4:28 AM. Did you feel it? Did you know it was that early? Hey, it's the first day of summer. The summer solstice. Today June 21, 2010, is the day our sun stays out longer than any other day of the year in the Northern Hemisphere. The sun rose at [...]
If you watch TV, listen to the radio, read a magazine / newspaper or walk around town, advertising is all around us. It's part of what makes commerce work, keeps us from going broke and losing our jobs. Out here at Infineon, it's no different. But it's more intense. Really [...]
It's loosely used. Winners Circle. Usually it's a straight line of people, a semi-circle or a group of people that form a kind of circle. Out here at Infineon NASCAR land, the Winners Circle is square. I know the moniker emplies a tight circle of friends celebrating a victory. I [...]
I'm a sucker for clouds. Thursday was an interesting day to incorporate wispy thin, icy cirrus clouds and the yearly cycle of NASCAR at Infineon Raceway in Sonoma.
Barbecue: check Hot dogs: check Hamburgers: check Liquid refreshment: check Motorhome: check Fast cars: check Sunscreen: check T-shirt with favorite driver: check Flag with favorite driver: check Earplugs: check Kitchen sink: check Ferris wheel: check Pool: POOL? Yep, there is at least one pool at NASCAR. It's popped [...]
The rolling steel that is NASCAR is back at Infineon Raceway in Sonoma. With it comes the people and advertising that follows. At least 6,000 RV's (never really counted 'em before) a couple of hundred big rigs carrying everything from cars to hats and everything in between. Yesterday was pretty [...]
There's Baseball... Put your game face on. In the zone. Bring it. That a kid! Stee-rike. Slide! Ducks on the pond. Clutch hit. That was HUGE! Get two up the middle. gogogogogo! Down, down! Cut second, cut second! Then there are soccer [...]
My dad bought me a KZ 90 -a Kawasaki- when I was 12. I loved that motorcycle. For a 12 year-old it was a source of freedom. A way to get in to trouble a little quicker. One day I went over a jump that was a little to big [...]
Bicycle photography lasts for just a few seconds. You have one chance, (if you are lucky to have a motor drive you get more chances to the eighth power). Unless it's a criterium ride where they pass by 40 or 50 times (go fast turn left). Sacramento was the finish [...]
Impossible. Unbelievable. Mystifying. Bad timing. Blame El Nino. When the Amgen Tour of California rolled around last year in Sonoma County, it rained. The heavens opened up. The race from Davis to Santa Rosa was arguably the worst stage in the history of bike racing. Four and one-half grueling hours [...]
How many frames in a photojournalists life? Millions. Literally.
I’ve lost count since I started shooting photos at eight years-old with a Polaroid Land Camera (which I still own). It’s a way of life this photojournalism thing which is endlessly fascinating. The trip along the way, now in my 31st year professionally and the last 25 with the Press Democrat, has been an adventure in life. What it has to offer, ranging from implausible beauty to the utterly cruel things life randomly pitches out have shaped and molded who I am. That means I get to witness history. Pretty cool, eh? This journey has included photographing lots of inanimate objects which can be terribly boring. I’ve also borne the brunt of people unhappy to see a photographer show up to document less than pleasant circumstances. Then there’s the weather, which wreaks havoc on the human race daily. So I document the clouds. My advice for anyone having a bad day is to go outside and take a picture of those clouds once in awhile. It will do wonders for the interior beast. Unless you are using a metal tripod in an electrical storm.
-Kent Porter