More State Fair
My daughter and I split an order of curly fries at the 2009 Oklahoma State Fair onThursday, Sept. 17, 2009. By John Clanton, The Oklahoman
In years past I spent so much time working at the Tulsa State Fair that I was sick of it by the time my wife wanted to go. This year I got the family out to the fair early on Friday, and then went to work on Sunday for the paper. Here’s a picture that I like from Sunday evening. You can see a gallery of pictures from the fair as well as this weekend’s football games by clicking here.
Waiting in line for a ride, Kayla Melher (right) and her sister Olivia, wear glasses they bought on the midway during the 2009 Oklahoma State Fair at State Fair Park in Oklahoma City on Sunday, Sept. 20, 2009. By John Clanton, The Oklahoman
-John Clanton
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.
Members of the Edmond North band cheer in the rain with other students and fans before the high school football game between Mustang and Edmond North at Wantland Stadium in Edmond, Okla., Thursday, September 10, 2009. The game was eventually postponed until Saturday due to the weather. By Nate Billings, The Oklahoman
A man climbs on a ladder up the face of a video board before the college football game between the University of Houston Cougars and the Oklahoma State University Cowboys at Boone Pickens Stadium in Stillwater, Okla., Saturday, September 12, 2009. Photo by Nate Billings, The Oklahoman
OSU's Dez Bryant (1) stands on the gate in front of the team before taking the field for the college football game between the University of Houston Cougars and the Oklahoma State University Cowboys at Boone Pickens Stadium in Stillwater, Okla., Saturday, September 12, 2009. Photo by Nate Billings, The Oklahoman
Chandler Hardy, 2010 Miss Oklahoma State Fair's Outstanding Teen, talks with Kylie Hart, 4, and Kylie's mother, Jana Hardy, of Oklahoma City, during the Oklahoma State Fair at State Fair Park in Oklahoma Ctiy, Thursday, September 17, 2009. Photo by Nate Billings, The Oklahoman
Regan The Entertainer, right, tries to get a reaction from eight-month-old William East, of Luther, Okla., as his parents, Rebecca East and Billie East, looks up during the Oklahoma State Fair at State Fair Park in Oklahoma Ctiy, Thursday, September 17, 2009. Photo by Nate Billings, The Oklahoman
-Nate Billings
Health care rallies
People on both sides of the health care debate held rallies at the State Capitol in Oklahoma City on Sunday, Sept. 13, 2009. By John Clanton, The Oklahoman
People in favor of a public option gathered on the south side of the Oklahoma State Capitol at around noon on Sunday, after a short march. A few hours later, people opposed to the legislation gathered on the other side of the building. I collected several images from the afternoon, and paired it with a counterpart from the opposing rally.
-John Clanton
The Moving Wall
James Krick, a veteran from Shawnee, Okla., looks at The Moving Wall exhibit, a replica of Vietnam Veterans Memorial in Washington DC, at Woodland Park in Shawnee , Okla., on Sunday, August 23, 2009. By John Clanton, The Oklahoman
When I was a kid, my father, a Vietnam Veteran, took his family to see The Moving Wall when it came to Veteran’s Park in Tulsa. I was young, and I’m sure I didn’t fully comprehend or appreciate what I was seeing. My dad, like many Vietnam veterans, knew people back in 1968 whose names are now on the wall. I remember thinking that for such a large exhibit, the names were very small.
A bottle of beer left near a flag at The Moving Wall exhibit, a replica of Vietnam Veterans Memorial in Washington DC, at Woodland Park in Shawnee , Okla., on Sunday, August 23, 2009. By John Clanton, The Oklahoman
I’m 23 years older, with a family of my own now, so the wall was infinitely more meaningful to me, seeing it at a park in Shawne, Okla., on Sunday afternoon. Most people around me were in their church clothes, looking at the wall, touching it and taking pictures. Photographing it for the newspaper, I wanted to keep in mind the small type on the wall, and how many names it takes to fill the panels.
Mary Morse, of Shawnee, is reflected in The Moving Wall exhibit, as she look at the memorial, a replica of Vietnam Veterans Memorial in Washington DC, at Woodland Park in Shawnee , Okla., on Sunday, August 23, 2009. By John Clanton, The Oklahoman
-John Clanton
Prep Photo Day
Three times a year the Sports Department invites metro-area high school coaches to bring themselves and their players into The Oklahoman’s offices for picture day. We catalogue the pictures for use in our Prep Grid every week or when players achieve something outstanding in their sport. Then we use the pictures in the paper or on NewsOK.com. For nearly four years of working here, I’ve somehow managed to miss this assignment. Wednesday afternoon, though, I loaded up lights, background, light stands and background stands, extension cords and cameras and hauled them to the banquet hall of our offices in Oklahoma City for Prep Photo Day.
