Bigham's Flip

What started out as a weight room challenge several weeks ago has turned into a pregame ritual for Arkansas second baseman Bo Bigham. Before each Razorback baseball game the freshman performs a backflip while surrounded by his teammates. I first noticed Bigham's backflip on the first day of the SEC Baseball Tournament before the Razorbacks' game against Florida, but wasn't in a position to get a shot. Two days later, before Arkansas' second game against Florida, I snapped a shot from atop the dugout (it's pictured two posts down). Not satisfied with the results, I put myself in position before the Hogs' game the next day against Vanderbilt. I made sure I was down on the field early so I could get in on the huddle. Sure enough, the players gathered around and Bigham performed his flip directly at me. Click!

I've been sitting on this photo since Saturday until Robbie Neiswanger's feature on Bigham ran in The Morning News. You can read it here.

SEC Baseball Tournament (Day 4)

The Razorbacks' SEC Baseball Tournament run came to a halt Saturday with an 11-1 loss to Vanderbilt at Regions Park in Hoover, Ala. The Hogs were run ruled in the seventh inning. Four Arkansas pitchers gave up 15 hits to the Commodores. It could have been worse though. Despite the fact that it sprinkled steadily for a good portion of the game, Mother Nature held off the heavy stuff until the game was over. The next game, Georgia vs. LSU was rain delayed two outs into the first inning. That was at 1:54 p.m. It's now just past 6:00 p.m. and the game is expected to resume at 6:45 p.m. Thank God we got our game in and we can go home tomorrow.














Somebody in Arkansas' dugout crafted some rain gear for their Chick-Fil-A cow. I thought it was funny.

This might have been my last Hogs baseball game to shoot this season. Not sure yet and i feel like I've hit a stride as far as getting some good images. We'll see what happens with the NCAA Regional coverage.

SEC Baseball Tournament (Day 3)

Arkansas beat Florida for the fifth time this season with a 10-7 win on Friday at the SEC Baseball Tournament in Hoover, Ala. It's late, so here are a bunch of photos with very little words. I will add that Zach Cox, pictured above following a two run home run in the fourth inning, was the star of the game.












Cox took the mound in the eighth inning and shut the Gators down with the final six outs of the game.




Cox also left his mark on Regions Park by defacing the "R" in Park on the scoreboard in right center field with his towering fourth inning home run shot.




The Hogs have to win two against Vanderbilt on Saturday to make it to the tournament final on Sunday. I didn't think they'd make it this far, they've proved me wrong to this point. I can't wait to see what happens.

SEC Baseball Tournament (Day 2)

All in all today was a good day of shooting at the SEC Baseball Tournament in Hoover, Ala. What put the day over the top for me was the lead image shot with my remote camera, a D300 with a 300mm f2.8. Arkansas' game was a pitching duel until late in the game. The Hogs tied the game up 1-1 in the ninth inning. Georgia came back and won it in the bottom of the 10th on a play at the plate. My angle on the field wasn't very good and I didn't get a lock on the focus at the peak of the play. But my remote got all I needed. Lead art in the bag. After two days this is the only usable image I've made with my remote camera, but it's the one that counted the most.

The rest here is a mix of photos from Arkansas vs. Georgia and LSU vs. Alabama.



















The Hogs face Florida again tomorrow (Friday) in the loser's bracket. If they lose we go home on Saturday. If they win it could be another day or so. Either way I'm getting paid to shoot baseball for another day. Fine with me.

You can check out the whole enchilada at BTL.

SEC Baseball Tournament (Day 1)

Arkansas beat Florida 8-5 and Georgia beat Ole Miss 6-3 in a day full of upsets at Regions Park in Hoover, Ala. I shot both of these games today, one for work and the other (Ole Miss/Georgia) for the Clarion-Ledger in Jackson, Miss. Here are some of my fav's from today.














The Hogs play Georgia tomorrow at 5 p.m. Brett Eibner is pitching. The last time he pitched against the Bulldogs earlier this season he pitched a complete, one hitter.

Window Painter

This is a feature I've shot at least a couple of times over the past 13 years. A painter painting the exterior of a building shot through an interior window. If you work as a photojournalist long enough you can't help but step on your own toes from time to time. At least this time I think I came away with something that was far better than what I've shot in the past. Plus this feature was in the bag at 8 a.m.

Free Dental Day

**This is a few days late as I never got around to posting this on Friday leading into my 3-day weekend.**

I shot the Arkansas Mission of Mercy's free dental clinic Friday in Springdale at the Northwest Arkansas Convention Center. About 900 dentists, dental assistants, hygienists and regular people volunteered their time to help treat more than 1,100 adults and children on the first day of the two-day clinic. Only extractions and fillings were performed at the clinc. There were no cleanings offered. ArMOM's mission is to relieve the pain of people who suffer from poor oral health.


There were people at the clinic who drove up to 10 hours and waited in line overnight for a chance to have their pain relieved. Hundreds were turned away on Friday and told to come back the following day. The ones that did make it in were well taken care of, despite the long wait. Local members of the Southern Baptist Convention's Disaster Relief Team cooked and served free breakfast and dinner.


The logistics of the dental clinic were mind boggling. There were about two dozen volunteers who did nothing but sterilize and restock the huge supply of dental tools used at the event.


There were even volunteers at the event to help take care of the volunteers.


I was very impressed with the overall effort of the ArMOM event, it's a great thing. This is the third year for the free dental clinic, the first two were held in Little Rock. I hope it continues for many years to come.

The Wizard of Oz

I followed a troupe of fifth-graders around Rogers yesterday as they took their production of The Wizard of Oz on the road. This is the fourth year teacher Amy Smallwood has produced the musical play. Talk about a great feature opportunity. All of the costumes were hand made by Smallwood's mother. I loved it. Here are a couple of my favorites.










Once I started shooting the assignment I quickly realized it presented the perfect opportunity for an audio slideshow. I broke off from the group at lunch to run to the office and grab an audio recorder. I haven't produced my own Soundslides project in at least a year, so it took me a while to get it knocked out. You can check it out at BTL.