So this being my first sports shoot I knew a few things going into the shoot: Keep the shutter speed high and your eyes peeled. What I wasn't prepared for was the incredible level of talent these riders possessed.
You see, this wasn't just my first sports/motorcross shoot. This was my first event PERIOD! I've watched these guys on tv for years, the X-Games were a staple of my childhood. However this was the first time ever experiencing it first hand. And let me tell you...
...it was unreal! I found I had to keep reminding myself that I was at work and to stop yelling and cheering like a little kid every 2-3 minutes (I'm a sucker for backflips!)
Shooting with me that day was my good friend Jason Sonnier (His WEBSITE)
if you don't know who he is by now then you're life is incomplete! He's an incredibly talented up&coming photographer and I've had the pleasure of working with him on numerous projects both professional and personal. I am extremely proud to call him a colleague and a friend! I promise you will be hearing a lot more about him in the future!
...besides...who can resist a smile like that ;) haha!
So after 4 hours of shooting and what felt like 6000 flights of stairs later (The Cajundome is MERCILESS! haha) the riders settle into their seats to sign autographs for their fans.
As we began our long walk back to the car to pack up our gear I had a lot of time to think about the evening that passed. I was tired...no exhausted. Covered in sweat and what I can only assume was a coke that someone spilled on the floor right where I happened to be kneeling. My back was killing me. My legs were shaking from the stairs...and I had the biggest smile on my face.
You see...something beautiful happened that night. Amidst all of the engine noise and screaming fans I realized something...I DID feel like a kid. I felt like a little kid having the time of his life, and I was at WORK! The realization hit me like a ton of bricks. I was having so much fun that there was no WAY this could be work. It was pure, unbelievable, unequivocal joy. It not only reminded me why I love being a photographer but it reminded me how important that "Child-like" joy is. Children don't do anything in halves...they are the harbingers of passion and totality. They are completely happy or completely sad, but they are also completely ALIVE! Somewhere in our adult lives we've learned to "live in the grey" a mix of emotions that are constantly undercutting and diluting one another. Well for a while I was living in a black and white world where I was COMPLETELY happy! We can learn a lot from children...don't do anything in halves...be complete. If you're going to love, love completely. If you are going to experience joy, being completely joyous. And if you want to be happy, be completely happy. Learn the lessons our children are teaching us...there's a child in all of us just begging for us to listen. Maybe it's time we started :)
