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Pictures I Like

The Oklahoman Photo Department has been busy in the last seven days. Henry Bellmon’s funeral, OU vs. Miami football, a feature story about T. Boone Pickens and, of course, high school football are a few of the assignments we’ve photographed. Here are a few images that stand out over the last week.

-John Clanton

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32 years and counting…

Recently I covered the ribbon cutting ceremony at the new Boone Pickens Stadium at OSU before the Georgia game. Not one to normally be nostalgic, I none-the-less started thinking back about the 32 years I’ve been covering football at OSU and OU too. Maybe it was wearing the 1970’s denim photo vest that staffer John Clanton and his wife Julie had dared me to wear. I accepted and then went full retro (except using digital cameras instead of film). See photo. I somehow convinced Epperson’s Photo of how smart it would be for them to give me the vest, since I was such an important photographer! LOL

When I started coming to Stillwater for The Oklahoman the stadium was not much more than rusty bleachers and now it is one of the finest facilities in the Big 12 if not the country. As I made my way through the press box and worked the sidelines there were only 5 faces I saw that had been around as long. Mike Holder who was golf coach back then is now the Athletic Director. Pat Quinn was the SID when I started, but long since retired. Dr. Cooper is still patrolling the sidelines as is Steve Ingram, an OSU campus police officer who I have seen just about every season. And John Biever with Sports Illustrated was at the game too.

Not many working peers left, but lots of athletes in front of the lens. A few stand out. The best receiver I ever covered was Hart Lee Dykes. The guy could catch anything thrown his direction. Speaking of throwing, another OSU player named Mike Gundy stands out. Don’t know if he’s the best, but I have covered him at MWC high school, OSU as a player and now a coach. That’s history.

Thurman Thomas and a guy named Barry Sanders are near the top of the running back list. But my favorite all time running back to photograph was Billy Sims. I just like the way he glided around the field. Add two other Heisman winners, Jason White and Sam Bradford and that’s four Heisman players I’ve covered.

A couple of others who stand out are Brian Bosworth and Adrian Peterson. Bosworth played with passion and Peterson is, well, AD. I’m horrible with names, so I’m sure there are others I should mention, especially members of OSU’s swarming defenses over the years that I made iconic images of.

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The Fair, Football and Rain

Usually the start of the Oklahoma State Fair brings rain to Oklahoma City. This year the rain showed up a week or so early. I managed to get soaked at the Mustang at Edmond North football game last week. It took about two days to get my equipment dried out properly (even with protective gear) just in time for the OSU vs. Houston game.  And since the fair began yesterday, something tells me we may have to deal with more weather on the sidelines the next two weekends.

Here’s a few pictures I like that we didn’t have space to put in the paper that are of the State Fair, football and rain.

-Nate Billings

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Up late with Big 12 basketball

Texas Tech’s Mike Singletary (32), middle, and Darko Cohadarevic (31) react after a play in front of Bryan Davis (0) of Texas A&M in the second half of the opening round game between Texas Tech and Texas A&M during the Big 12 Men’s Basketball Championship at the Ford Center in Oklahoma City, Wednesday, March 11, 2009. Texas Tech won, 88-83. PHOTO BY NATE BILLINGS, THE OKLAHOMAN

The days with four games in a row at the Big 12 Basketball Championship can take a lot out of you. When the tournament is in our town, we photograph every game. If the tournament were in Kansas City or Dallas, we would only photograph Oklahoma and Oklahoma State, our teams. By the time the fourth game rolls around on the first day, it can be hard to keep focused if neither OU or OSU are playing. Mike Singletary and Texas Tech, however, kept my attention in the second half with an amazing performance and made it worth sticking around last night.

Singletary scored 43 points, including 29 in a row, off the bench to lead Texas Tech to the biggest comeback in Big 12 tournament history. As the game was starting, I was still in the media workroom. I looked up at the score as I was editing photos from the Oklahoma State game against Iowa State. Texas A&M was up 15-2 early. At that point I didn’t feel too excited about rushing back out to the court to photograph a blowout. I’m glad I stuck around. Singletary’s reaction during Tech’s rally, seen above, made the best picture I took all day.

We’ve got two photo galleries from yesterday, divided into the two tournament sessions.

For the first session with Baylor vs. Nebraska and Colorado vs. Texas, click here.

For the second session with OSU vs. Iowa State and Texas Tech vs. Texas A&M, click here.

-Nate Billings

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Owning Sam Bradford’s Bedlam Flip

We’ve gotten a lot of calls and e-mails about how people can order copies of the pictures of Sam Bradford’s flip by Chris Landsberger during the Bedlam game. The Oklahoman does not sell photos of current college athletes. We do sell reproductions of our newspaper pages. To order a poster of the page from the Bedlam game, go to: www.newsok.com/posters

Here is the page that featured the flip.

-Nate Billings

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Sam Bradford’s Bedlam Flip

Some of you may have seen the flip in the air by OU quarterback Sam Bradford in the third quarter of the Bedlam football game between Oklahoma and Oklahoma State. It ws awesome to see in person and made some cool pictures. Chris Landsberger captured this series as OSU’s Orie Lemon forces Bradford out at the one-yard line. Check it out:

BY CHRIS LANDSBERGER, THE OKLAHOMAN

I was positioned across the field in the other end zone and got a different angle on the flip. Here’s two from my series:

BY NATE BILLINGS, THE OKLAHOMAN

We had five photographers covering the game, including our director of photography, Doug Hoke, who edited and did some shooting.

