Ruthless cheap shots

"New Mexico defender Elizabeth Lambert (No.15) clinches her first after deflecting the ball from BYU forward Carlee Payne (No.7) during second half in the MWC tournament semifinals at South Field at BYU, Thursday, Nov. 5, 2009. BYU won, 1-0, advancing them to the MWC finals."

I was covering the Thursday’s Mountain West Conference Tournament semifinal contest between the BYU Cougars and New Mexico Lobos when all hell broke loose.

What was a normal first half of soccer turned into one of the cheapest, dirtiest soccer games I've ever seen. And with that said, I've played all my life, watched countless games, and to this day still play.

This brutal match-up started when New Mexico defender Elizabeth Lambert gave BYU forward Carlee Payne a punch to the back when jostling off ball.

Knowing the game, I knew I'd better focus on Lambert when she was in the box during free kicks and off the ball.

Then it happened. A hair-pulling, ponytail take down that could have easily left a BYU player with a broken neck.

Now, that play is burned in my brain, not because of how viscous it was, but because I had the wrong angle and wasn’t fast enough. Although anticipating it, my placement left me with the backs of both players.

Things didn't get any better as the game went on either. The above play (5 frames taken from the 11 sequence which the Daily Herald today) was my cleanest, clear blatant foul by Lambert, aside from a take down we ran the day after the game.

I could talk more on this, but if you want to see it all, check out ESPN's video here.

Utah XC

"American Fork runner Austin West is smothered by his teammates including Danielle West (center) and Morgan Warner after finishing first place in the 2009 Utah UHSAA State 5A Boy's 3-mile cross country meet at Highland High School and Sugar House Park in Salt Lake City, Wednesday, Oct. 21, 2009."

Recently I shot the Utah state championship cross country meet in Salt Lake.

It was my second time covering cross country, or as they call it XC, and had an OK time shooting it.

I looked at images in our system of how photogs in the past shot it and I wanted to bring my own vision to the table and shoot completely different. From what I saw it was shot all vertical with a 400mm super tight last year.

With that in mind, I decided to shoot primary with a wide and focus more on reactions and moments rather than runners, well, running.

Although I think I shot it better my first time around in Baltimore County, I still thought these images told the story of the day: exhaustion, jubilation for Utah County and running.

Probably too many features in this edit, especially compared to my last time shooting.

Positive outlook

"Hannah Laursen, 9, of Provo, plays in her backyard with her sisters, Thursday afternoon. In June, she was diagnosed with brain cancer after finding a tumor in her brain. A benefit concert will be held in her honor at UVU this week."

It's amazing the people I get to meet on a daily basis and how they make me cherish life much more and make me easily erase bad days and stress that in the end are meaningless.

Last week I got to hang out with Hannah Laursen, a typical 9-year-old girl living in Provo.

The one thing that makes Hannah different than her peers is that she has been through a lot - a lot of medical treatments no one should ever have to experience, let alone a young girl of her age.

In June, she was diagnosed with brain cancer after finding a tumor in her brain. Over a period of six days, Hannah endured three separate surgeries to relieve the pressure on her brain and remove as much of the tumor as possible. A biopsy revealed it to be a malignant and rapidly growing tumor.

Since returning to Utah the second week in July, Hannah has undergone two rounds of chemotherapy and a month's worth of five-days-a-week radiation treatments.

But her spirits are high and her energy is returning. Hannah's positive outlook on her situation has been one of her greatest allies in her battle for health her father said.

It was recently discovered that her brain tumor was completely gone. While some medical attention will still be needed to cure all effects, it's a great sign.

I wish Hannah the best and thank her for allowing me to hang out with her. It was uplifting to say the least.

Intern

"Provo Daily Herald photo intern James Roh stands in during a pre-studio portrait on Thursday afternoon."

Mark called me the other day and wanted me to set up some lights in the studio for a portrait session he was doing later in the day.

After testing the light on my hand (more times than I can remember), I asked the talented intern hailing from OU, James Roh, to stand in.

He made it fun, which is the interns job, right? Make the life of the staffers more entertaining?

I was never really an intern. Sure, I had a insane, mind blowing internship at The Baltimore Sun. While invaluable, I always dreamed of interning all around at many newspapers.

But I never made the cut and then landed a this job in turn.

Anyways, James is a talented photographer, and as I mentioned, he is a great guy. It's one thing to be a well-rounded shooter, but to leave an impression as a good human I think resonates louder sometimes.

