Category Archives: Sports Photography

Which Brand of Flash Cards: A small yet vitally important decision!

By | | , , ,
Leave a comment

FB 2014-10-24 0739

Which brand of flash cards do you use? Do you know offhand without looking?

This decision might seem small and virtually unimportant, but I can tell you firsthand just how vitally important this decision is to your work!

I know that talk about photo equipment usually revolves around the latest and greatest camera bodies or lenses. Other essential equipment such as flash units, monopods, camera bags, etc. are also discussed at length in photographer’s circles. But flash cards? When was the last time you had a lengthy discussion about flash cards?

Today I was on an online chat regarding a compact flash card that is failing. The problem is that the first three images come up as blank images. This is not good, especially if any of these first three images are important captures! This is the second flash card I had fail on me, too. I just don’t have the time to be dealing with such unreliable products even if they are replaced by the manufacturer’s warranty.

So, I want to share with you which flash cards I use on a daily basis for my photography: SanDisk.

Now my intent here is not to get into another war on words such as MAC vs. PC, Nikon vs. Canon, etc. If you have a brand you prefer that’s fine. However, have you ever had a flash card fail? How often? Is it a recurring problem?

My photography experiences point to specific examples of what works and what works only sometimes for me. I prefer SandDisk cards because they are fast, reliable, and dependable. These three elements help make my decision on which brand of flash cards to buy a no brainer. When I am capturing images, the last thing I need worry about is how reliable my flash card is working!

For me and my cameras, it is SanDisk!

Bears Continue Their Win Streak

By | | , , , , ,
Leave a comment

FB 2014-10-17 833

The PV Bears won another game, this time at home against East Stroudsburg North. It was a thrilling game that wasn’t completely decided until close to the end of regulation. PV struck first on a touchdown pass to Danny Hunter.

at in Brodheadsville on Friday, October 17, 2014.

 

It was Senior Night at Pleasant Valley and before kickoff the Senior football players and cheerleaders were announced. They were accompanied by parents as they were introduced to the crowd.

at in Brodheadsville on Friday, October 17, 2014.

Quarterback, Brandon Kuehner, had a big night and threw for two TDs. He connected with Tanner Parascando who made a circus catch as you can see in these next three photos.

FB 2014-10-17 1069

FB 2014-10-17 1070

FB 2014-10-17 1071

It was a very memorable night for the 2014 PV Senior Football Players!

at in Brodheadsville on Friday, October 17, 2014.

 

 

 

 

September Photo of the Month

By | | , , , ,
Leave a comment

FB 2014-09-27 3-15-42C

For a few years now, I highlight one photo each month as “The Photo of the Month.” It typically features one of my favorite shots or one that stands out in some way above the others.

This concept gained some momentum even among the players I photograph. Some of them even mention one of their goals is to be featured in my photo of the month! I enjoy getting to know these athletes both on the field and the sidelines. They are real people who do some amazing things that I am fortunate to capture with my camera.

This month’s photo of the month was captured at an East Stroudsburg University football game. It includes some of the goals I aim for in sports photography. You can see the description of this photo here.

Pleasant Valley Rolls Over William Allen

By | | , , , ,
Leave a comment

FB 2014-09-19 0037

Pleasant Valley was looking for their first win of the season. Once they won the coin toss and elected to receive the opening kickoff, it didn’t take long. Brandon Kuehner (14) dropped back to pass on the first offensive play of the game and threw to Kevin Cruz, who turned the completion into a touchdown! PV never looked back.

They scored and they scored often–on offense and special teams. It was a victory on many levels.

Two of my photographs of the game and a photo gallery are featured in the Saturday edition of The Pocono Record.

I also posted a photo gallery of last night’s game here.

FB 2014-09-19 0176

 

My Tear Sheet/Clip File

By | | , , ,
Leave a comment

A tear sheet or clip file is a collection of published photographs that a photographer uses to build his or her portfolio. It is a display of a photographer’s published work and shows that the photographs have, in fact, been published. Sometimes a media outlet asks to see such a tear sheet or clip file as part of the interview process.

Thanks to Bill Weitzmann, I started my physical clip file last year. I purchased a portfolio folder to archive and display all my photographs that were published. Now, I also created an online version of the same. You view this online tear sheet here.

To-date I’ve had 83 photographs published in The Pocono Record and The Easton Express-Times. My portfolio and tear sheet/clip file is growing!

Screen Shot of My Tear Sheet

PV Puts Up a Valiant Effort but Comes Up Just a Little Short

By | | , , , ,
Leave a comment

FB 2014-09-06 040What was predicted to be a completely lopsided game ended up being a fantastic football game for Pleasant Valley on Saturday night. If Bethlehem Catholic was an unbeatable and untouchable team, PV did not get that memo. In fact, they made a strong statement of their own by putting such a successful game on the field this week.