Click here to see a photo gallery from OU’s 61-41 win.

-Nate Billings

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Zac Robinson can throw a zinger

 

These are a couple of frames before I did my best Marcia Brady impression. Remember the episode where she got hit in the nose with a football and it ruined her prom? Well, my prom was not ruined but the next day at work there was some pain on the right side of my face.

 

I never imaged that I would be Robinson’s intended target in the back of the end zone. I am quite honored that Gundy recognized my superior athletic power and involved me in his offense. I can tell you from experience Robinson has some zip on his ball. I am glad this pass took a bounce before hitting me in the nose.

 

-Sarah Phipps

 

 

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Thousands of pictures

One question sports photographers get asked is how many pictures they shoot during a game. Here’s some numbers from tonight’s Oklahoma State game against Missouri.

Staff Photographer Steve Sisney shot with 2 camera bodies. Both are Canon Mark IINs. John Clanton used 3 camera bodies. A Canon 40D, a Canon 5D and a Canon MarkII N. These cameras are pretty fast. The MarkIIs shoot 8 frames per second, the 40D is a little slower and the 5D only does about 4 frames per second.

Here are the totals:

Sisney:

Pregame features-71 frames,

First half game action-713 frames

Second half game action- 544 frames

for a total of 1328 pictures

Clanton shot:

Pregame features-73 frames

First half-635 frames

second half -503 frames

for a total of 1211 pictures.

At halftime and after the game we run up to the pressbox and edit as fast as we can and get our pictures narrowed down  to the absolute best pictures that tell the story of the game. We send them in via Wi-Fi to the paper. Sisney got his narrowed down to 49 pictures that he sent in to the paper. Clanton only found 15 pictures that he liked enough to send in. (He doesn’t shoot football very often)

Kendall Hunter breaks away from Hardy Ricks for a long touchdown run in the second half as Oklahoma State University Cowboys (OSU) plays the University of Missouri Tigers (MIZZOU) at Faurot Field in Columbia, Mo. on Saturday October 11, 2008. BY STEVE SISNEY, THE OKLAHOMAN

Patrick Lavine intercepts a final pass by Chase Daniel in the second half as Oklahoma State University Cowboys (OSU) play the University of Missouri Tigers (MIZZOU) at Faurot Field in Columbia, Mo. on Saturday October 11, 2008. BY STEVE SISNEY, THE OKLAHOMAN

Oklahoma State defenders stand around Missouri QB Chase Daniel after he was sacked during the second half as Oklahoma State University Cowboys (OSU) plays the University of Missouri Tigers (MIZZOU) at Faurot Field in Columbia, Mo. on Saturday October 11, 2008. Oklahoma State beat Missouri 28-23. BY JOHN CLANTON, THE OKLAHOMAN

-John Clanton

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Zebra, get out of my shot!

Sarah Phipps contributes these thoughts about one of the biggest obstacles to the sports photographer, the referee.

OSU’s Dez Bryant leaps for catch in front of Trevor Ford at the Oklahoma State University college football game against Troy University Saturday, Sept 27, 2008 at Boone Pickens Stadium in Stillwater, Oklahoma. BY SARAH PHIPPS, THE OKLAHOMAN

Normally if I had a picture of a zebra I would be thrilled, but this was not
the African grasslands. It was the 30-yard line at Boone Pickens Stadium. And
that zebra cost me a great photo.

It never fails, no matter what sport, there is always one frame with a
referee in crystal clear focus instead of the big play. I have even had refs
turn around to me with a big wink and say  “Make sure you get my good side.”

And it is not just referees, sometimes it’s a sound guy, a cheerleader, a
coach or even another camera guy. But, the referees seem to have a sixth
sense about when they are in our frame.

I think it is a secret game they play called, “Block the photographer, ruin
their day.” 5 points for blocking a reception, 5 points for a blocking a
fumble, 15 points for stepping in the way of touchdown play. Block the
photographers’ view from the onside kick recovery with 19 seconds left in
the fourth quarter—game over that’s 100 points. The back judge wins.

All kidding aside, I know the referees take their job seriously, and they are
just putting themselves in the right spot to make the call.

-Sarah Phipps

BY SARAH PHIPPS, THE OKLAHOMAN

-Nate Billings

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Zac Robinson can take a hit

In the ten years I’ve been shooting football photos, I have never had a nice shot of a helmet being knocked off of a player. At last week’s Oklahoma State football game Zac Robinson lost his helmet after being hit on a keeper. Oddly enough, fellow staffer Sarah Phipps and I both got nice shots of the play. Robinson was not injured on the play. Here’s the pics:

OSU quarterback Zac Robinson loses his helmet at the end of a play at the Oklahoma State University  college football game against Troy University, Saturday, Sept 27, 2008 at Boone Pickens Stadium in Stillwater, Okla. BY NATE BILLINGS, THE OKLAHOMAN.

OSU quarterback Zac Robinson’s helmet flies off at the end of a run as he is sandwiched by defenders at the Oklahoma State University college football game against Troy University, Saturday, Sept 27, 2008 at Boone Pickens Stadium in Stillwater, Oklahoma. BY SARAH PHIPPS, THE OKLAHOMAN.

-Nate Billings

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