All the best from The Oklahoman Photo Dept.

Quick portrait of a street preacher

Tim Beeson and I sat on unbalanced chairs under a faded white tent that was once used for old-fashioned tent revivals. He talked excitedly about his shop and his girlfriend; he told wild stories about his time in prison and what led to his ten-year incarceration; and he remembered a recovering alcoholic he’d helped out once upon a time. Then he closed his eyes and quietly sang a song that he’d just written about Jesus.

On Monday afternoon, I finally stopped and talked with Tim, who works under the tent set up in front of the old Owl Court on Route 66, or Britton road in Oklahoma City. I pass by the tent every day on my way to and from work. Beeson, who says he is a preacher, sells fruit, plants, and vegetables out of his roadside tent. He said he tries to give back to needy people who stop to buy vegetables. Beeson leans through a haze of smoke to poke twigs under a 65-pound pot of soup inside his smoker. He talks about giving back 60 percent of all the money he makes by giving customers bowls of vegetable soup and free produce.

Interesting and unpredictable conversations with people like Tim Beeson are still a part of what I enjoy about news photography. Remember that you can click on any image featured on Alternate Crop for a closer look. You can also see more pictures by photographers at The Oklahoman by clicking here.

-John Clanton

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Media Days

There’s plenty of behind-the-scenes work that’s done on Media Day at our local Division 1 colleges, and, of course, there’s plenty of waiting.

On Sunday local media outlets converged at Gallagher-Iba Arena on Oklahoma State University to photograph fans getting autographs, press conferences, practices and portraits of players.  At some point in the hour and a half wait for the players to arrive for the player availability part of the day, the media relations team brought in helmets that we could use for portraits (above). Staff Photographer Bryan Terry got portraits at OSU, while a few days before, Chris Landsberger photographed players at the University of Oklahoma. Meanwhile, I photographed practices and fan appreciation events at OSU and Steve Sisney photographed Fan Appreciation day in Norman. You can see photo galleries from both events by clicking here. The portraits will run in the August 29 newspaper, and we’ll talk about them on Alternate Crop as well.

-John Clanton

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Remembering D-Day

Staff photographer Jim Beckel met Art Levine, a World War II veteran, at a Memorial Day Ceremony this year. Jim learned Levine was a paratrooper during the invasion of Normandy and decided to go back and do a story and a video for the anniversary of D-Day.  Below is Jim’s story about Art Levine’s experience of D-Day:

Art Levine was face-to-face with an enemy solider less than an hour after he parachuted onto French soil June 6, 1944, during the D-Day invasion.

“He was a German sergeant and he ran right into me.”  Levine said.

He recalls in vivid detail the historic day when American troops joined Allied forces in staging a massive invasion at several points along the French coast. This would mark the beginning of the end for the German war machine and within a year, bring to a close  Adolph Hitler’s reign of terror in Europe.

It was 3 a.m. and dark, but there was a bright moon and the air was misty. A German soldier was running down the road toward him, Levine said.

“He was a big, fat guy and he was huffing and puffing,” Levine said. Levine could see he was red faced, and was probably tired from running.

“We were about 10-feet apart when I raised my M-1 carbine and squeezed the trigger several times”, hitting him below his left shoulder, but above the heart. “What saved me was the luck of the Lord.”

The German couldn’t get his holster unsnapped to pull his weapon, so Levine fired first.  Both soldiers tumbled to the ground. Levine moved toward the wounded man and snatched his weapon, a P-38 pistol. “It was a fine weapon.  Better than what we had,” he said.

It was to be Levine’s first enemy trophy of the war.

Only three month earlier, Levine answered a company memorandum seeking volunteers for soldiers wanting to become paratroopers.  He attended “jump school” at Ft. Benning in Georgia and after training was shipped to England. It was there that the patch of the 101st Airborne Division was sewn onto the shoulder of his Army uniform. To this day, Levine regards that moment as one of the proudest in his 88 years. He became a member of the Army’s elite division of specialty soldiers that bore the distinctive moniker, Screaming Eagles.

