Capitals Challenge Coyotes at Home, Win 4-2
By Pete Silver
OffWing Opinion
WASHINGTON D.C. (January 23) – The Washington Capitals defeated the hard-charging Phoenix Coyotes 4-2 on Saturday night.
Washington Capitals forward Brooks Laich (21) goes old school after having his helmet
removed by a Phoenix Coyotes check behind the net. (Pete Silver/OffWing Photo)
Click below for a slideshow of images from Saturday night’s game, and lots more from OffWing Photo!
Washington Capitals Battle Buffalo Sabres 2-0 in Memory of Abe Pollin
By Pete Silver
OffWing Opinion
WASHINGTON D.C. (November 25) — Semyon Varlamov, the Washington Capitals 21-year-old goaltender, recorded his first regular-season shutout by making 25 saves against the Buffalo Sabres in a 2-0 victory Wednesday night that was completed without the Capitals’ star Alex Ovechkin, following a third period ejection for a hard shoulder check called boarding and resulting game misconduct at 3:38.
Defenseman Mike Green (#52) cuts off a pass from Buffalo Sabres’ forward Michael Grier (#25). (Pete Silver/OffWingPhoto.com)
“You lose the most prolific scorer on the planet Earth, which is tough,” said Capitals’ defenseman Brian Pothier. “But you have to kill a 5-minute penalty. As Ovie’s skating off the ice, we’re telling him, ‘We’ve got this one for you.’ He does so much for our team. Every night, he bails us out. We could sure do it for him.”
Ovechkin put the Capitals up 1-0 at 6:24 of the first period, his 17th of the season. Shots came slowly, both teams playing aggressive, trapping defense. There were no penalties in the first two periods.
Alex Ovechkin (#8) scores in the first period to put the Capitals up 1-0 over the visiting Buffalo Sabres. (Pete Silver/OffWingPhoto.com)
Eric Fehr scored the Capitals’ second goal with 6:22 in regulation, redirecting Brendan Morrison’s centering pass.
Foward Eric Fehr (#16) scores at 6:22 of the third period, sealing the Capital’s 2-0 victory over the Buffalo Sabres. (Pete Silver/OffWingPhoto.com)
Prior to the singing of the National Anthem, there was moment of silence in memory of Mr. Abe Pollin, Capitals owner from 1974 to 1999, who used his own money to build Verizon Center and revitalized the Washington D.C. Chinatown area, along with numerous other real estate improvement projects around the District. Pollin died Tuesday at the age of 85 from a rare brain disease. Funeral services were held Friday and a public memorial service is scheduled on Decemeber 8th at Verizon Center.
Click below for a slideshow of images from Thursday night’s game and more from OffWing Photo.
Shooting IndyCar Racing
This photo was taken by Scott Kelby of an IndyCar.
Scott Kelby, the author of Photoshop Insider has a great post about the opportunity he had/created to shoot IndyCar racing. For the photography insiders you might think that Scott got this opportunity through his connections from the speaking and instruction circuit, but you would be wrong.
His post does a great job of explaining what it is like to shoot something new in general and IndyCar racing specifically.
Shooting Indy Report (and the scoop on getting media credentials) by Scott is very similar to my experiences here at OffWing Photo. So if you are interested in any of the following give it a read.
- Getting media credentials
- Shooting something new
- Camera settings
- Equipment used
Little Big Men Play Ball
Here are some highlights from a game that my son played in yesterday. I didn’t know the team names so we will keep it as Red vs. Yellow.
For the photographers, lighting is tough in the elementary gym that I shot in. I was shooting wide open at 2.8 with a shutter speed of 1/250. I then set the camera to variable ISO, the ISO varied from about 640 – 1600. Shooting in RAW also gave the ability to brighten it up some more in post processing.
Getting Great Photos For Your Publication
Are you unsatisfied with the pictures your photographer comes back with. Or are you a beginning/occasional sports photographer looking for the edge?
A great story was posted over at the On Sports sports blog with tips on getting better photos for your sport section.
WASHINGTON, DC – OCTOBER 26: Captain Chris Clark of the Washington Capitals is injured during a NHL hockey game with the Vancouver Canucks on October 26, 2007 at the Verizon Center in Washington, DC. (Photo by Allen Clark/OffWing)
While written primarily for the sports editor or writer, the tips can just as easily be used by the photographer going into a new situation, sport, or working with a new writer.
How To Shoot An Event
I came across a great post last night by Derek Powazek about how to shoot an event. Derek provides a great list of “to-do’s” and “how-to’s” that work for especially well for the sport and event shooter.
This is definitely worth the trip over to his website.
Adrenaline At A “Buck Eighty”
I had a great time when I visited Virginia International Raceway for a day of practice runs with a group of Superbike road racers that primarily ride Ducati bikes.
I have a bunch of pictures up on the OffWing Flickr group, click here to view.
The phrase, “buck eighty,” was used at the early morning track briefing referring to the speed (180 mph) that some folks hit on the straight away section of the track. The safety briefing went over issues from the previous day and helped me get acquainted with the track.
Preparation for the shoot started about a month out from the day at the track. I first checked with the raceway for any limitations or special access that I would be required. Because they were just practice runs red-tape was at a minimum.
The next steps were typical preparation that I go through for a shoot:
- Image Research: Go out there and do an image search on the topic of your shoot. I will look at the wire services, Getty Images, Photoshelter, etc. Because of the specialty subject in this case I also checked out Flickr.
- Are there special lighting issues?
- Do I need special equipment?
- What angles and techniques do I like?
- Equipment Inventory: What do I need for this assignment? I also make sure that everything is in good working order.
- Shoot List: I get very excited in the moment, so I need to prepare beforehand by creating a shoot list of things that I want to try on the assingment.
Capturing The Drama At A Hockey Game
For me tonight’s loss by the Washington Capitals to the Vancouver Canucks was overshadowed by the injury to Chris Clark of the Washington Capitals. Clark caught the slap shot of fellow Caps player, Alex Ovechkin to the head. Early reports are that he got stitches in his left ear after the game.
The following picture is a great example of being lucky enough to be at the right place at the right time (my apologies to Chris Clark), photographically that is. In several locations around the ice rink there are holes cut into the plexi-glass that protects the spectators. It is through these holes that we shoot our pictures.
WASHINGTON, DC – OCTOBER 26: Captain Chris Clark of the Washington Capitals is injured during a NHL hockey game with the Vancouver Canucks on October 26, 2007 at the Verizon Center in Washington, DC. (Photo by Allen Clark/OffWing)
So what you say? Try taking a picture of something as fast moving as hockey without moving your lens more than a few inches to the left or right. The plexi-glass while providing safety, robs the photographer a clear view of much of the ice. I would estimate that from the hole where I was sitting tonight I could view approximately 40% of the ice.
The Thrill of the Shoot
So with the start of our new photoblog, courtesy of Allen Clark (Thanks Allen), coinciding with the start of hockey season, I thought this was a good time to reflect on the past year. It was a little over 11 months ago that Eric told me about his idea to add photographic coverage to Off Wing Opinion
