The Proud Soccer Dad Cometh

Watch out David Beckham, the next Filipino footballer has arrived with kicking enthusiasm and revelry. With a little encouragement and a well needed break from video games, my son came out running, quite literally, to the local youth soccer program at N-Zone Sports.



The "Bulldozer" intercepts the ball to dribble the tumultuous path to overcome the wary goalkeeper a few yards away. The excited soccer dad shoots the action with his camera with simultaneous shouts of consolation. A task proved difficult.



Sports photography takes practice and more practice. With my Canon EOS 1D Mark IV with AF Servo enabled and my strategically placed AF point in the viewfinder, I managed to click some decent well composed soccer action pictures.



This is not my first youth soccer game photo shoot. My daughter played youth soccer a couple years back with much success. Her soccer interest has waned and is now replaced by social events and the latest fashion trends.



Just like life itself, I think my son is striker bound. Heading forward through obstacles to an ultimate goal. Keeping ahead of the ball is not an easy task despite the anarchy. This soccer dad cometh with overwhelming adulation this holiday season.



You can view more soccer chaos in Jude's Youth Soccer 2012 Gallery shot with the Canon EOS 1D Mark IV paired with the EF 70-200mm f/4L IS zoom lens.

Stay updated with the latest gear by Becoming a Fan on my Facebook Fan Page and following me on Twitter!

Madeline's First Track Meet

Running in circles is not my cup of tea. Just the thought of running a long distance makes me exhausted. As for my daughter, the sport of Track and Field events means she will not get kicked in the shins anymore.



Runners gather en masse like a Justin Bieber concert at the first track meet of the season. Track and Field Teams from the schools of the Catholic Diocese compete in several events such as relay, sprint medleys, discus, javelin and long jumps throughout the season.



The competition from other schools was just as tough as the lighting conditions with "Friday Night Lights". Stadium lighting is not the ideal light for freezing action but not all sport arenas can be like the Super Bowl. When the sun finally went down, I was pushing the ISO to 6400 to prevent motion blur. Even equipped with fast f/2.8 and f/4 glass, the image grain began to look like winter snow.



The last time my daughter ran this fast was to the nearest shopping mall for the latest Vera Bradley, Hello Kitty or Apple Store for the latest products. The spirit of competition and sportsmanship fills her running shoes. Although, she would also gladly accept a Hipster or the latest iPhone 4S around her neck than any shiny medal.



You can view more Olympic events in my Daughter's First Track Meet Galley shot with the Canon 1D Mark IV paired with EF 24-105mm f/4L, EF 70-200mm f/2.8L IS II and the EF 300mm f/4L IS lenses.

Stay updated with the latest HD DSLR gear by Becoming a Fan on my Facebook Fan Page and following me on Twitter!

The Ultimate Gift

Birthdays come and go with the wind, but some birthdays hold a special place in your heart. Believe me, my faint memories of my birth year made only slight dents in my clogged arteries and my wife's birthday recently celebrated over the weekend reminded me birthday wishes do come true.



Happy birthday to my beautiful wife of over ten years. Ten long years. Long meaning a very good length of time, really. There is no other woman in the world that can put up with my personal foibles and bear gorgeous children other than the Blessed Virgin Mary. Truly a wish that keeps on giving. Even the BVM has hit the social network, check out her Facebook Fan Page. She does not like the new look and feature changes of Facebook either!



You do not have to be a fortune teller to read my crystal ball. I love taking pictures, especially of my family. My friends at North Tampa Photography hosted another successful Canon EOS Discovery Day over the weekend in Tampa, FL. Experienced and aspiring photographers gathered to learn from official Canon instructors like Drew Macallum and Amanda Arrick. I played with all their latest Canon gear with childhood reckless abandon.



I got my hands on the Canon EF 8-15mm f/4 Fisheye lens. Although, I am not a fan of fisheye lenses, but this lens is unique because it caters to full frame, APS-H and APS-C image sensors. The 8mm focal length gives you a true fisheye effect on full frame such as the Canon 5D Mark II. The lens is actually marked on the zoom ring with a "C" for APS-C and an "H" for APS-H sensors for a no borders wide angle view in camera. The lens will give you a unique POV especially for the HD DLSR video crowd.