He decided to join the ranks of the airborne units because they “got paid 50 bucks more a month in pay.”  With a smile, he said, “50 bucks was a lot of money then.”  He also enjoyed the fact that paratroopers wore boots. He didn’t care for the leggings the infantry wore on their feet. And, Levine admits, he also did it “for the adventure.”  Back then, Levine proudly admits he was “full of piss and vinegar.”

But he had no idea of what kind of adventures he would experience in the months ahead.

The day before he and thousands of other paratroopers climbed into the airplanes that would take them to their assigned drop zones, Levine knew something big was in the works. Five-star Army General, Dwight Eisenhower, visited his base and spoke plainly and honestly to the troops. Never had Levine seen a five star general, who at the time, happened to also be Supreme Commander of the Allied Forces in Europe.  What he recalls most about “Ike”, as the general was more commonly known, was the way he smoked one cigarette after another.  Levine wonders now if Eisenhower was nervous because he knew what these boys would be up against in coming days and weeks.

The general spoke solemnly about the upcoming mission. He didn’t speak in great detail, but told the soldiers they were going to take part in a “great event.” Levine remembers being told that this mission would be “something big, monumental.” Levine still remembers Eisenhower’s warning as he looked at the men and said, “lots of you won’t be making it back.”  Levine knew he would be dropped into France but he still wasn’t aware of the scope or the historical significance of the assignment.

Levine was not a big person, weighing only 125 pounds. He carried 80 pounds of gear, supplies, weapons, ammunition and rations when he boarded the airplane for the two-hour trip  across the English Channel. Thousands of paratroopers would descend onto French soil that day.  As they neared the target, Levine said he was “ready to get out of that plane. I couldn’t get out of there fast enough. The anti aircraft flak was heavy and many planes had been hit and were on fire.”

With a shout of “Geronimo,” Levine stepped out of the plane and floated through the night sky to the ground. “I had lots of gear on my back. I fell fast, but I landed on my feet”, he said. An accomplished paratrooper always  wants to land on their feet. This is how the Army had trained him.

“I was ready to fight,” he said, also admitting being scared and apprehensive. This was his first combat mission.

After his encounter with the German sergeant, Levine regrouped with other American soldiers and entered the French village of Ste Marie du Mont.  They encountered slight German resistance in the town.  A sniper had picked off a member of his unit. Levine isolated the building where the gunfire had poured down on his friend. Levine entered the building, tossing a hand grenade into the room where the sniper was crouched, killing him and a woman who was with him.

Levine has fond memories of the townspeople of Ste Marie du Mont. They welcomed Levine and his buddies as liberators. He and the other American soldiers were given a hero’s welcome. “They gave us hot meals and wine. The women hugged us and gave us all kisses.” He credits the French resistance for confusing the Germans and assisting in the success of Allied troops in their country.

He doesn’t see himself as a hero, though.

Nearly seven decades after the Normandy invasion, Levine speaks with humility of his role in this historic event.

“I’m not a hero. I did what every other soldier did.  I did my job.”

Today, Levine is two inches shorter than he was in 1944. His shoulders are stooped and he walks with a cane. His back hurts and he still suffers from wounds received in the war. He is proud of his war service and often gives talks to military groups, school children and veterans organizations. He is proud of his country’s role in defeating Hitler and bringing democracy to much of Europe.

He entered the Army as a private but retired at the rank of major. With a baseball cap bearing the words World War II Veteran perched atop his balding head, Levine looks out from beneath the cap’s bill and proclaims, “It’s been a good career. I wouldn’t trade it for nothing.”

Click here for a video by Jim Beckel of Art Levine talking about his D-Day experiences.

-Nate Billings

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Leaking Light

If you missed the Sports department’s High School All State Sports 2009 that was published earlier his week, you missed some interesting photographs by Staff Photographer Chris Landsberger. He used a small, plastic camera called a Diana Fplus to photograph high school athletes in the studio at The Oklahoman. Like a Holga, the Diana is made completely of plastic, and is not exactly light proof. The seams of the camera aren’t lightproof, so just a little bit of light gets in darkens the corners of the image.

