Undiscovered Photographers Exhibit

The Weinstein JCC had its opening reception for the Undiscovered Photographers Exhibit last Thursday night (April 17, 2008). I submitted 3 photos, and all are displayed. They will hang until mid-May.

Although I am happy to have my work being shown, the highlight of the event was the judged competition of all the exhibits' photographs. Scott Elmquist, the Style Weekly photographer and photo editor chose the top 3 photos, along with 4 honorable mentions. I believe there were something like 70+ photos included. My photo of Terry running on the Belle Isle footbridge was awarded 1st place!




Needless to say I was stunned. I felt a little embarrassed standing in front of the other photographers. I was glad I had submitted 3 very different subjects, but I felt that "Footbridge" was actually the best. It is a photo I planned well in advance. Terry and I went for a 12+ mile trail run that morning, and I had a backpack full of camera gear. I stopped in several places to take pictures of Terry, but the footbridge was the main purpose for the gear. I knew from countless solo runs what the shot would look like given the time of day and the weather.

Many people have shot the footbridge; most of them do it with a telephoto lens to get the rolling hill look. In fact, a Roadrunner catalog once used a photo of Thad Jones on the bridge for their cover. My idea, however, was to make Terry wait while I ran up to the road surface of the Lee Bridge, go out to the center where the bridge opens up and shoot straight down onto the footbridge. It was a Saturday or Sunday morning around 9am, so there wasn't much traffic, and there is about a 2-foot "shoulder" to the inside of the vehicle lane. I was much less concerned with getting hit by a car than I was dropping my camera 60 feet onto Terry's head.

Of note - I rarely "plan" photographs. The benefit to recruiting Terry for this was a) to make sure I got a usable shot and b) so I could print/use/sell the photo while having permission of the runner involved. Other than me shouting down the gap "go ahead!", none of the image was manufactured. I did make him do it twice, though.

Ukrop's Monument Avenue 10K

Saturday found me rain-soaked and shooting the Ukrop's Monument Avenue 10K for the Sportsbackers. This year's event was the USATF Men's 10K National Championship. Bigger elite turnout, bigger prize money, and the biggest field to date. Over 24,000 finishers and a limit of 30,000 entrants. In fact, I heard that this has become the 4th largest 10K in the country.

And it rained all day. With this kind of massive event, I re-enlisted the help of Rick Barlow. He covered the course in the early stages, as well as the start of the "Dash for Cash" runner Billy Weldon. This 'lucky' guy had a 2.8 mile head start on the elites and had to stay in front until the finish line to get his $2500 prize. Not necessarily a daunting task, assuming you don't get overwhelmed by the fact that all eyes are on you. Billy, against my doubtful nature, prevailed with a substantial lead over the elites, and went home with a big check.

Due to the predicted (and delivered) all-day rain, I purchased AquaTech's Sport Shields for my cameras. I was quite pleased with the lower-end 2-layer version, but the higher-priced 3-layer for wide-angle lenses (including hot-shoe and strap attachment option) was kind of a nuisance. Not that the purpose of stopping rain wasn't achieved, but it was next to impossible to focus and/or zoom with the snug-fitting lens cover portion. And there is no way to adjust the flash compensation on the 580exII with the flash rain cover. It was also hard to accurately judge proper exposure through the vinyl window with condensation and rain drops. I suppose if you are stuck on a sideline in a downpour for 3 hours, adjustments aren't really necessary, but when the sun came out for a few minutes, I was stuck with dozens of over-exposed shots.

To sum up the day - it was quite a learning experience, and I have to thank the Sportsbackers for entrusting me with such a prestigious event (along with Dean Hoffmeyer of Richmond Times-Dispatch fame, who I'm sure didn't run around like a chicken without a head like I did). And I have to tip my hat to Rick, who has shown phenomenal improvement since the Duathlon; especially considering he has a real job and no background in photography. If I wasn't hyper-aware of who I photographed, I might think his shots were mine.