The gift of scoring six runs by the Tampa Bay Rays led to a 6-2 win over the Toronto Blue Jays Saturday night. The Ray's rookie left-hander, Alex Torres, even threw five scoreless innings topped off with Johnny Damon hitting a three run homer for the big win. Just like TV news, baseball has lots of waiting between innings for the prime action.



My family enjoyed the possible playoff atmosphere of game #77 especially for my baby daughter Serena. This was her first official baseball game of her new life and that was the third chili cheese hot dog of mine to celebrate America's past time.



Just like a Major League player connects with his game through his fine weathered glove, my camera captures the loves of my life. Call it the love for my family through my love of photography. That is the ultimate gift.



Stay updated with the latest Canon gear by becoming a Fan on my Facebook Fan Page and following me on Twitter!



I just had to show you a close up of that yummy Chili Cheese with onions Hot Dog I ate multiple times at the Tampa Bay Ray's baseball game. Pictures do not give it justice, as a matter of fact.

The Florida Aquarium and U.S. Navy Divers

My son's recent school field trip had an unexpected surprise at The Florida Aquarium in Tampa, Florida. The United States Navy Divers were putting on a small display in the Coral Reef Exhibit as part of many events scheduled for Tampa Bay Navy Week 2011.



As my son gazed at the plethora of sea life through the 12 inch thick acrylic window, I set my Canon EOS 5D Mark II to movie mode to capture the panoramic splendor of the 42 foot wide view of this man made Coral Reef.



Sharks and Stingrays to Seahorses and Sea Urchins filled the young minds of my son's Kindergarten class. My mind was filled with a Fish Fry and Fried Calamari.



I used a Canon EOS 5D Mark II with a EF 24-105mm f4L IS lens. The camera was paired with a Sennheiser MKE400 shotgun microphone for audio. The Youtube video was shot at 1080p at 29.97fps. I edited with iMovie'09 and used Quicktime to compress a 1gb h264 video file.



You can view more pictures and videos in my The Florida Aquarium Experience 2011 Gallery.

Stay updated by becoming a Fan on Facebook and following me on Twitter!

Tampa Bay Devil Rays Win Over New York Yankees!

Kudos to the Tampa Bay Devil Rays for the 3 to 2 victory against the New York Yankees in the July 30th American League East baseball game. I witnessed Rays Matt Joyce hit a three run homer in the sixth inning. The sold out crowd at Tropicana Field roared into a frenzy as number 20 knocked the ball beyond right field granting the Rays with all their runs.



The brief moment my son unglued his eyes from his Nintendo DSi, he got into the ballgame spirit with his own personalized Devil Rays wooden bat. A black bat for my son and of course a pink bat for my daughter.



New York Yankees Alex Rodriguez strikes out. A-Rod fails his attempted 600th career homer.



Our family Friday night out would not be complete without overpriced sugary cotton candy. Nintendo DSi followed with souvenir bats and finally sugar overload to finish off the July 30th Devil Rays victory over the Yankees.



The competition is not over for the American League East. Baseball fans of Tampa Bay look forward to another Rays win and my kids are hopeful for more cotton candy.



I used a Canon EOS 1D Mark IV with the Canon EF 70-200mm f/2.8L IS II, 24-70mm f/2.8L and 35mm f/1.4L lenses.
You can view more in my Tampa Bay Devil Rays vs. New York Yankees American League East Baseball Game Gallery.

Ring Of Power

Visions of Tonka's "Mighty Dump Truck" became reality for my son and his classmates. A school field trip to Ringpower Caterpillar Heavy Equipment Facility and the local Lowe's Home Improvement started the day for my son's preschool with excitement.



After the tour of the construction trucks with over sized tires, the entire class moved on to the home improvement center Lowe's down the street. I was a little wary about curious 4 year old kids wandering the hazardous aisles of a hardware warehouse. Let the scolding in public begin!



The field trip did not end as one big home improvement sales pitch to parents. It concluded with an interactive family project to construct a wooden weapon of mass destruction. That was the only moment my interest peaked because I wanted to build my personal catapult too. Only kids get to have all the fun!



The photos and video was shot entirely with the Canon EOS 1D Mark IV,the Canon EF 70-200mm f/2.8 L version 1 and the Canon EF 24-70mm f/2.8 L.

You can check out more photos and videos in my Canon 1D Mark IV Photo and Video Gallery.