Taylor Swift Concert
Sunday, June 29th, 2008
A few shots form tonight’s Taylor Swift concert at the Tyson Events Center. I only got to stay for the first two songs, but I managed to get a couple of good shots. You can see more photos in my gallery.
Archive for June, 2008
Roadside Memorials
Friday, June 27th, 2008A couple months ago, reporter Dolly A. Butz approached me about doing a project on roadside memorials. We traveled hundreds of miles throughout the Siouxland area searching for and photographing the memorials.
I had the easy part of the job, photographing the memorials we found. Dolly did an amazing job of tracking down information about the majority of the memorials we found, including details of the accident, often she found out who put up the memorials, and she was able to get some of the people to open up to her and tell their stories.
Read the full story in Sunday’s Sioux City Journal and you can also see a multi-media presentation, a photo gallery and you can read more in Dolly’s Blog.
Tami Hayes stands next to the roadside memorial for her son Bobby on Highway 20 near Moville.
Memorial for Barbara Louise Wilen east of Hubbard on Highway 35 in Nebraska.
Roadside memorial on Highway 35 east of Hubbard, Nebraska.
Roadside memorial on Highway 9 west of Larchwood.
Roadside memorial for Bob Collinson Highway 9 west of Larchwood.
Roadside memorial for Tom Skaff on I-29 exit ramp going onto Highway 20 bypass.
Funeral coverage
Monday, June 16th, 2008
Scouts stand at attention following the funeral service for Boy Scout Aaron Eilerts at St. Mary’s Catholic Church in West Point, Nebraska, Monday, June 16, 2008. (Jim Lee/Sioux City Journal)
One of the most dreaded assignments for any photographer is having to cover a funeral. Over the years I’ve had to cover too many funerals…. law enforcement officers killed in the line of duty, soldiers, murder victims, plane crash victims… The scary part about covering funerals is not knowing how people will react when they see the media there. Sometimes the families are grateful that we care enough to be there and see the coverage as a way to honor their loved ones. Some families see us as vultures that are only there to get the scoop. Today we were vultures.
I was in West Point, Nebraska, to photograph the funeral of Aaron Eilerts, one of the four boy scouts killed in the tornado last week. I was told ahead of time that we could take pictures from outside the church but cameras would not be allowed inside. A young photographer from another paper did not get that message.
We waited outside before the funeral and took pictures of the scouts, the Legion Riders, the color guard. Then the family arrived and the pallbearers carried the casket into the church as I shot photos from across the street. After the family and the scouts went inside the church the young photographer went inside through a side door. A few minutes later she walked out and I jokingly told her that I wondered how long it would be before she got kicked out. After a couple more minutes a man from the funeral home marched out of the church and approached us and started yelling at the young woman. She apologized several times as his face turned red and the veins bulged from his neck. He was not willing to accept her apology and demanded several times that she apologize to the family.
It may be part of the job, but any photographer with a conscience does not enjoy photographing people when they are experiencing tragedy. I can fully understand the family not wanting us there. The Eilert family may hate me and the other photographers now, but I hope some day when they are looking at the old newspaper clippings they will have fond memories of the young scouts who lined up to honor their son.
Great catch!
Sunday, June 15th, 2008
Sioux City’s Jason Tuttle makes a diving catch during Explorers baseball action against Lincoln at Lewis and Clark Park Sunday June 15, 2008. (Jim Lee/Sioux City Journal)
No big story behind this photo, I just like the shot. Taken with a Canon 40D and 100-400mm lens.
And the runner was……… Safe?
Saturday, June 14th, 2008The officials may not always have the best angle to see the play, but they still have to make a judgment call. Regardless of the sport, officiating is a tough job so I try not to complain about their calls. But one play tonight had the Explorers fans in an uproar and I was hounded with requests to see the photos.
It looked like an easy out as Sioux City’s Sam Walker stepped on the bag as Lincoln’s Eduardo Rios slid into second for what the Explorers thought was the third out of the inning. Some of the players were all ready to go back to the dugout as the official called the runner safe. Lincoln scored two runs as the Explorers were caught off guard after the call.
My cameras shoot about 6 frames per second and these were two consecutive frames. Keep in mind that still photos show only an instant in time so it’s hard to say with complete certainty about the call from these pictures. But the first shot shows Walker with his foot just inches from the bag and Rios has yet to enter the frame. The second frame shows both players with a foot on the bag. I’ll let you make your own conclusions.
Roller Derby
Wednesday, June 11th, 2008
Mo Pain (Melissa Ploen) jams past other skaters during practice.