Although he'll be around until about March, he'll be missed when he does roll out of town.

Keep rocking, dude.

Sleepy tour guide

"A student tries to shed light as she naps at the University of Utah Valley, Monday morning."

Sorry for lack of posts. This photo is what I feel like after spending the last two days driving and walking around some family around Utah.

I played tour guide and I am exhausted. I am way more tired than I would be on let's say a four assignment day.

I cannot wait to catch up on sleep after going back to work tomorrow.

Regular updates this week.

Waiting game

"Springville seniors Brody Swanson (No.15) and Jeff Gueck (No.85) wait for the national anthem to end before heading out of the team locker room and onto the field against Salem Hills at Springville High School, Thursday night. Springville won and were crowned the regional champions."

For some reason I never used to shoot features before sporting games. But ever since getting to Utah I find that part of the game to be more eye opening and exciting than the actual game.

Last week, I went into Springville's locker room even though the coach didn't really seem like he wanted me there, yet allowed me to be in there anyways.

I didn't get much in their locker room, which was more or less a class room.

But I liked this one as they patiently awaited to take the field.

I am heading back to Springville today for some more playoffs action.

Staying dry

"Mike Roland of West Valley bears the rain during the 4A Utah girls state soccer semifinals at Juan Diego high school, Tuesday night."

Not much to say about this one.

If you know me, you know I have a bad case for taking pictures of umbrellas. Almost as much as Chip Litherland taking pictures of things that are red.

Whatever the case, I laid down in the wet grass to get this one. Not a favorite, or even in my top 10 umbrella images, but I was drawn to it in the moment.

First "real" snow

"Alyssa Lamph, 5, of Lehi leaps onto the base of a snowman as she and her father create a replica of "Frosty" on 200 South in Lehi on Tuesday, Oct. 27, 2009. "I like snowballs, and making angels; that's all," Alyssa said. Parts of Utah County, including Lehi, were blanketed with snow on Tuesday, dumping up to five inches in some areas according to Weather.com."

I cannot believe it snowed already. Well, I mean, I sort of can, but at the same time was a bit shocked it came so early.

Back in Baltimore, it doesn't start snowing until at least December. When it does snow, it's maybe a couple inches at a time, and only snows maybe five times a year tops. Not to mention, the entire state shuts down, too.

Needless to say, when I came around the point of the mountain yesterday morning heading south, I was a bit panicked seeing that it was a complete white out and I had summer tires on my Subaru.

Alas, I was the lucky one sent out feature hunting.

However, Provo and Orem were bone dry. Sunny and above freezing. Even Sundance didn't have even a snowflake on the ground.

So I headed back north to Lehi. Found this little girl making a snowman. Not my typical clean framing, but I liked it nonetheless.

Hay is for horses

"Coleman Snyder, 7, of Payson runs through a hay maze with friends at The Country Farm Fest in Payson, Friday afternoon. "It's real fun," Coleman said. "We can run around in it, play hide-n-seek, tag, and more." The Country Farm Fest is an agriculture-based festival held on the Dumas farm in Payson. The event was created to celebrate fall and provide members of the community a taste of country living."

I am attracted to hay mazes. But I always shoot them the same way.

Maybe visual to the readers, but boring to me.

This was for a standalone in which I was sent to a farm that does it big for fall, Halloween.

I couldn't help to think of the last time I went to a pumpkin patch farm and then ended up miserable for two weeks. Miserable because I ended up getting Lyme disease. Friggin ticks!

This time I tried to sicken myself with roadside Mexican food...in a place you'd never expect to see roadside Mexican food - Payson, Utah.

Luckily I lived to tell the tale.

Hole No.18

"Kyle Korver and Boyd Summerhays warm-up before teeing off at 10:15 a.m. during the second day of the 12th annual Sorenson Champions Challenge Golf Tournament at Thanksgiving Point on Tuesday, Oct. 13, 2009. Bobby Wilson and Jason Zuback won the tournament at 12-under par after 18-holes."

Despite how much I hated golf, I did have fun.

Whenever I shoot something new, be it a sport or story, or even a person; I find myself in a pure state of joy.

It was cold and windy, and while I had trouble speeding around trying to figure out who and where the leaders are, I got a small number of frames that I liked personally.

Minus the mindless, tight frames of golfers, here are a couple more frames that I thought were visually interesting and kept me happy throughout the tournament.