LeBron Who?

So like the Reebok debacle of Dan vs. Dave before the '92 Barcelona Olympic game Nike has the Lebron vs. Kobe gaff for the '09 NBA Finals with their puppet commercials. With all the hype surrounding the network droolfest for a Lakers v Cavaliers Finals I was thrilled when the Orlando Magic defeated the Cleveland Cavaliers last night.

Since the end of the regular NBA season all anyone has heard about is the "Dream Final" between the two mega basketball stars. Even while the Magic took a 3-1 lead in the Eastern Conference Finals all ESPN and TNT wanted to talk about was how LeBron James would turn things around for his team to make it to the NBA Finals. Guess what he didn't!

Even this morning it seemed like the coverage of the Magic winning their first title since 1995 was mainly about LeBron. Get over it!! They lost. You don't get the "Dream". You get Superman and his super friends vs. Kobe.

I will say this about last night. It was amazing. What a difference it was covering the Magic winning the Eastern Conference title compared to the Tampa Bay Rays winning the American League pennant last Fall. The celebration last night was different mainly because of the proximity of the fans to the playing surface compared to baseball.

With 2:42 left in the game it became apparent that the Magic were in fact going to win Game 6 and play the Lakers for the NBA Championship. The crowd kicked it into an even higher gear and cheered on Dwight Howard and his teammates as time expired.

In the last minute, security brought out a yellow rope for everyone to stay behind during the initial celebration which allowed me to get some images but not great ones. Then came the trophy ceremony at half court. I was somehow able to sneak my way into the secured zone to get up front pictures of the team as they hoisted the trophy in front of the fans.

So I now have the next nine days off from covering basketball which is nice as I have a ton of office work to get done. I will be part of a four-man crew for the European Pressphoto Agency covering the Finals when the series returns a week from Tuesday for Game 3.

I'm kind of excited that in the last seven months I will have shot my first World Series and now my first NBA Finals. It's also pretty cool that in Benjamin's life the Rays have gone to the World Series, the Magic have gone to the NBA Finals and the Pittsburgh Penguins have always played for the Stanley Cup. This kid is my good luck charm.

Go Magic!!!

Getting Away from the NBA

The orginal plan was for us to drive to DC the Thursday before Memorial Day to see friends. Then we'd drive to Hitlin Head Island for a few days at the beach.

That all changed when the Magic beat the Celtics and advanced to the Eastern Conference Finals.

After shooting Game 4 against the Cleveland Cavaliers I packed up the family and drove to Hilton Head for four days of rest during an otherwise busy week.

As some may remember we came to Hitlon Head for our "babymoon" when Cathy was almost seven months pregnant. We stayed with my cousin Amy's in-laws Lynne and Blaine Lotz.

The Lotzs have always welcomed us and we've appreciated their hospitality. This was very true this time around considering we brought the monkey man with us. Benjamin was all over the place and let everyone in the house know it.

We had a very nice time while on the island but wished the Magic could've won Game 5 so we could've stayed until Sunday.

Benjamin loved his first trip to the beach. He couldn't get enough of playing in the sand or feeling the waves crash over him.

So here I am writing this entry while riding back to Orlando to shoot Game 6. All I can think about is sitting on the beach, listening to the waves while watching my son play. It's great to be a dad.

This King Needs a Team

Last night was Orlando's turn to host the NBA Eastern Conference Finals between the Cleveland Cavaliers and the Orlando Magic. After the Magic took Game 1 Cleveland was able to split the series when their franchise player and media pinup girl Lebron James nailed a final second three pointer.

In Cleveland's other two playoff series they swept both Detroit and Atlanta without any problems and waited while Orlando grinded it out with Philadelphia and Boston. And while they waited ESPN and TNT cranked up their hype machines for a ratings dream matchup between Lebron and Kobe for the Finals.

That was until the Magic came to town. Let me just say this. After watching Games 1 and 2 and shooting Game 3, I don't think the networks are going to be happy. I know some may discount my opinion as being a homer but I just see Orlando as the better overall team. They have more depth on their roster where the Cavs are Lebron and four other guys.

Don't get me wrong I think Lebron could will the Cavaliers into the Finals but he looked exhausted after the first game in Cleveland and last night I caught him bent over sucking air. I don't think if this series goes long he'll be able to last.