Other than playing with Holga and Diana cameras for fun, The Oklahoman staff is completely digital. The equipment used to process film was donated to the University of Central Oklahoma in Edmond around 1997. Landsberger took the film to be processed at Epperson Photo here in Oklahoma City, and then used a scanner to get the pictures into the computer and store them in the archives.

-John Clanton

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Frog and Turtles races

A move to Dallas has not kept Lisa Cochell and her family from their tradition of attending Camp DaKaNi in Oklahoma City. Cochell starting attending the camp in 1973. Her little brother and sister joined soon after.

She now spends her summer vacations at the camp with her son, nieces and nephews. They have been attending since 1997.

The turtle and frog races have always been a favorite highlight at the camp.

“I love watching their faces. They are all so excited. I had a little camper today, she gave her turtle to the office because we had two turtles in the same category and her turtle won second. Even though it wasn’t for our group, she was like ‘My turtle won second’ and that is the best feeling. That is why I take my vacations to do this, ” Cochell said.

The night before the races, Cochell and several of the others counselor catch frogs on the pond at Camp DaKaNi. It is an activity they have done for several years.

“My son is great at catching frogs and it is because he has been doing it since he was four years old,” she said.

Click play to see all frog racing photos and to hear audio from the race.

-Sarah Phipps

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Double Takes……..Another Look.

Each month I am part of the team that puts together the publication OKC Nstyle. I provide the photography that makes up the visual elements of the monthly featured fashion spread, and the oh so important cover.

When the photo shoot is done for each issue, I go through hundreds of photos, and edit out photos that I feel best represent the section. Some of the photos are to run for the inside spread, and then there are others those that are potential cover options. The cover options are a little more difficult to edit out. They have to meet a very specific size constraint that is very narrow, but also keeps the visual requirements of artistic value, composition and content. In the end there are usually between 7-12 photos that make the cut as options for the cover.

From there section designer Suzanne Green takes these options and makes up a few mock cover choices for the team to look over and proof.

As with all committee type input sessions, everyone has different cover options that are their favorite(s). After everyone has their input and offers up critiques, sometimes the cover that is chosen is the one we were hoping for, and other times it is not. Maybe next time right?

So after thinking about it for a while, I thought why can’t the next time be now. Why not provide a little behind the scenes look at some of the hard work that goes into the other cover options, and keep them from being lost in the mix.

To provide for your visual consumption, Each month when the new OKC Nstyle is published I will post the 2-4 cover options that did not make it to the presses. As and added bonus for the first installment there will be cover options from the last few month that differ from those that were actually published.

Hope you enjoy another look.

 

Don’t for get to check out the online version of  April issue of OKC Nstyle at okcnstyle.com, and fashion editor Linda Miller’s blog at Fashion Matters.

-Chris Landsberger

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Thunder Super Fans

Thunder super fans, from left, Zeb Benbrook, Thunder Man, Derrick Seys, and Angela Love pose for a portrait outside the Ford Center in Oklahoma City, Thursday, Feb. 12, 2009. PHOTO BY BRYAN TERRY, THE OKLAHOMAN

Here’s a little something that I wanted to share with you all from last month. Bryan Terry took photos of super fans of the Oklahoma City Thunder for a Jenni Carlson story. Originally, the editors just wanted to get pictures of the NBA fans cheering at the games. Bryan decided it might make more interesting photos to take portraits of the super fans outside of the Ford Center. He even lit them to give a super-hero quality to the shots.

Check out some of the pictures below, along with a couple of photos showing his lighting set up.

You can see a gallery of all of the photos here.

Thunder super fan Zeb Benbrook poses for a portrait outside the Ford Center in Oklahoma City, Thursday, Feb. 12, 2009. PHOTO BY BRYAN TERRY, THE OKLAHOMAN

Thunder super fan Derrick Seys poses for a portrait outside the Ford Center in Oklahoma City, Thursday, Feb. 12, 2009. PHOTO BY BRYAN TERRY, THE OKLAHOMAN

Thunder super fan Thunder Man, who keeps his real identity a secret, poses for a portrait outside the Ford Center in Oklahoma City, Thursday, Feb. 12, 2009. PHOTO BY BRYAN TERRY, THE OKLAHOMAN

Thunder super fan Angela Love poses for a portrait outside the Ford Center in Oklahoma City, Thursday, Feb. 12, 2009. PHOTO BY BRYAN TERRY, THE OKLAHOMAN

A wide shot of Thunder Man showing part of the lighting set up.