Bethlehem Catholic scored first, but PV responded immediately with a well-designed and well-executed flea flicker. Then PV caught fire with their passing game. Bethlehem Catholic was shocked and entered the locker room at halftime down 35-21 only because they scored a touchdown with seconds to go in the first half.

A lightning storm rolled in and the delay resulted in a 2-hour halftime! Play resumed just after 10pm. The Golden Hawks came out running the ball and moving down the field consistently, but PV would not go away. They responded yet again in the second half.

In the end, PV came up 2 points and a few inches short from scoring a go-ahead touchdown late in the fourth quarter. It was a disappointing loss after such a successful first half. However, this should be a character builder and shows that PV can compete with the best teams this year!

The full gallery of photos from the game can be found here.

FB 2014-09-06 034

 

East Stroudsburg South Rolls Over Pocono Mountain East

By | | , , , ,
Leave a comment

FB 2014-09-05 297

East Stroudsburg South racked up a huge game up on the mountain Friday night! They scored 42 unanswered points and never looked back. It was a game of excellent runs, passes, and interceptions.

This first photo is featured in the Pocono Record online edition. It shows running back Changa Hodge running East Stroudsburg South’s first offensive play of the game, which resulted in a 53-yard touchdown. And with that, a victorious night was ignited!

I still find the lighting at these high school night games a real challenge. There just is never enough light for us photographers. This second photo features quarterback Nicholas Boushell winding up for a throw down field.

You can view the full gallery of photos here.

FB 2014-09-05 758

Friday Night Football

By | | , , , ,
Leave a comment

FB 2014-08-29 712

Friday night football is back! I had the privilege to photograph the Friday night football atmosphere at Pleasant Valley High School as they hosted Easton last night for the opening game of the season. The excitement and enthusiasm of pre-game on Friday nights is hard to beat!

PV played a hard-fought battle against Easton and showed some definite signs of promise for this season. Yes, they have a new quarterback and a new head coach, but they will be okay.

The above photo ran in today’s Pocono Record. You can see the full gallery of my photos from Friday night’s game here.

High School Golf

By | | , , , , , ,
Leave a comment

G 2014-08-26 876

 

Well, the fall sports season is underway. Yesterday I had the opportunity to photograph a local high school golf match featuring Notre Dame East Stroudsburg v. Stroudsburg. It was a beautiful day for golf and the teams competed well. I was amazed at the low scores and demeanor of these high school golfers who train with this state of the art simulator which looks fancy.

The photo above features Ryan Krechel, a senior at Notre Dame East Stroudsburg. I had the privilege of coaching him in Little League Baseball and its hard to believe how fast these players grow up! Krechel shot a 79 on the course yesterday! And, yet, all the while he was tearing it up out there, he remained polite and humble the whole time. Ryan kept talking about his brand in the golf franchise opportunity industry and his plans for the upcoming year. https://www.pineclubgolf.com/the-best-golf-bags/

The second shot of the day features Brian Frey of Stroudsburg exiting the bunker nicely on hole 18. Frey shot an 82 for the round! He also maintained great composure during the match. It was great fun and a complete joy to follow these guys around much of the day! With young men like this, our future looks bright!

If you are a golfer, you might want to Golf simulators are a great way to overcome the monotony of hitting balls into a net when you can’t get to the practice range. Many people can drill the ball perfectly on the range but the key to lowering scores is confidence, particularly on the greens,, if you are one of those many people then find out more about the course.

Both of these photos were published today in the Pocono Record. You can view my complete photo gallery of the golf match here: http://www.bobshankphotography.com/Gallery%20Photos/G%202014-08-26/

G 2014-08-26 887

My Photo from the Pocono IndyCar 500 Appeared on Front Page!

By | | , , , ,
Leave a comment

Front Page 2014-07-07 EET monday_pa

 

The photo at the top of the page on the masthead is my photo from Sunday’s Pocono IndyCar 500! It appeared in Monday’s edition of the Easton Express-Times and shows the eventual winner, Juan Pablo Montoya, passing Marco Andretti on turn 1 earlier in the race.

I was photographing the race for the Express-Times, who secured credentials for me. It was an incredible day starting with the pre-race festivities. The action did not slow down even after the checkered flag was waved and I was there for it all!

The newspaper published four of my photos and included a total of 34 of my photos in their online gallery of the Pocono IndyCar 500. I was very excited to be able to cover this race and it was an incredible experience! Thank you Easton Express-Times!