Several participants accurately described the process as they walked toward the “X” I had marked on the carpet. “mug shots…like in jail.” Exactly. With nearly 400 people showing up to have their pictures taken, we need a way to elimiate mistakes. Each person holds a piece of paper with their name, high school and sport written on it. That way, when I write the cutlines, the chances of getting the names wrong goes down drastically.
Just a few pictures in, I decided to keep an eye out for interesting moments. Most of the high school boys try to look tough, while their teammates stand behind me, trying to get them to smile. A couple of girls from Blanchard, Okla., ask me to take funny pictures. One coach suggested I take a picture “like this” as she held her name card in front of her face. Two girls asked for a picture together, and a kid from Santa Fe South High School was just dazed by how bright the lights were.
I put together a video of all 380 athletes and their coaches. You can see all 779 pictures in less than a minute, while it took nearly 5 hours to photograph them all.
-John Clanton
Our summer intern
Mae, left, and Wes Roe renew their vows for each other at their fiftieth wedding anniversary party at Church of Christ in Edmond, Okla. Saturday, June 28, 2009. The Roes were married fifty years ago on July 4 which is also both of their birthdays. By Ashley McKee, The Oklahoman
Ashley McKee finished up her summer internship at The Oklahoman and headed for home last Friday. Ashley, who came to Oklahoma for the first time this summer, lives in Montana. She did a great job working in the photo department this summer.
Ashley had a chance to cover a variety of assignments. She went to the International Finals Youth Rodeo, her first wheat harvest, the Red Earth Festival and the Woody Guthrie Festival just to name a few. Ashley’s enthusiasm for photojournalism was contagious. Thanks for your hard work, Ashley. And good luck with your career.
Here are a few of the highlights from her short, eight week stay with us.
Stetson Cravens of Eufaula, Okla. falls to the ground after being dragged by a bucking bronc during the bareback bronc at the International Finals Youth Rodeo in Shawnee, Okla. Thursday, July 16, 2009. By Ashley McKee, The Oklahoman
Joseph Marcotte, left, and his wife Bernice Marcotte, who is the great-grandmother of Allie Croom, watch Croom's funeral service through a window at the Hibb's Funeral Home in Choctaw, Oklahoma June 23, 2009. Croom's death is under investigation and her mom's boyfriend is accused of drowning her last Thursday. By Ashley McKee, The Oklahoman
Robert Girard signs for his interpreter in his home in Oklahoma City Monday, June 29, 2009. By Ashley McKee, The Oklahoman
Maria Hurdle, a Coyote girl, gets excited while serving drinks during the opening of Coyote Ugly in Oklahoma City Wednesday, June 24, 2009. By Ashley McKee, The Oklahoman
Bones howls in his cage at the Stillwater Humane Society in Stillwater, Okla. Wednesday, July 8, 2009. Photo by Ashley McKee, The Oklahoman
-John Clanton
Media-Out of Play
Members of the media stand "out of play" during a training exercise at the former post office building near SW 5th and Hudson in Oklahoma City on Wednesday, July 22, 2009. By John Clanton, The Oklahoman
Both of you may have noticed some commotion outside the old post office building on SW 5th in Oklahoma City on Wednesday morning. Oklahoma City Police and other emergency responders were participating in a training exercise inside the building, which they called ‘Fawlty Towers.’ Mock terrorists took over Fawlty Towers, complete with volunteers, mock injuries and mock fatalities. I joined other photographers and reporters behind the Out of Play signs and tried to make pictures of the event.
I caught a flashlight right in the lens as I joined other news photographers in following Oklahoma City Police Officers search through rooms at Fawlty Towers. By John Clanton, The Oklahoman
Eventually, the media joined the officers as they searched the first floor of Fawlty Towers. We photograph assignments like this fairly regularly, whether its Oklahoma City Police, Oklahoma County Sheriffs department or local fire departments. Police and firefighters take their training seriously, so it’s important to show that in the pictures. But it’s also important to give some perspective to the event. I tried to include something in these pictures to make it obvious that this is training. Sometimes it can be as simple as composition, but in this case, most of my pictures include members of the media, and one of them includes my own reflection.
