This irritates the crap out of me!

Nothing ticks me off more when technology fails. EXAMPLE: Copiers, printers, computers, etc. etc. I don't ever expect my camera to fail me. This time the autofocus was on speed or ecstasy and decided to focus anywhere other than on my preferred subject. Just think what could have been!!!!!

Just makes me want to scream, yell and act like a complete monkey!!! More images from the game next week!

In the Blink of an Eye

A few recent events have kept me thinking awfully hard lately. Life can change in the blink of an eye. And I don't mean it figuratively...things literally can alter your life within a second.

Enjoy today. Worry about tomorrow another day.

Have a great holiday weekend!

Summer Stroll

Bambi was out for a walk last night.

What happens when my camera and bambi meet? This picture at the left.

I was out driving around the country last night looking for wildlife and a great sunset and got lucky when this deer and another doe ran in front of my vehicle (fortunately I was going slowly). This was captured with a Nikon D700 with a 300mm lens and a 2x converter.

Finding the Light

Sports photos sometimes become mundane...mine especially. One of the best ways to spice up a boring photo is to find nice light and try and capture something that happens in that light. Here is a simple pitching shot of a pitcher (imagine that!) covered in nice, warm evening light.

Spy photos.....

So, tonight could be interesting. There might be fire. There may even be a bonfire with hooligans dancing around it. Who knows.

I'm heading out to hopefully capture a reality tv crew filming in Bourbon County. We shall see how this goes. Considering I only know areas (not really specific either) they might be located there shall possibly be no photographs whatsoever. However, the local publication known as the newspaper has inquired if I might be able to capture something on digital film.

I guess in short...I'm going to do some covert photography tonight. Puttin on the big lens and shooting from moving vehicles is always interesting to say the least....


I'll keep you posted.

Life with the Royals Day 3

Day 3 was HOT! I'm officially burned on the neck and I have a white line under my bangs (if they even qualify to be long enough to be called that). My wife tells me I can't cut my hair for awhile because I'll look stupid.

Anyway. Sunday was the best day for me as far as shooting goes. I got some pretty cool stuff. The above 3 images are a few favorites.

The first image is of Magglio Ordonez of the Detroit Tigers being tagged out at homeplate by Royals catcher Miguel Olivo.

Second image is of crybaby Miguel Cabrera. He may be quite the slugger but he sure does know how to complain.

The last image is of Royals Shortstop Mike Aviles, whom my wife thinks is dreamy. That's the only reason I took so many shots of him. She would faint if she were to meet him. I'm such a great husband...

The weekend marked my last chance of the year to make good images of the Royals. I'll be shooting football from Saturday through December.

Life with the Royals Day 2

Saturday was a bit more challenging than my 10-minute photo shoot on Friday. Before the game even began I had brake trouble while driving to the Images of Nature (http://www.mangelsen.com/) gallery on the plaza. Not good.

I got to debut my new camera, a Nikon D700, at the game. Because of its superior file size and sensor, I was able to shoot at high shutter speeds at a very high ISO and still get great quality images. For those of you who don't understand ISO..it's okay.

All of these were shot at 1600 ISO and as you can see they have very little noise.

Life with the Royals Day 1

I promised I'd post photos from my 3-day weekend at Kauffman Stadium in Kansas City.

Friday night I photographed Toby Cook and his mom. While he was away getting his sports coat, I instructed her to give him a big kiss on the cheek on shot number 3. She did it perfectly!

Weekend with the KC Royals

It's 11:30 p.m. Friday and I just arrived to my mom's house in Merriam, KS after a few hours at Kauffman Stadium, where I'll be spending most of my hours the next two days.

Tonight I photographed Toby Cook, one of the nicest guys I've met in a long time. He works for the Royals, and from first impression...he works extremely hard. Long story short - the photo is for a calendar that he and his mother are going to be featured in next year. That was the first leg of the trip.

Tomorrow starts off in Independence, KS with a photo shoot of my young cousin's tackle football games! That's just for fun. Tomorrow night I'm shooting the Royals v. Tigers.

Sunday I'll be doing the day game before heading home to see the lovely wife, who is hard to be away from for extended periods of time. Go ahead...snicker. I'll be sure to put up a few photos from the weekend as soon as I get them ready.

Peace!

These are my two new business cards that are currently circulating.

A little about them:

The top image is of one of my favorite models, Brittany. I've known her most of her life...minus a few years of course and share the same alma mater. She's been a great model and is easy to photograph! This is one of my favorite portraits EVER.

Number 2 is of Mr. Tucker, the cutest little boy in the WORLD! One of the easiest little studs in the world to photograph. This card is obviously a huge hit and gets a chuckle everytime someone sees it!

An update to the wedding of Lacy and Kenan. Congrats again. Your photos are now online at www.capturedimages.net!

Got to meet and photograph one of the most amazing singers/actors/hotties (Ms. Mandy Moore) ever last fall. She told me afterwards that my eyes were the most amazing eyes in the world. Hard life. I know.

Then I woke up from the dream...she does have soft hands though. ;)

Congratulations to Lacy and Kenan Daily!

They were married Saturday, Aug. 16 at Rosie's Cabin in Uniontown.

I've known the bride for awhile but only recently met Kenan. A great couple for sure.

Thank you both for the opportunity to photograph your wedding.

I can smell it...it's upon us.

