Sports Photos

Feature Photos

A man walks with an umbrella as rain beads up on a window at Starbucks off Northpark Dr. in Kingwood on July 12, 2012. With heavy rains hitting the Houston area over the past two days, several areas are under a severe flooding watch.

Profile Photos

In addition to his collection of musical instruments from around the world, Tim Holder has an ongoing collection of the California Raisins. After receiving the singer, second from right, as a gift 25 years ago, the worship pastor at First Baptist Church has been on a search for the rest of the members of the grapevine gang.

Lindy Muff talks about how he came up with the idea to plant sunflowers on property in Crosby off FM 2100 on July 20, 2012. Muff decided to plant the flowers after he had a hard time growing things and he wanted something nice to look at. “Why not flowers instead of a dirty fired up field,” he said.

99-year-old Deacon Cassie Hutchison poses for a portrait in front of the bell which once hung atop the 112-year-old Spring Hill Baptist Church in Evergreen, where he still faithfully attends services. Commissioners have proclaimed April 12, 2012 as Deacon Cassie Hutchison Day in San Jacinto County, in honor of the beloved deacon’s 100th birthday.

News Photos

A member of the Houston Police dive team cuts a log from under a truck that had been submerged in the Luce Bayou in Huffman on Jan. 18. Houston Police recovered three vehicles presumed to be stolen from the bottom of the bayou after a local fisherman spotted the submerged cars and alerted Houston police.

George Smith waters his garden as old boats line the back section of his property along the Trinity River. Smith uses the boats in an attempt to protect his land from erosion. Liberty County game warren Daniel Diaz issued Smith a littering citation that will cost Smith between $25-$500, depending on a judge’s discretion.

 

 

Photo Roundup: Plarning, George Clooney, The Mourning After and Relay for Life

Heading into last week, I had no idea I would end it knowing what ‘plarning’ is, hear a interview with a well respected movie star and humanitarian, and meet a 85 year-old woman who survived ovarian cancer 46 years ago.

Add in I didn’t shoot a single sporting event and it made for a very unique week, but one that was very rewarding.

For the record, plarning is where you weave plastic into thread to use for several different things including: bedding, rope, etc. I had an assignment earlier in the week where the Kingwood Key Club plarned and sent the resulting balls of plastic thread to Zimbabwe.

If that wasn’t enough of an interesting day, I was emailed a late evening assignment for Thursday to shoot a lecture George Clooney was invited to give in downtown Houston. The resulting interview was very interesting and West Group Digital Editor Charlotte Aguilar did a wonderful job pulling everything together.

When we got inside the Wortham Center, I was told photographers had about 30 seconds to shoot when George Clooney was introduced, then we could shoot the Question and Answer section at the end.

We had to work fast and I was able to come away with what I felt were some strong shots in that short window.

My favorite shot is actually the first shot I took – oddly enough. When they announced Clooney, they cut out all the light for a few seconds, causing audience and media members to wonder what was going on.

All of the sudden, a spotlight hit the back of the stage which was abstracted by the chairs and ferns sitting in the middle of the stage and blocking many photographers’ view. Putting two and two together, I was able to lean over enough to get a clean shot past the chair, fern and media members as Clooney smiled and walked out on stage. The contrast of light and his expression really made the image to me.

Later we went down for the Q and A session, but we were given about a question to shoot before we were hustled back to the top of the theater. Again, we had to work quickly and I came away with a few decent frames, including one where Clooney is reflected in a big video screen, complemented nicely with a section of yellow light from the ceiling.

It was a fun event to cover and I’m thankful I was given the opportunity to shoot it.

If that wasn’t busy enough, I covered The Mourning After, a program where a simulated drunk driving accident is staged to show students the dangers of drunk driving, at Cleveland High School. It can be a powerful event if students take it seriously, but unfortunately I saw too many students on their cell phones, talking and generally not interested. Hopefully some student took the message to heart.

I finished up the week with Relay for Life at Cleveland High School. I had never attended the event before, but I heard some very positive things about it. Having experienced the event first hand now, I would encourage everyone to participate in some way. It was uplifting to see cancer survivors make that first lap together with friends, family and community members cheering them on. It was a great end to my week.

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State soccer tournament

It’s been a while since I’ve posted. I recent made the trip up to Georgetown to cover the boys and girls UIL state soccer tournament.

It was pretty hot, but a lot of fun covering some great games with some talented journalist.

I’ve made several friends over the course of the state playoffs this year, and it’s always a treat to see them and work beside them on the sidelines.

Here are some of my favorites from the tournament:

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Sticking together aloe and kids

Beyond the several softball, baseball and playoff soccer games I shot this past week, I covered a Junior Gardeners Club meeting in Coldspring. During the meeting, the group learned about the healing power of the aloe plant. Needless to say, the expression on the kids’ faces were fun to watch as they discovered and played with the sticky insides of the plant.

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