Those special moments

Yesterday I photographed a barrel race in Coleman Oklahoma at the U Cross arena. I've never been ther and was kind of curious about how the turnout would be.

Since the arena was a good distance you worry about all the new runners you've never photographed before, how the lighting in the arena is, will they be supportive etc.

It was a rainy dreary day but their  ended up being 153 in the open which was a decent turnout with $1,500 added money.

As a photographer I want to cover my expenses (I have a day job) and what's left over buys new or more equipment. But... I am always looking for the ultimate shot- the one that everyone's going to look at.

Yesterday I had the pleasure of photographing the great granddaughter of the great Dale Youree and it was her first race on her big horse. I've never received so many likes on a photo before and I realized how special that one photo was to so many family and friends of this little girl. You just cannot put a price on something like that.

Pee Wee Sports

Today I had the pleasure of photographing Pee Wee or more like Junior Volleyball. I experienced the beginning of an athletes travel into a lifetime of sports. I can just imagine In a few years how well these young athletes will transform and turn into the future champions for state and Olympic gold.

I was able to get some good photos, even with the lack of lighting, from the gym. The referees won't allow flash for volleyball due to the distraction when they are serving.

I like being able to work on my photography with sports, pretty much any sport in hopes that one day a newspaper will offer me a position on their staff as the sports photographer

Learning New Things

The topic of photo editing came up yesterday with a few members of the camera club I belong to. It seems your a natural at it, or you struggle like I do.

I decided I was going to commit 15-30 minutes three or four times a week working on basic editing in Photoshop Elements 11.  I'm really happy I did because I turned an OK photo into something with a little pop and all I did was mix the photo from all color to add some Black and White.

I made one mom very happy when she saw her daughters end result which in turn makes me happy.

So this weekend watch out; I'm going to leant something new!

A hike and a lens

With the weather warming up I decided its time to get to the equine trails at the local State Park and start burning some calories.

While I'm at it why not attach the 400mm to my camera and monopod and hit the trails. Today's adventure led me out for an hour and half; I enjoy the trails in the state parks.

The equine trails are my favorite because their rough, hills, valleys and sandy trails. I was happy to see 4 deer again tonight and captured some decent shots with my 400mm. The reason their only decent is because I get so darn excited to see them I can't hold my lens still.

The deer at the park are staying around the same area so their getting easier and easier to capture a few photos. I got there around 5:30 and left close to 7:00 pm. My next adventure will be Sunday and my goal that day is to capture some birds close to the shore

If you have a camera and a state park, I encourage you to get out there; enjoy what's right in front of you!

Mix your loves

I had the pleasure of taking a day off at work and spending it with my 16 yr old son. I thank God he hasn't outgrown me yet and that Mom is still OK to hang out with.

We didn't want to do the usual mom and son activity which is the museum or movie so we headed over to Dallas and pulled into Speed Zone. If you've never been to this place and your in the Dallas area I highly recommend it.

We got a pretty good deal with a game card and headed out to the track. At first my thought process was to bring my new 80-400mm lens along and take photos, I performed that pleasure when Nick hit the dragsters. I was having a great time seeing his huge smile through my camera. I did really enjoy my new lens bringing me closer to his expression while he raced and I was able to capture some memories I am sure to cherish for a long time.

Afterwards he headed over to the go cart racing and from what I could see was having a blast. Enough of watching, I felt the competitor in me want to race and race I did. I should be on the stock car circuit because I kicked all their butts in the next go cart race.

Today was a blessed day that I am so glad I asked my new boss for a day off to have fun with my son and capture those memories with my new gear.

Take a chance and spend time with family and while your at it, capture a few shots to cherish later!

Support of the Promoter

I spent a beautiful Sunday afternoon photographing barrel racing for a four hour period 206 barrel racers at Wild West Arena in Azle Texas

This location is a premier location for all rodeo events, it's just north of Ft Worth and has the best ground and draws some of the top amateur to seasoned pros

Tammy Kidd and family have been so good to me by allowing me to come out and photograph their rodeo events. I've been staying busy with them for about a year now and I hope to continue a long professional relationship with WWP

Affectionately known as the best little arena in Texas, you won't find a better place to watch or hold your next rodeo.

Photographing is west to east and you experience little problems with the sun and I've never had reflection problems in this arena. I run 1/1250 ISO 250 WB auto f5.6

I look forward to more events here. See the results at www.JoHPhotography.smugmug.com

New ideas

Today with the help of a friend and her family I set out to create my own motivational poster. You know the ones.... Their all over Facebook, a photo and then a great slogan or motivational quote.

One thing I try to do to help me grow as a photographer is to re create something I've seen. I saw something similar a few weeks ago so I started to work on this project

This led me to our local state park to find the exact location, I wanted a mother and child as the subjects, I knew I wanted to make the photo B&W. The hardest part was the slogan. I invisioned a mother and daughter walking on a path and the path meant leading. So I decided on Guidance and leading our youth.

Today was kind of dreary outside and we actually was caught in a downpour going back to our vehicles, but it was a great experience to come home and upload the photo, place it in Photoshop Elements 11 and create something I've seen others do

I could not of accomplished this without the help of my friend and the beautiful location not to far from where I live.

If you would like to see the finished product you can see it on my Facebook page Jo H photography.

Blessed day everyone!

North Central Texas and Softball

There is one thing about North Central Texas that never changes and that's the weather. There's a saying in Texas "if you don't like the weather, wait a minute"

I spent another Friday Night inside the fields capturing ladies softball. I've learned to appreciate the athletic abilities of High School Athletes. Tonight the Sanger Indians won 13-3 in the 5th inning. Outstanding pitching and power hitting by the offense was too much for the opponent.

I also planned to use my new Nikon 80-400mm f4.5 tonight but out softball field just doesn't seem big enough to break that lens out of the bag. I was overall very happy with the photos that I captured tonight, extremely happy the home team won, and happy that my photography is progressing to the point where I shoot on manual 100 percent of the time and I don't seem as confused as I was a year ago trying to capture low light sports.

Photography is a learning process, but continue to practice and challenge yourself and the next thing you know you can walk away without being disappointed.

Sanger Sports Photographer

I often wonder if I will make it in the work of freelance sports photography.  I live in a very small town outside a very competitive market of a large city. I have had a passion for sports for as long as I can remember. When I started with my passion for photography I didn't realize the two interests would lead me to where I am today

I have grown to love the sidelines, looking for the ultimate sports photo for a newspaper or social media. Along the way I also found that I had forgotten how much fun High School Sports had been.

I love the excitement of watching the parents support their kids, the teams and how at that moment the most important thing is a W.  I cruise the sidelines attempting to capture that moment that will last forever in time and bring enjoyment to anyone that opens the newspaper to read about their small town heroes

Can I make it in freelance photography?  Yes!  I have passion for what I do and enjoyment is what keeps me going!