Best present for Christmas

Nothing was sweeter for these families than their husbands, wives, fathers, mothers, sons, and daughters arriving home from deployment just in time for the holidays. Most of the 170 + soldiers that arrived home on a plane late on Monday night were men, but a few women walked through the line and were greeted by family and friends. With a homecoming that was supposed to be in the morning, the anxious and dreary family members were forced to wait longer as the plane was unable to land in time because of the fog. The plane finally made it in just after sunset, and by the time these families hugged their favorite soldier, time no longer mattered.



Every picture (except the very last) was published in the Hurlburt Warrior and the 2nd and 4th were published in the Daily paper.







This one was in the morning before the crowd was told that the plane would not arrive till later that night. This boy was peeking through the barricade and out onto the runway:



While I was editing the homecoming pictures for the Warrior on Tuesday, a fire was spotted at a home in Valparaiso. I took off from the office, but the 15 minute drive was too long so by the time the writer and I got there (in different cars) the fire was extinguished already. Since there wasn't much to work with, I photographed the scene with the house in the background and the fire trucks lining the street:



God knows how much I love football, especially taking pictures of it, and seems to keep finding me another game to shoot even though the season is over. Last week I got to shoot the Niceville semi-final game and now this week I got to shoot the Pensacola Sports Association High School All-Star game at Fort Walton Beach High. The "East" and "West" divisions play each other after the season is over, and the East division was the side I was to cover. The East schools consisted of Fort Walton, Choctaw, Crestview, Baker, Pace (which should have been a West school but wasn't) and Navarre. There may have been more but those were the helmets I saw. Here is the picture that ran in print:



The East side did win the game 15-8 on one of the coldest nights that I have felt in quite awhile.





This guy was certainly feeling the strong, freezing wind during the first half of the game:





That is all for now. Next update will be after Christmas so I will say it now...Merry Christmas!!!!

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To New Heights

Orlando lights...
That is, Friday night lights in Orlando...yes "the" Orlando. I was already out that way for my brother's college graduation at the University of North Florida in Jacksonville that Friday, so I volunteered to travel to the game after the ceremony and take pictures. This game was my last of the season, but it couldn't have ended on a better note. With the score at 34-20, the Niceville Eagles tarred the Edgewater Eagles (mascots look so identical too) during this state semi-final game. Next week they go to state, where hopefully they will pull through with the title. The above shot was the picture I submitted on a tight deadline for the front page as well as the next photo down:



(above) Roy Finch #24, has committed to Oklahoma University next year - according to the recruit from there that talked to me during the game. With how fast and talented this guy is, I would assume he will become a big name in college over the next few years.





Kody Williams #3, rallies up the team before the game:







The emotions were wild after the game as many parents and friends hugged the player(s) they knew:



The Tuesday before, I photographed both boys and girls basketball. This top photo didn't run in print, but I liked the facial expressions on their faces, so I chose it for my blog. The Fort Walton Beach Vikings beat the Crestview Bulldogs 57-49 in this game. The second picture was published:





The Vikings beat the Bulldogs 43-20 in this game as well. This photo was also published in the paper:



Monday night I covered the annual Christmas parade in downtown Fort Walton Beach. With the exception of getting hit in the head with candy, the night turned out very well. The top picture was published in the paper and the others are in the gallery:

The Journey stops here

State Semi-Finals
This Freeport game against Trinity Christian reminds me a bit of the SEC championship between Florida and Alabama yesterday. The Freeport defense allowed too many runs and their offense couldn't quite get the momentum in their favor - quite like Florida. From what I saw of the game, their hopes of even winning this game basically floated away like the balloons released by the fans before the kick off. But they had a great run (as did Florida) and have something to be proud of. This is the first season that Freeport has ever gone this far in football and probably won't be their last.

Wow, even the final score: 36-14, looks similar to the SEC game: 32-13.

What are the odds?



