My 23 Favorite Photos From The 2023 Lafayette Aviators Season

This is always a hard post to make because it really means that baseball season is over.  This year I had a slow start to my Aviator photos. I was only able to see the last couple of innings of some of the games because my kids played at the same time. Once their season was over though I could cover whole games and have some fun at the park. This is the fourth year now that I have done this, and the third year in this park. It is fun to get to see these boys get to know each other and form friendships as the season goes on. It is always hard when the season ends too. Fall sports are around the corner when it does end, but I always know that my baseball season is over until the next spring. As I made this list I had lots of good memories of the season come to mind. I hope that the list does the same for you. Here are my favorite images from this past year with the Aviators.

23. I chased this photo for most of the season. The players would do this bash brothers celebration after a home run. Of course it seemed like they would hit it when I was in the outfield making a wide photo, or a crowd photo down one of the lines. I had the worst luck with it for most of the season. One night though I got to the park late, and was still unpacking when BD hit a home run and I was finally able to make my photo.

22. The new Loeb Stadium is not set up to make too many good photos with the light. It is probably easier for the players to play, but much harder to make good photos as the light goes down. There is a good angle though for about an inning to get in between the light and the pitcher. These are two of my favorites from the first base dugout from this past season. When the wildfire smoke was in the air it allowed some more interesting photographs like the bottom one. A little filter on the sun let it show up more in the photos.

21. This is a very pro bubble gum blog. If you are a ballplayer and you want to be in the gallery every game blowing some bubbles will do just that. If you do it during blue hour when the sky looks great it will get you in the year end gallery. Max found a much harder way to get into this gallery later in the post as well.

20. These photos just bring back memories of the park. For the last couple of years I have had fun watching BD have some fun with the fans in the first couple of rows as he stands in the on deck circle. It is these little moments with the players that make the day special for the fans. In the second photo the rain starts to come down as BD stands in the on deck circle. A couple of different moments with BD, but from a pretty cool spot that I can be in during games at the new Loeb Stadium.

19. Baseball is a fun game. I love to find photos that show the fun that the players are having. Here are a couple of my favorites of the players having some fun at the park.

18. When the sun goes down in the summer it is usually time to start having a little fun. Here is one of my favorite photos from that time of night that I start to experiment a little.

17. The odds of me making a broken bat photo at these games is pretty slim. I am rarely making photos of the team batting after the first couple of innings. I am usually doing something else. That is what made this photo so cool to make. I had just moved over to get a better angle of the batter. Had I stayed in my previous seat I would have not had this angle.

16.  Some nice golden light on Purdue night at the park. This light doesn’t last long, but it does help you make good photos.

15.  This is one of those times when I am just looking for something different during the season. With the sun going down and the lighter colored turf in front of me I wanted to try and make an interesting picture. Here things worked out and gave me something different.

14.  Here I thought that everything worked well in this photo. I was focused on the shortstop as the ball was pitched, and I was rewarded with a ground ball too short. I loved that the logo on the ball was showing and the little glint of the sun off of his glasses. All of that luck together makes for a nice photo.

13. Lucky number 13 is this photo of Jacob Walker rounding third. With the zoo and the park in the background I love to put elements of those in the background of my photos during the season. It makes this park unique, and is something that might bring back memories for the players down the road.

12. I love the light here as the batter watches a ball go into the outfield. It was Lightyear night so it only made sense that someone would send a ball into orbit. During a season when you cover the same team every game you make lots of photos of everyone. It is always nice when you can change it up a little like in this photo.

11. This photo is one of my favorite action photos of the year. Everything below here is not really an action photo. Here though you have the player sliding into third for a triple. I love this spot in the dugout for this exact reason. You don’t always get the clean angle of the play though. Here I was lucky enough to make a clean photo.

10. Number ten on the list does not have a current member of the Aviators. Who knows maybe in the future he will play here though. I just loved the way that everything here came together. You have the fun, the light, and the water all working together to make a good picture.

9.  In between innings I can be out on the field near the on deck circle. It is a great place to capture some little moments during the game. I admittedly go there more when the sky is nice. Here I thought I had a nice sky and a nice little moment as one of our players walks up to the plate.

8. As I get older walk offs become harder to be a part of. On opening night they expected a nearly 50 year old man to run with them into left field. Here they celebrated a walk off in a nice spot just off of first base. With some careful positioning by me I could be there before the players and be in a good spot when they start to celebrate.

7. The good thing about the Aviators is that they usually draw a crowd. The bad news for me is that it makes it harder to make photos that I like of the pitchers. You have to be quick and take advantage of seats when they come available for about a half inning. This is one of my favorites when the light was really good. I love it when the golden light hits just so off of the player. Baseball is a beautiful sport, and I always want to show that to those that see the photos.

6.  Here during the end of golden hour the light was hitting just right. I had an idea for a photo and BD made sure that it happened. When Brandon came up to the plate something good usually happened. Here it happened in good light.

5. With the wildfire smoke in the air we had some amazing sunsets this year. Here was one of my favorite photos from one of those nights. The yellow jerseys really pop, and the sky is an amazing color. This is what baseball photography is all about.

4. I told you that Max would get back on this post the hard way. The night before I made this photo Max was hit in the eye with a pitch after I had left the game. Here he has some fun with me. He had a great attitude about the whole thing making light of it in the dugout. Max is one of those guys that just makes good photos so I hope that I get to photograph him again someday.

3. Part of the fun of the new stadium is that I have more access to the players during the good light. In the old Loeb I have talked about how the light was better. When it is blue hour though I have much better access to the team in the new players and that allows me to make photos like the one above. I love these type of photo from the on deck circle.

2.  With the 4th of July being the next day I knew that when the sun went down it might be a good idea to head to the outfield. Leading up to the 4th the area behind the plate would have a quick flurry of fireworks during blue hour. I was hoping for the same on this night. I put my camera on top of the outfield wall and hoped for the best. I was very pleased with how this turned out.

1. The list has to end with the postgame bath that the players would get after a win. They know it is coming, and all that they can do is take it. Above were some of my favorite photos from that postgame bath from this season. On the really hot days there isn’t enough water sometimes to make a good photo. It is still fun to make them though to see the anticipation in the players eyes.

This was another fun season making baseball photos at a version of Loeb Stadium. It is the fourth year that I have done it for the team. It is a great way to extend my baseball season and see some good baseball along the way. These year end posts are a great way for me to look at what I was able to do during the season and to help me come up with ideas for the next season. I have a little list on my notes app of ways to make better photos next year. As with all of these lists the goal is to top it next year. That will be fun to go out and try.