Trial and Error

Car wrecks. Murder scenes. Fires. County council protests. Aftermath..... Parades. Check presentations. Political rallies. Random school activities. The list goes on....

The list of stuff that I used to shoot photos of as a newspaper reporter.

I've never really had any formal training in photography. It's something that I've picked up as a hobby... one of my favorites... over the years.

I did win a South Carolina Press Association Award for a photo that I shot of a fatality involving a truck, trailer, bulldozer, and another truck (You would have had to have seen it to believe it - it was rather bizarre how the whole thing happened) all because I decided to climb a hill and shoot down at the scene from about 100 feet above.

So I've learned to get creative with photography. I've picked up tricks here and there, gotten my share of pointers, and explored the capabilities of each camera I've used.

Right now I'm shooting a Nikon D40 with one lens, an 18-135, and an SB-600 speedlight as my work system. I know I haven't tapped the full potential of the camera yet - by a long shot - and am constantly trying new things with it, reading up on photography techniques, and looking at other people's photos to see what they've done.

I think I've gotten better at conceptualizing and visualizing, and honing my technique more and more. I know there is a tremendous amount that I don't know about photography and would love to learn. I think it's such a beautiful craft.

I love taking nature, scenic and landscape shots. I love taking photos of people's emotions.

And as with most photographers I love it when an accidental shot becomes something that you never envisioned it to when taking it; and I hate when I review a shot that I thought was great when I took it and find something wrong with it. I think I'm more harsh on myself than I should be when it comes to that especially.

My job now as a public relations guru slash photographer requires me to take a lot of different types of photos - from check presentations; to faculty, staff or student feature photos; to event photos; and a whole range of others. I know I'm not the greatest photographer. I try. Although I do appreciate when someone says they like a photo I've taken, I've already gone back and critiqued it and marked it down for this or that.

But one type of photography that I never had experience with prior to taking my current job is sports photography.

I've learned to enjoy it. I'm always trying to get better at it. I'm learning more and more what works for what sport, how the camera reacts to each, what I should do for each, and which sports I like and dislike taking photos of the most.

Golf - boring and generally easy. Baseball - can be fun but it's lots of the same type of stuff. Wrestling - your timing and anticipation has to be spot on or you're going to get a butt shot.

I really enjoy softball, tennis, cross country and soccer. I enjoy capturing the emotion in tennis and cross country. I enjoy softball because I can actually get decent shots from base to base because of the smaller field as opposed to baseball.

I really don't like volleyball and basketball. I have a lot of technique honing still to go in regard to both of those sports. Plus, the lighting in our gym and my camera don't agree with each other a whole lot.

And since I've been shooting sports, I've had a few favorite shots from each sport. I'm always looking for the money shot.

You know, the shot that you're just like -- holy crap, I can't believe I actually got that. That look, that maneuver, that expression, that result -- awesome.

It's a quest. I'm sure all photographers feel that way from time to time, if not all the time

But with basketball I've still been waiting for that. This is the one sport that has really been trial and error for me -- more error than anything.

But I think I came the closest yet tonight at one of our men's basketball games. I know it's nowhere near that quality that a true professional would shoot and that there are several other things I could have done differently, but given where I was on the court at the time and the fact that I didn't anticipate him doing this, I think I was kind of lucky to get this.

Obviously, there's some toning issues that can be addressed better -- I'm probably going to monkey around with this one for a good long time.

So you pros out there (T, Jay, Otis, anyone ... ) feel free to provide any pointers or techniques that would have been of benefit in taking this, or about equipment, etc. Please. I'd appreciate it.

I've already critiqued myself enough on this. So now I need some more from someone else.