Here you can see all three lights used in the photo. Our intern, Brenda O’Brian, who assisted Bryan on the shoot, is on the left in the photo. 

To see all the photos, click here.

To read Jenni Carlson’s story, click here.

-Nate Billings

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Best of The Week 9/15/08-9/21/08

Here are the selections for this week from The Oklahoman Photo Staff. I am finally getting on track and making this happen at the first of the week instead of the end. Practice, practice and more practice to develop the habit. Thanks for looking.      

 

-Chris Landsberger 

www.highvelocityphoto.com 

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Hurricane Gustav Evacuees

When evacuees from Hurricane Katrina were brought to Camp Gruber three years ago, a former colleague and I discussed a way we could take a little bit different angle on the news. We never got the chance to spend time on it, but when Oklahoma City received evacuees from Hurricane Gustav, I decided to give it a try. The idea was to photograph people holding the one item that they couldn’t bear to leave behind. I bought a tarp to use as a background and used two off camera strobes to light the subjects. Because the media wasn’t allowed inside the building, except on guided tours, I set up in the media area and passed out flyers and talked to anybody who would listen about my portrait project. I photographed people holding the item and recorded them talking about it. If you get the chance, take a look at the slideshow.

http://downloads.newsok.com/flash_video/theoklahoman/slideshows/SpecialItemSlides/

I thought all day about what I would take with me in the same situation. I heard some interesting answers; cell phones, pictures, a stereo, a comb, a bible. I heard alot of frustration too. One guy told me that the next time a hurricane threatens New Orleans and south Louisiana, he’s going to take his chances and stay home, no matter how bad things get. If the evacuation is mandatory, he said, he just won’t answer the door.

-John Clanton

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It’s football time

Carl Albert High School football player David Oku poses for a photo at Frontier City where he works in Oklahoma City, Wednesday, July 16, 2008. BY NATE BILLINGS, THE OKLAHOMAN

Photographing football is one of the things I really enjoy doing. Every summer when we start to work on our football preview section, I know that fall and a return to roaming the sidelines are not far away. This year I photographed the portraits for the covers of the three different sections in the preview, OU, OSU and high school football.

The theme of this year’s section was “Dirty Jobs.” For the college players we focused on what were the tough things that they do on the team. The high school profiles dealt with the jobs and hobbies of the athletes.

The first portrait I took was for the cover of the University of Oklahoma football section. OU offensive lineman Duke Robinson was the subject. Duke was nice enough to stand in the hot sun and pose with the pieces of sod I purchased to illustrate his dirty job of working in the trenches.

Here’s the photo of Duke that’s on the OU cover:

Below are some of the other photos from the shoot. Click on the thumbnails to see them larger.

OSU’s Zac Robinson is a quarterback who can run as well as throw. Because he’s a mobile quarterback, Robinson gets hit a lot. Despite the extra abuse he just gets up and keeps on going. He agreed to pose for us with some ice packs. Here’s the cover photo and below it are two alternate takes from the shoot.

For the high school cover I photographed David Oku of Carl Albert. Oku, one of the best running backs in the state, works at Frontier City trying to convince people to play the carnival games in his spare time. Below is the photo on the high school cover. The shot at the top of this entry, which was my favorite photo of the from these sections, was used on the inside. The only reason we didn’t use it on the cover was because we needed a vertical photo for the cover.

I was very happy with the way the shots turned out this year and think the sections look great. Thanks to Matt Strasen, Amy Rymer, Hayley Riggs and Phillip Baeza for assisting on the shoots. And special thanks to the athletes as well as the sports information departments at OU and OSU, along with Frontier City, for working with us.

Be sure to check out the football preview section when it publishes on August 24.

If you’d like to see all the photos that were in the section and more, check out this gallery:

http://newsok.com/photo/gallery/?gallery_id=3955

-Nate Billings

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