Also when you think about it. Had that last second three rimmed out Orlando would be looking to close things out tomorrow night. I just can't see King James beating the Boys in Blue.

On a side note, it was interesting to see as a team goes deeper into the playoffs the more the sidelines become celebrity row. As usual I was next to Tiger but also in the crowd were rappers Lil' Wayne, Usher, NFLer Ray Lewis, and everyone's favorite domestic violence poster boy Chris Brown. I wonder if the Magic make it into the Finals whether Jack Nicholson will be making the trip to see his beloved Lakers.

Go Magic!!

Still a Loser

As some of you may have seen on my Facebook status the other week I've officially lost 50 pounds over the last two years. It feels great and I would like to shed about 5 more pounds to reach my goal weight of 170. The Body Mass Index charts say that a man of my height and age should be around 167 but I think 170 will be just right for me.

So now that I've been running and swimming to help with the weight loss I also borrowed a friends bike to get some miles cycling. Then one day it hit me. Why don't I enter a triathlon and see how I'd do. So I'm entering the Central Florida Triathlon Series in Clermont next month. It's a sprint style triathlon where the segments are shorter.

The race will consist of a 1/4-mile swim, 8-mile bike and a 3-mile run. A couple of weeks ago I did a test run with mileage a little longer than the race to see if I could complete it and how I would do in the transitions.

Well I didn't die. In fact, it was pretty cool. I think I'm going to like triathlons because of the different elements. I like running but the long distances can be a little boring at times. When competing in the triathlon there's more strategy involved which I like.

So here I am 50 pounds lighter (the equivalent of the two dumbbells I'm holding in the picture) and gaining more confidence. As a side note, now when I walk around with the dumbbells it's amazing that I used to do that every day. I'll let you know how the race goes.

And BTW I always give credit where credit is due. Cathy shot the portrait of me so thank you honey.

Haircut or Torture?

This morning we took Benjamin down to the place where I get my hair cut to give him his first official trim. In the past Cathy had cut his golden locks but this time we thought it might be best to have Denise do it.

You would've thought we were plucking the kids toenails out by the way he cried. To also be fair he had just fallen asleep in the car and only got a 15-minute nap in when we got him out of the backseat.

He squirmed and cried making it very difficult for Denise to do her job. I was amazed at how well she was able to cut the mullet away into a nice hair cut. He no longer looks like an unruly surfer kid but instead like the adorable little boy that we love.

I made sure to tip Denise very well and apologized to everyone in the salon for his crying but they seemed to understand. It also didn't hurt that he tried flirting with more than one of the ladies in the store.

Back to Boston

Yes the Magic won ugly the other night and sent their series with the Celtics back to Boston for a deciding Game 7. The game Thursday night was physical and made for some nice pictures on my part. I hung two remotes for the game. One was in the my usual spot on the basket to get the picture above and the other was off to the side of the court.

The second remote is what I attribute to the Magic's win. You see going into the game I knew that if Boston won they'd advance to the Eastern Conference Finals against Cleveland and I needed to make sure I got a jubilation picture of them.

After Baby's buzzer beater in Game 4 I watched the highlights on SportsCenter the next morning and saw Celtics coach Doc Rivers reaction to the win which was euphoric. I thought I need to have one camera just on the bench in the event I was unable to make a picture due to all the people on the court.

So right before the start of the fourth quarter I went up to the bench camera and double-checked everything. Well I guess expecting the Celtics to win and devoting one camera specifically for jubilation jinxed them and sent this series to a Game 7.

I just hope Sunday night someone has a bench camera set up for the Celtics inside the TD Banknorth Garden.

Fly Fishing in North Carolina

If you have a chance check out my latest travel story I shot in today's edition of the New York Times in their Escapes section. It's a story I shot with my favorite travel writer Christopher Collier. We traveled to the western part of North Carolina to do a story on fly fishing.

Now I've never been fly fishing but I quickly learned how much of a passion it is for many. This was the third time Christopher and I teamed up on a story and it lived up to our usual adventure. Previously we worked together on stories based in Florida (Florida's natural springs and kayaking in the Florida Keys) but this was our first story outside the state.

I shot this story last month and it was one of those stories that was more like a good road trip than work. We flew in to Greenville, SC and made the quick drive into North Carolina where the story would be written.

