Basketball a Rough Sport...

High School Basketball can get rough even though it's sometimes called a "non-contact" sport. The fun part of shooting basketball is seeing those moments that happen so quick we don't always know it even happened. Here are a few moments from recent games around Gilbert, Arizona. 

Girls High School Soccer – 2014 Coyote Soccer Classic

Light Light Light

I recently shot the girls championship match of the 2014 Coyote SoccerClassic at Campo Verde High School. I chose attended the game because it was good teams (championship match), and it started at 4:00 with good light to shoot at higher shutter speeds. I was able to use my 70-200 f2.8 with a 1.4 extender for a little more reach. 

Typically High School soccer can be challenging because most games in the Phoenix Arizona area are played after dark. High school fields have challenging light at best and far from ideal. Tournaments generally have day games and therefore much better better light to shoot under.  

The Highland Hawks and Perry Puma girls provided great action as they battled it out for the trophy. Highland walked away with a 1-0 victory to win the Coyote Soccer Classic. Here is some of the action from that game. 

More pictures from this game can be found at www.azdewphoto.com. 

Scottsdale Volleyball - Slow Motion DSLR Video

I'm still experimenting with video from my DSLR. I like slow motion because I can see what is happening better in a fast sport like Volleyball. Anyway, here is a clip from the other night.

This video and more clips from the game are at http://www.azdewphoto.com/Sports/College/Scottsdale-Community-College-F/SCC-Volleyball-vs-CGCC

Dragonfly - Riparian Preserve - August 2014

A Dragonfly from the Riparian Preserve. I tried to ID this guy but couldn't find any examples of it on the web. So for now, it's just an Arizona dragonfly. 

It was getting dark and my ISO was set at 1250, aperture priority at f/7.1 and exposure bias was set +1.7 to adjust for the bright sky in the background. Exposure ended up being 1/1250 which helps for handholding at 400mm (Canon 70-200 and 2.0 Extender). With all that going on I managed to get this shot. 

After shooting Mr. Dragonfly about all that was left to see was the moon...

There was not much to take pictures of on this walk around the preserve. The good part is I managed to get a little exercise. 

2014 Snowflake Pioneer Day Rodeo

I'm disappointed. It doesn't look like we will make it to the Snowflake Pioneer Day Rodeo this year, 2014. It's a great event that takes place every year around 24th of July at the Taylor Rodeo Arena. 

It helped me a little to look back at pictures from past years. Here are some rodeo shots from 2013. (It rained...a lot that year)

And, here are some shots from 2 years ago (2012). 

Maybe we can get up there next year. 

Here's a link to all my Rodeo Pictures: Rodeo

Boyce Thompson Arboretum - Superior Arizona

On a recent trip to Thatcher, I stopped to walk around Boyce Thompson Arboretum. It's a few miles from Superior, Arizona. I got there a little after 1:00 and I knew they closed at 3:00 p.m. during the summer months. But it was okay because hot and humid was the flavor of the day. A little over an hour was plenty of time to walk around looking for interesting things to photograph. There were some high clouds that helped reduce the direct sunlight but it was still hot. I took my time and didn't even get close to seeing the entire arboretum. There will be plenty to see next time. 

Here are some images I found in my camera from the outing. The Cardinal's were my favorite. 

I plan to go there again when the weather is a little nicer and I can spend more time there. Here is a post from another visit I had to the Boyce Thompson Arboretum. You can see some of my other work here: AzDewPhoto

Photowalk - Gilbert Arizona Riparian Preserve

A sliver of time captured at the Riparian Preserve (Gilbert, Arizona) Wednesday July 16th in the late afternoon/evening. I felt like I was the only one there. The humidity and temperature were both high. Even the critters were far and few between. I suppose I am the crazy one. However, when I got home and uploaded the pictures there were still a few "keepers"... 

Chuckwalla @ South Mountain Park

This morning I found a Male Chuckwalla while out exploring on South Mountain in Phoenix. It was near the Communication Towers and was sunning itself on a large rock formation. It didn't stay around long once it saw me. He darted down into a crack in the rock. Some internet references claim these can get up to 16 inches long. I would guess this one was 10-12". 

It brought back many memories seeing it sunning on the rocks. My father once caught several of these and brought them home when I was about 10 years old (feels like hundreds of years ago). We had it as a "pet" for a while. I understand they bite pretty hard so we didn't touch it much. 

This is the area I found him. 

He was sunning on the black rocks in the upper third of this picture. 

Water birds, Rabbits, Coyotes, Hummingbirds, Dragonflies... and more on Today's Walk

An awesome early morning walk at the Riparian Preserve was amazingly productive for a hot July day in Gilbert Arizona. 

All the images below are from today. You can see even more at http://www.azdewphoto.com.