News photographers watch as Oklahoma City Police Officers search through rooms at the old post office building during a training exercise at the building near SW 5th and Hudson in Oklahoma City on Wednesday, July 22, 2009. By John Clanton, The Oklahoman
To see more pictures from this assignment, and other photo galleries, click here.
-John Clanton
Pictures I Like
Virgil "Cowboy" Kalbaugh places his hand against a panel of the Dignity Memorial Vietnam Wall on the name of Brent Street, Sunday, July 5, 2009, in Piedmont. Photo by Sarah Phipps, The Oklahoman
Here’s some interesting pictures from the staff over the last couple of days. Some of these were published in the paper and some were not.
Michael Roeder hits the water as he goes down on his wake skate run during the first day of the Air Nautique WWA National Championships on Wednesday, July 8, 2009, on the Oklahoma River in Oklahoma City, Okla. by Chris Landsberger, The Oklahoman
Oklahoma City's Steve Murphy (21) breaks his bat in the seventh inning during the minor league baseball game between the Omaha Royals and Oklahoma City RedHawks at the Bricktown Ballpark in Oklahoma City, Monday, July 6, 2009. Photo by Nate Billings, The Oklahoman
Jacquelyn Renner, 9, places her nose against the chalkboard to experience older forms of student discipline during 1889 School Camp at the 1889 Territory School in Edmond, Okla. Tuesday, July 7, 2009. Photo by Ashley McKee, The Oklahoman
-John Clanton
Fourth of July wrap-up
Fans watch fireworks at the AT&T Bricktown Ballpark, Saturday July 4, 2009, in Oklahoma City. Photo by Sarah Phipps, The Oklahoman
The photographers of The Oklahoman were out in force to cover Independence Day. The weather shifted from nice to muggy and then rain in the evening. I’m glad we got the rain, but just wish it had happened either the day before or the day after. The RedHawks didn’t play their baseball game, but did have fireworks. Other fireworks shows were postponed. Here are some of the photos from the day.
To see a gallery from events around the metro area, click here.
For former President George W. Bush’s Independence Day visit to Woodward, click here.
A gallery of photos from Edmond’s LibertyFest parade is here.
And Bryan Terry did a cool time-lapse video from the LibertyFest parade that we highlighted in this blog entry.
Jesse Hardiman and Ava Welch, 1, walk during Bethany's Centennial Freedom Festival, Saturday, July 4, 2009, at Eldon Lyon Park in Bethany, Okla. Photo by Sarah Phipps, The Oklahoman
Boy Scouts carry a huge American flag in the LibertyFest Parade in downtown Edmond, OK, Saturday, July 4, 2009. By Paul Hellstern, The Oklahoman
Trent Nondorf, 4, left, and Ethan Nondorf, 2, wait for the start of the Quail Creek Fourth of July parade in Oklahoma City, Saturday, July 4, 2009. Photo by Nate Billings, The Oklahoman
Kristen Gregory sported a festive Fourth of July headband during LibertyFest at UCO campus in Edmond, Okla. Saturday, July 4, 2009. Photo by Ashley McKee, The Oklahoman
Former President George W. Bush and wife, Laura, were given a warm reception when they arrived at Woodward's July 4th celebration and re-dedication of Crystal Beach Park. Photo by Jim Beckel, The Oklahoman
Lauren Atkins, 9, from Norman, eats free watermelon at the Norman Independence Day Celebration at Reaves Park in Norman, Okla., on Saturday, July 4, 2009. Photo by Steve Sisney, The Oklahoman
Darren Ransley slides on the tarp during a rain delay of the Oklahoma City RedHawks and Omaha Royals at the AT&T Bricktown Ballpark, Saturday July 4, 2009, in Oklahoma City. Photo by Sarah Phipps, The Oklahoman
-Nate Billings
Dignity Memorial Vietnam Wall
Bryan Terry just turned in this photo from the traveling recreation of the Vietnam Veterans Memorial known as the Dignity Memorial Vietnam Wall. The Wall arrived in Piedmont, Okla., tonight and will be there until Sunday, July 5.
A person is reflected in the Dignity Memorial Vietnam Wall as it is assembled at Piedmont High School on Wednesday, July 1, 2009. Photo by Bryan Terry, The Oklahoman
-Nate Billings