Over the next three days we drove all around the area in search of a good fishing hole. What I found was a hole in my waders which was no fun. I eventually ditched the waders at the end of the trip but before I did I made some good pictures.

Christopher was able to secure some nice accommodations for us at the High Hampton Inn in Cashiers, NC where we stayed in a relaxing cabin that could sleep 12. If I had more time I would've played the gorgeous golf course they have on property but our time was very limited.

Just to burst everyone's bubble about travel photography, it's never as wonderful as you think. In the end it's work. Plain and simple. You stay and see some of the most beautiful places this world has to offer but you aren't on holiday. You are there to make pretty pictures and once that is done you move on to make more pretty pictures.

Check out Christopher and I's story on fly fishing either by picking up today's copy or going to their website (http://travel.nytimes.com/2009/05/15/travel/escapes/15fly.html?ref=travel).

Big Baby's Buzzer Beater

Last night's Game 4 between the Boston Celtics and the Orlando Magic was one of the more intense games I shot in the past few years. This playoff series is emblematic of playoff basketball. The two teams are grinding it out on the court every game. Granted the first three games were one sided but game 4 was incredible and came down to the last second.

I didn't have much from the first half but neither did the other photographers. It was a sloppy first half and I only sent 5 images at halftime.

Then the game's intensity grew during the third quarter. The Celtics never seemed to put the Magic away. One team would go on a run and then switch. The play was physical and emotions were getting the best of some players heading down the stretch.

With 15 seconds to go in the game Magic forward Rashard Lewis saw an opening and drove to the basket to get fouled. After hitting both free throws Lewis and the rest of the Magic headed back down the court with a one-point lead.

Celtics Head Coach Doc Rivers called a timeout to draw up a last play. The fans knew there was too much time to feel comfortable with the lead.

The inbound pass went to Paul Pierce who held the ball to allow his teammates to run their routes and see who would take the final shot for the win. It would be Glen "Big Baby" Davis.

I choose to shoot the final play a little on the loose side with my 70-200mm at 200mm in order to get everything in the frame. It may have been a little loose but I was guaranteed to have the pivotal moment.

I followed Baby as he jumped and released the ball towards the basket. Rashard was too late to block the game winner. As Baby came back to the court I stayed with him in order to get his reaction. I was in luck because he was in front of the Magic bench. If Baby missed I would have the Magic's reaction or if he sank it I could get him running back to the Celtics' bench. Either way I was getting something good.

Big Baby watched the ball go through the net and exploded with emotion. He ran through the crowd of Magic and fans gathered along the side of the court. I just left my finger on the shutter as Baby broke through the crowd at the end of a good game. He just continued running towards me screaming in victory.

Whew! What a game. After looking over what the other photographers got I felt like I had some of the best shots of the key moment. I can't wait until they return on Thursday for Game 6.

Glad I get Boston and not Tiger

This weekend I'm covering the Eastern Conference Semi-Finals of the NBA playoffs between the Boston Celtics and the Orlando Magic. If I weren't I would probably be up at the Players Championship in Ponte Vedra near Jacksonville.

I told Cathy the other night that I was glad to be doing the NBA for two days and making slightly less money than four days of golf. The main reason is because this weekend the high temperatures are in the mid 90s and I'll be shooting inside air conditioning.

I've covered the Players in years previous but that was when it was played at the end of March and not in May. There were times where I can remember shooting in freezing rain while walking 18. That won't be the case this weekend for my friends at TPC Sawgrass. Nope they're probably out there right now huffing it up and down the stadium course getting their pretty pictures of Tiger while trying to stay hydrated.

Me, on the other hand, will be courtside in my chair shooting the Celtics going at it with the Magic in comfy 68-degrees air conditioning. I'll also have a beverage case close to my laptop and munchies to snack on during the game.

The other part of why I'm pleased to be covering the NBA playoffs and not the unofficial 5th major is that golf is the most physically demanding sport to shoot I think. A typical day last 12 hours, your outside in the elements and your humping 30-lbs. of gear with you.

Tomorrow I'll get to the arena around 5:30pm, set my remote camera, dine in the media room, shoot the game and get home around midnight. I won't have to sleep in some motel bed either and when I wake up I get to see Benjamin. Bring on the Celtics. Sorry Tiger.