The Rally To Restore Sanity/Fear

This past weekend I went to Washington DC with some fellow photojournalists to attend the Rally To Restore Sanity/ The Rally To Keep Fear Alive. Seven of us ventured up to DC without any idea of what we should expect to see. As it turns out, hundreds of thousands of people did the same thing. Jon Stewart and Steven Colbert put on quite the show, and I even got to see my childhood hero Ozzy Osborne sing Crazy Train. I didn’t have a credential for the rally, so what shooting pictures was quite a challenge. These images should give you an idea of how many people were there. Enjoy.

USGP Derby City Cup

One year ago I shot cyclocross for the first time while home with mono. A year later I was excited to learn that the USGP was back again, and that I was scheduled to visit home while it was in Louisville. Cyclocross is one of my favorite things to shoot because of how close you can get, and all of the different creative devices you can use while shooting it. I hope to have yet another chance to shoot the sport again, and I have to admit I have a growing interest in it. Enjoy.

Sam's Gym

Words to come

Ohio vs Ohio State

Yesterday I had the chance to shoot the Ohio vs. Ohio State football game. Although Ohio was beaten badly, it was still a great experience. Ohio Stadium is a truly electric atmosphere, and an all around great place to shoot a football game. The attendance was over 105,000 people, which gave me the chills every time the crowd came alive. Another good note from the day was getting to shoot Terrelle Pryor. The kid is one of the most versatile football players I have ever seen in my life, and is a favorite for this year’s Heisman Trophy. I can’t wait to have another chance to shoot Ohio State, and maybe the Bobcats will be a little more prepared for the Buckeyes in the future. Cheers.

An Unexpected Tragedy

Last night around 7pm I was strolling through campus when extremely loud sirens started whining from every direction. The sirens were alerting that Athens had been put under a tornado warning and that every outside should immediately seek shelter. Being that this is a college town, no one really seemed to pay much attention to the warnings. When the storm was over, I emerged from my dorm to see that everything was still perfectly intact. As the night went on however, I started hearing more and more stories about how bad things were just a mere 5 minute car ride away. The student newspaper’s printing site was destroyed, trailers were flipped, and that in some cases some houses were just totally destroyed.
When I awoke this morning I knew I had to go check out the rumors as soon as possible. After collecting myself and shooting another quick assignment, I threw my roommate in the car and we ventured towards The Plains. What I found was much worse than I could have expected. Trees everywhere, displaced people littering the streets, and more destruction than one ever wants to see. I will be keeping the people of Athens in my thoughts and prayers in the coming weeks, and I ask for you to do the same.
The pictures below are a small bit of what was going on today, and I hope that they can shed a little insight into just how bad the storm was.

Ohio vs Toledo

The other night I covered my first football game of the year. I was a bit rusty at first, but I got back into the swing of things around the second quarter. Ohio lost the game, but I feel like I came out with some interesting stuff. Enjoy.

Ironman Louisville

The other morning I woke up at 5 am, and ventured into downtown Louisville to shoot a little bit of the annual Ironman race. Since I have not yet acquired a photojournalism job, I unfortunately did not have much time until I had to go into work at Target. Before seeing the event I wasn't quite sure what I was going to find, but what I discovered was a huge fan base with an incredible passion for the sport. What these athletes do is a true testament to how strong the human spirt can be. After about 2 hours of shooting and beautiful light, I had to call it a day. I look forward to shooting more of these races in the future, and getting the chance to cover the entire thing.