Football season is upon us! Can't you smell it in the air?

I sure can. I'm not sure if it's the cooler evenings, the smell of hot dogs on a grill or what but I'm amped beyond description.

Football has always been my favorite sport to shoot...and probably the sport I'm best at photographing. Nothing excites me more than waking up on a Friday morning knowing I'll be covering a high school game later that evening or waking to a sunny Saturday knowing that the Pittsburg State Gorillas will be romping an opponent like Missouri Southern. The smell of victory is sweet...the smell of a good photo is even better.

I've had the good fortune of photographing my Gorillas for several years now and just recently have had the opportunity to cover Kansas City Chiefs home games. Another new one for me is to shoot a few Kansas Jayhawks football games this season. Can't wait.

My dream is to be published in the pages of Sports Illustrated and sustain a career in the sports freelance world. So far I'm still learning and just beginning. Last season I had 10-15 shots published on Sports Illustrated's website so that's a start. Hopefully this season I can make it to the magazine.

The above photo was my first photo to appear in ESPN The Magazine...hopefully more to follow!

Mountain Lions in Kansas?

I like to think so!

I like to think that I'm crazy enough to want to see one fairly close. It's always been a photographic dream to snap a few shots of one at a close distance (preferably from inside a sturdy vehicle or blind). Not sure what is so appealing to me...maybe it's the fact that they are so elusive and literally capable of ripping a human to shreds...not sure.

This image of cat tracks (which were bigger than my hand) was taken a year or so ago near Lake Pomona in Pomona, Kansas. I've never seen tracks this big...my mom's Siamese doesn't quite make these types of prints in the ground but she still tries to take heads off..

Anyway, if anyone knows of a good location to watch for a mountain lion please let me know!

Just something fun

A cute shot I did of a killer kitten. Poor plant stood no shot.

I'm not an abstract thinker! My mind works in 1+1=2 not A+b=MC2.1.22xxyy.

I see what is in front of me. That's a problem sometimes when I try to be artistic...because it really does take an expansive amount of energy to create something artsy when your art bones don't feel like working correctly.

So here I was at this little stream in the great state of Colorado and I'm trying my darndest to make something beautiful out of very little. And I was losing light so it had to happen fast. I saw this large rock in the middle and the water was running around it and sometimes over it. A long shutter speed produced a nice, fluid motion with the water while the stone didn't move at all. It turned out just how I had hoped! Hope you enjoy!

Back from Vacation!

We are finally back from vacation. I'm not sure if that's a good thing or not...but we are back! We miss the mountains and the cool, brisk air for sure. We missed home too...just a little!

Our trip began on Saturday around 5 a.m. I'm generally the one waiting in the car for everyone else but this time it was I who had everyone running late. I just can't quite get out of bed on time! We arrived in Dillon around 4 p.m. and headed straight for the barbecue competition that closed down the entire city square. It was AMAZING!

Sunday found the four of us driving to Aspen to see the Maroon Bells. It rained most of the day but we did find times that were sunny and amazing. While in Aspen we visited the Peter Lik photo gallery (imagine me in a gallery...) and turned down a chance at $5.12 gas. We later almost regretted that decision when we barely made it back on Empty. Mom freaked out about every 5 minutes when she realized we would be lost in the mountains and eaten by wild animals. The rest of us thought her freaking out was amusing.

Monday took us on a drive through Ute Pass, which literally takes you to the middle of nowhere. It was beautiful as well. To top off the day I photographed a bald eagle...which always makes my heart race a little faster. It makes everyone else look at me like an idiot....but that's for another day.

Tuesday was shopping day. Enough said.

And then yesterday we came home. I had a migraine which pretty much ruined the first half of the day but it got better in the evening. My bed never slept so good!!

A Puff of Smoke

This is one of my favorite wedding photos. Ever.

The groom is Nathaniel Thurston of Dallas, Texas.

In the days leading up to the ceremony I racked my brain trying to come up with great ideas to really show his personality as well as the groomsmen. The night before I told him to bring Aviator sunglasses and cigars. This is what we came up with. I love it. He loves it. Favorite image of the day by far.

College Football Photo Shoot

Had the opportunity last month to photograph the Fort Scott Community College football team last month to create a poster for the team's recruiting purposes.

The theme this season is Band of Brothers. They wanted a poster that would show their unity and wanted to include a local landmark that they were protecting. The landmark is a building at the local fort.

The easy part of the process was the photograph itself. By combining the photo with some creative processing techniques and adding a few other layers to create a dark and harsh environment, we eventually came up with the attached image.

It's not as easy as it sounds. Overall it took about 20 hours to design each poster.

The poster you see to your left is of the defensive unit. There is a separate poster for the offense.

Chasing the Sun

According to my facebook account, my peers think I have great father potential. Yippee...

Anyway, last night I went hunting for a great sunset. I'm always on the lookout for great color and good cloud formations, as those two elements make a sunset photographable.
Good friend Gary texted me last night to alert me of the combination of clouds in the sky and said we were in for a good opportunity. So I headed out to a favorite location of mine just north of Fort Scott.

After driving around for 10-15 minutes the sky turned a great orange color near the horizon. Using a 70-200 lens, I filled the frame with what you see here.

This is my first post so please forgive me if it sucks.

Also, I'm heading to Colorado tonight so hopefully when I return you will all get to read more great and exhilarating material.