I think roller derby is becoming one of my favorite sports to shoot. I’m looking forawrd to seeing thses gals in action when the Sioux City Roller Dames have an exhibition bout during Awesome Biker Nights on Hiustoric Fourth Street on June 21. Bout time is 5:00 in Mac Behrs’ paking lot. Check out Dolly’s blog, In My Shoes, for her first hand accounts of roller derby.
Hell ‘Raizin’ Kitty (Dolly Butz) jams during practice.
Below: The gals practice as the sun sets.
Challenging light
Monday, June 9th, 2008
The photo buffs out there probably appreciate the quality of light in the evening. It makes for great photos and I usually appreciate it, too. Except when I’m shooting softball at East High. You see, the softball field is located at the bottom of a hill, with plenty of trees on the hill to cast shadows on the field while half the field is in bright light.
That creates two big problems: First, there is a big difference in the exposure between bright sun and deep shade. Second, the white balance is very different. I like the golden color of the evening sun, but everything in the shade tends to be a deep blue. The human eye corrects for the difference in color, the camera needs some help.
For best results, I like to set my exposure and white balance on manual. But do I set if for sun or for shade? Since the shadows were jagged and the players could move from one light to another in an instant I started with auto exposure and auto white balance. That worked OK if the subject and background were in the same light, but when the subject was in shade and the background was in sunlight, the results looked like this:
If the subject and background were both in bright sunlight, it looked good:
If the subject and background were both in shade, it looked good:
Once the shadows covered most of the infield, I set the exposure and white balance manually. It still gave me problems with the background, but the subject looked better:
I know it’s not ideal, but as I have said before, with this job I have to play the hand that is dealt.
The Best Gyros
Saturday, June 7th, 2008
Shaena Hanson, Sioux City, dances during Greek Fest at Holy Trinity Greek Orthodox Church Saturday, June 7, 2007. (Jim Lee/Sioux City Journal)
I love gyros, but it’s hard to find good a good gyro in Sioux City except when Greek Fest rolls around. The fine folks at Holy Trinity Greek Orthodox Church know how to make them right. And there was more than just food at Greek Fest. Check out the photos in my gallery.
Tom Fountoulakis carves meat from a gyrokone for gyros during Greek Fest at Holy Trinity Greek Orthodox Church Saturday, June 7, 2007. Fountoulakis said they would go through about 30 gyrokones during the day, each weighing 20 pounds. (Jim Lee/Sioux City Journal)
Seventh time
Monday, June 2nd, 2008
I’ve lost count, but I think this is the seventh time I’ve photographed Hillary Clinton during this campaign season. I’ve heard her speech so many times I could probably recite it. Well, OK, not really. I have a short attention span and I’m usually looking for photos ops and not really listening to what the politicians are saying.
But it’s a good thing Chelsea has been listening. Hillary started having a coughing fit and Chelsea stepped in without missing a beat. She was actually a heck of a speaker. I wouldn’t be surprised if we see her in politics sometime in the future.
Sign of the times
Monday, June 2nd, 2008Some days my job can be lots of fun and glamorous (well, OK, fun anyway.) And then there’s today.
I was asked to swing through Elk Point on my way back from Yankton (where I was photographing Hillary Clinton) and get a photo of a pro-Hyperion sign and an anti-Hyerion sign that were right next to each other on main street and show the downtown business district in the background. Though boring, it was a simple enough request and they needed a photo for the story that showed both sides.
Well, when I get to Elk Point I find the signs and they were in yards that were next to each other. And I’m sure when driving down the road at 30 mph they probably look like they are right next to each other. But the signs were actually more than 100 feet apart and there were six trees and two bushes between the signs. And the downtown area was a few blocks away. The shot they want ain’t going to happen. A shot with a normal lens made it hard to see the sign in back, and it was partially obstructed.
So I decided to back off with a long lens to compress the scene, but the more I backed off, the more problems I had with foreground objects in the way.
So I cross the street, shoot with as long of a lens as I can to get as much compression as possible. Both signs are visible but were so far apart that they ended up being so small in the photo that it is almost pointless. I figure the reporter is going to be disappointed but I can only shoot what’s there so I start to head back to the office.
Luckily as I was driving out of town I spotted two pick-ups with opposing signs near each other. They weren’t any closer to each other than the signs in town, but there wasn’t six trees between them so I was bale to get a clean shot showing both.
I know what you’re thinking, that’s a lot of effort for such a boring photo. And you’re right. But with this job I have to play the hand that’s dealt and it’s not always a royal flush.