, the viewer, a more personal and up close view of the competitors, the track, and the feel of the event. Did I mention it was cold?

Clowning Around for Good Causes

Shooting parties and events are not at the top of my list of things I like to shoot, but once in a while a good cause comes onto my radar screen and I toss that aside, and I sign up. Last Saturday night I had the extreme pleasure of doing some pro bono work for the Oregon Food Bank's annual Oregon Harvest Dinner fundraiser. I was joined by fellow photographer and friend Steve Scardina. We had a blast. The entertainment was great, as depicted in the picture above, and they raised a lot of money. Giving back to one's community always feels great and I want to thank Amber and Jamie from the Oregon Food Bank for following me around and carrying what I call my "strobe on a stick." It was really fun to document this great event.

And now my pitch. Right now hunger is a major problem facing many families. So please, if you can, make a donation in either time, money or food to the Oregon Food Bank. They are the hub of a statewide network of over 900 hunger-relief agencies in Oregon and SW Washington. Plus, they throw nice parties.

A River Runs Through Me

Morning light on the canyon walls as Guide Brian Silvey passes us the first day with his two clients.

When September rolls around I get a very anxious feeling, because I know it is time for my annual three-day float down the Deschutes in search of summer steelhead. I don't make it a secret that I am addicted to fly fishing for steelhead. Guilty as charged. This year I went with my good friend and guide extraordinaire Matt McCrary. Usually you can find him on the Deschutes guiding clients and teaching them the fine art of using a spey rod. This time it was just play-fishing for him and myself. We hooked five fish and landed four, in case anyone cares about fishing stats. But the best thing for me was hanging out with my good friend Matt, camping out under the stars, and standing in the river in hopes of hooking a fish while I marveled at the awesome scenery. Mr. McCray has become my steelhead fishing mentor, and this trip I really got schooled (in a good way) by him. It involved a few cold Hamm's beers, staying up too late in front of the Colemam lantern, watching copious amounts of caddis bugs commiting harakiri in the flame, and him explaining to me why it is not about how many fish you catch, but how one decides to experience fishing as an act of connection with all of the elements that determines the real results of a day on the river. I'll just leave it at that, because what is said in camp, stays in camp. But what I can say is that fishing, like life, is all about the journey traveled and the things you encounter along the way, and the not about the destination. It was a great journey!

The view from the river at sunset. This panorama was created with my iPhone. I don't wade the river with my good camera.

Boils and rapids along the way. Kinda like life.

The White River above us in Maupin decided to spew out some glacial silt, so I did some portraits of Matt McCrary while we waited for the river to clear.

The final resting place of our nocturnal camping friends. RIP.

Oh yes, we did catch some fish. Matt holds one of the four caught for my quick and dirty iPhone camera. This one was mine, but Matt caught and hooked all the others. He is da' man!

Manchester United Premier Cup 2009

I know it has been awhile since I last posted here, but I have been buried in Photoshop work after covering the 2009 Manchester United Premier Cup World Finals in Manchester, UK. Seven days of shooting, that started on August 2nd, almost 15,000 clicks of the camera, and almost 800 final images. This was an under fifteen soccer event that comprised of twenty of some of the best U-15 teams from around the world. The final game gets played at Old Trafford, which is the legendary home pitch of Manchester United. If you want to see more of my work, and read more about the tournament, here is a link:

http://www.manchesterunitedpremiercup.com/

What I have posted here are some of my favorite photos, that although they are not great action shots, these are the types of shots that enrich the my soul when I capture them. They are not always the most obvious, but to me they speak volumes about what it might feel like for the participants.

Cheers!

iFly, iWalk, iShoot, iPhone

Greetings from Manchester, UK. First day on the ground after flying in yesterday. Jet lag not too bad, so I have be taking a few leisurely strolls near my hotel and shooting some shots with my iPhone. After experiencing Portland's heat wave last week, I must admit, it is nice to be under cool and cloudy skies, and of course the occasional rain shower. Ah, summer in the UK.

I start working tomorrow, so I am just left with trying to stay awake in the afternoon, and then the reverse problem of trying to get to sleep later in the night. It is kind of an evil yin and yang jet lag experience. So here are some pics from my flight, and from around Manchester. Enjoy!

PDX to SFO. Marshmallows in the sky.

The plane! Getting ready for the ten hour flight from San Francisco to London.

Waiting for Godot? Nope, everyone just looking board while waiting to board.

A United Airlines designer sink. I think you can find these at IKEA.

Heathrow, and on time.

Coming to our gate at Heathrow, Polaroid style.

Finally get to my room to find his sick dude welcoming me to Manchester. Good thing I knew they are having quite the Swine Flu problem here. I brought plenty of hand sanitizer. Take that, sick guy. The guy in the photo actually looks like one of the actors who plays one of the doctors on the TV show "Scrubs." Ironinc!

Nice hotel room lighting chaps.

And of course, I always look forward to the British cuisine.

The side of this dumpster reminded me of the days when I read Mad Magazine in my youth. Looks like one of the "Spy vs. Spy" characters.

The professional way to grip your iPhone.

Danger Will Robinson! Danger!

Oh yeah, I am here to shoot soccer, or football as they say it over here.

Three Wheelin' Crew

I am a lucky guy. I love my job, and most of all, I get to work with some really fun and creative people. I was shooting this past week at the Nike Campus in Beaverton. Nike has a child care facility next to the field we where shooting. The facility had a bunch of small red tricycles just outside the door, and since I am a photo opportunist, I asked some of the crew to get on one of the bikes for a few quick grab shots. Fun way to end a fun day.

Chris, Art Director.

Matt O'Brien, Assistant.

Jeff "Tank" Smith, Assistant

Me.

Leah Rocks

All that I really want to say on this day is that I love being a dad. Leah, you rock my world!

iPhone, iShoot, iPost

Having a great time in Australia with the in-laws. We took Leah to the Melbourne Aquarium yesterday and had a wonderful time. I really had fun taking pictures of the penguins with both my iPhone and my new Canon G10 camera. I actually loved the iPhone shots better. Here is one of my favorites from the iPhone. Today we go wine tasting to an area about an hour out of the city. Looking forward to seeing some of the countryside and tasting some good Aussie wine.

Road Trip

A beautiful scene on I-90 in eastern Washington.

Oh how I miss a good road trip in the car. After four days of shooting hundreds of shoes, bags, balls and apparel in a makeshift studio at Nike, while the rest of Portland was basking in a blast of warm sunny days, I got in my pickup truck on Monday evening and started my road trip to Montana for work. My first shoot was in Seattle on Tuesday morning. Now after a spending the night in a cheap hotel in Idaho, I am heading towards my old stopping grounds in Montana for another shoot. Here are some shots from along the long, winding, and often too straight roads. All the of the shots were done with my iPhone and then processed with an iPhone application called Camera Bag. No Photoshop used here.

Ah, just in time! I-90, eastern Washington.

Morning art outside my cheap hotel in Tacoma, WA.

Afternoon coffee stop at Snoqualmie Pass, WA, right off I-90.

Driving I-5 north of Portland in Washington. The day started out warm and sunny. Go figure!

Seattle has a lot of overpasses.

And a lot of tunnels.


Driving towards Snoqualmie Pass, WA on I-90. Brrrrrrr!


Getting the call for fast food.


Nice to have a good neighbor along for the ride.