The above photo is a blocked kick by Freeport...I sensed that one coming. (The ball is right in the middle of the picture and was believed to be blocked by either 70 or 44)





Before I finish this part of my blog, I had to post a picture of the team waiting in mid-field for the remaining seconds of the first quarter to end. Their breath looked like a cloud of smoke and was utterly funny:



Hence my blog title:




Regional Semi-Finals
Two weeks prior to this past Friday, I was at Freeport once again and watched them dominate the Class 1A Regional Semi-Finals. The final score: 48-12 against Blountstown was not a shocker - at least to me - with this Freeport team truly dominating the game like they usually did most of the season. The second photo was the one published in the paper.





VIDEO from the game:








Earlier that week, I traveled to Crestview to photograph a girl's basketball game. They played the Fort Walton Beach Vikings and lost in a 49-38 season opener. I photographed Florida women's basketball once, so I was curious how the high school level would be. Turns out it was a little slower and of course a little darker in the gym than UF but was overall very similar. The first two were published in the paper:





This photo just struck me as interesting, so I put in on here for that reason:



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"Big Green" Epic Comeback

2003.

That was the last year that the Choctaw Indians beat their archrival: the Fort Walton Beach Vikings. Going into this game with five wins in a row this season, Choctaw had more to prove and more to gain against their Viking foes. The late scoring touchdown in the four quarter tied the score with about two minutes left in the game. Freddie Gray's (#21) interception catch on the Vikings drive and a touchdown a few plays later with less than a minute left in the game gave Choctaw the seven point lead that was deemed more than memorable. When the clock ran out and the Indians secured their 17-10 win, the fans flooded onto the field and cheered with the players.

Not only did the Indians break their 5 game losing streak against FWB...

They also broke the 19-19 tie in the series and raised it to 20-19.

On a night that was more than memorable to the Choctaw Indians, I found myself celebrating (silently) for one more reason than they were...

The last time Choctaw beat Fort Walton Beach was during my senior year at Choctaw. The first time I've attended the game since that night so many years ago is the time that the team finally broke the streak. Now THAT was truly the most memorable part of the night for me.



Video footage of the game along with the celebration at the end:





To say I entered into this assignment like any other football game would be a lie. Sure, a part of me is biased toward Choctaw, but I never let my personal feelings dictate how I cover an assignment. Yeah, I did want Choctaw to win, but my job is to photograph the game and capture feature images from both sides. I wanted to gather enough footage to balance the video and images with the exception of the winning and celebrating moments. If the Vikings had won, my images would have mostly contained red and blue screaming fans and players. Instead, I received a double dosage of excitement by being able to photograph and videotape my alma mater celebrating and cheering.





The closing seconds of the game were painful, that is, they were long and dragging. The energy off of the fans behind me was radiating and contagious. I wanted to break out and join them in celebrating, but I kept my focus on the task at hand. I photographed and videotaped several eager fans cheering and chanting as they waited impatiently to storm onto the field:







Once the game was officially over and the fans gathered in the middle of the field, I squeezed through the crazy Indian fans and grabbed a few good moments on video. When I discovered where the players were converging, I ran to the front in time to catch some chanting in the video and cheering in some images:



This game was by far my favorite football game to photograph/video this entire season. Covering a Choctaw game was part of it, but the suspense, the intensity, and the last-minute game-changing plays by Choctaw in this epic rivalry made this game one of the best all season. I am thankful that the staff photographer handed me the torch for this game and entrusted me with the sole responsibility to photograph football, fan & cheerleader, and band images for both teams as well as football, fan, and celebration video footage from both sides. This was by far the most work I've put into a game this season and it worked out very well.

The band photos were a lot of fun for me and made halftime fly by fast. The color guards were in front of me the majority of the shows, so I mostly have images of them performing. Here are two images from Fort Walton Beach's marching band:





These two images are from the colorguard of the Style Marchers:





If you were to ask me how that night could have been more memorable, my mind would draw a blank. If you were to ask me what I would have done differently, I would tell you a few minor issues. But, when I look at all the plays, all the photos, all the video footage, and all the screaming fans, there really couldn't have been anything better. Sure, my video camera froze on me during the second quarter and caused me to miss a few plays, and sure the intense play-making on the field had me running back and forth like a chicken with its head cut off, but it was worth it.

And I wouldn't have it any other way.