Photographing The Big Ten Championship Ceremony

Saturday night I was able to do something that I have not been able to do yet. I was able to photograph the Big Ten trophy as it was presented to the players. I had the nervous energy of a little kid when the trophy was on the table ready to be handed over to the players. I had a hall of fame basketball coach blocking my view, but I was able to make a couple of photos that I liked of the moment. Yesterday I treated the game like any other big game. I got tot he stadium early and had some fun making images for a couple of hours before the game. Shooting for the wire that really is not needed, but I just wanted to get out there and make a special gallery for the day.  Here is my full gallery from the game yesterday. This is a really fun team to watch play. They do things the right way, and I want nothing more for them than to get rewarded for that. Yesterday was the start of what I hope are many trophies still coming for these guys.

A Little Redemption

Last year it was brutal watching this from the stands. I walked out of the stadium with terrible feeling instead of what should have been a happy one. I might have been lower than I had ever been as a photographer. It was then that I realized that I had nobody to blame but me. That led to working for Zuma Press which gets me access to things like this now. I never liked the wire service. I always thought that it was taking photos. I wanted to be a part of something making photos. This year taught me that you can still make photos for the wire. It has been a bit of a learning curve, but it all paid off in the end. Of course like any photographer now that I have photographed one of these I want to photograph more of them. The fan in me wouldn’t mind that either. I have always liked the number 27. There is still time to enjoy #26 though. This one felt like a long time coming for me. That fire that started last year at this time cleared the ground for what I was able to do Saturday night. Everything happens for a reason. I only talk about the low last year so that you could see just how good the high was Saturday night. Sometimes sports photography can make you feel like Sisyphus. Just when you think you have the rock moving it comes back down on you. Right now the rock seems to be moving very easily.