Back To Death Valley
Another football season is under way, and on Saturday’s during football season you’ll find me regularly on the sideline for LSU football. Over 90,000 rowdy fans pack into to “Death Valley” otherwise known as Tiger Stadium, the atmosphere of college football is unlike anything else.
Last Saturday, I was assigned to shoot the Mississippi State versus LSU, SEC matchup, it was the first home game of the season so I arrived early to capture some photos of the festivities leading into the game.
Fans line the street prior to each game on Victory Hill as they watch the players, and band march down to Tiger Stadium.
Sep 18, 2010; Baton Rouge, LA, USA; The LSU Tigers band marches down Victory Hill prior to a game against the Mississippi State Bulldogs at Tiger Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Derick E. Hingle
Sep 18, 2010; Baton Rouge, LA, USA; A general view outside prior to a game between the LSU Tigers and the Mississippi State Bulldogs at Tiger Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Derick E. Hingle
Sep 18, 2010; Baton Rouge, LA, USA; The LSU Tigers band marches down Victory Hill prior to a game against the Mississippi State Bulldogs at Tiger Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Derick E. Hingle
Once the march is done, I head back inside to transmit my first photos of the day, generally I try to keep a clean card so once I dump the files on to the computer, I format my card for the next part of my day of shooting and that would be warm ups. The warm ups are not all that exciting but for the photographers that’s where I can get some good stock images that will sell for me in the future. In fact photos I took two seasons ago recently were published in a LSU Football 2011 team calendar.
The Calendar produced by Turner Licensing features my images for the months of January, June, July and September, it was my first sale of this kind, so I’m kind of excited about it. If you are interested in purchasing a calendar you can buy it through the link below or at many retailers that sell LSU licensed items.
You may be wondering why the calendar features images two years old, well that’s because a player must be out of college before their image can appear on a commercial product such as a calendar.
Ok, back to the LSU versus Mississippi State game, lets continue on from pregame when I got the shot below of head coach Les Miles running onto the field with the players.
Sep 18, 2010; Baton Rouge, LA, USA; LSU Tigers head coach Les Miles takes the field for warms ups prior to a game against the Mississippi State Bulldogs at Tiger Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Derick E. Hingle
The photo below almost seems as though Patrick Peterson was posing for me.
Sep 18, 2010; Baton Rouge, LA, USA; LSU Tigers cornerback Patrick Peterson (7) stands on the field during warms ups prior to a game against the Mississippi State Bulldogs at Tiger Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Derick E. Hingle
The game started off slow for LSU as the first half was filled with field goals, and kicker Josh Jasper went on to set a team record for field goals in a game with five, also Jasper is a prospect for the future in the pros so I made sure to get some photos of him.
Sep 18, 2010; Baton Rouge, LA, USA; LSU Tigers kicker Josh Jasper (30) kicks a field goal during the first half against the Mississippi State Bulldogs at Tiger Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Derick E. Hingle
Not too much great action in the first half, but below is one of the shots that caught my eye.
Sep 18, 2010; Baton Rouge, LA, USA; LSU Tigers quarterback Jordan Jefferson (9) breaks away from Mississippi State Bulldogs linebacker K.J. Wright (34) during the first half at Tiger Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Derick E. Hingle
In this photo running back Stevan Ridley breaks away creating my favorite shot from the first half of the game.
Sep 18, 2010; Baton Rouge, LA, USA; LSU Tigers running back Stevan Ridley (34) breaks away from Mississippi State Bulldogs linebacker Chris White (50)during the first half at Tiger Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Derick E. Hingle
Another favorite of the first half, was this shot on Kelvin Shepard putting a hit on the Bulldogs quarterback.
Sep 18, 2010; Baton Rouge, LA, USA; LSU Tigers linebacker Kelvin Sheppard (11) hits Mississippi State Bulldogs quarterback Chris Relf (14) as he passed the ball during the first half at Tiger Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Derick E. Hingle
That image was featured in a ESPN.com article earlier this week on LSU’s defense.
During the second half once the sun had set I wanted to get a general view of the stadium, it’s a long haul carrying equipment and I didn’t go all the way to the top of the stadium but I made this shot I was pleased with.
Sep 18, 2010; Baton Rouge, LA, USA; A general view from the stands during the second half of a game between the Mississippi State Bulldogs and LSU Tigers at Tiger Stadium. The LSU Tigers defeated the Mississippi State Bulldogs 29-7. Mandatory Credit: Derick E. Hingle
When I came back down from the stands I noticed Mississippi State driving in my direction so I stay where I was and the very next play Mississippi State threw a deep pass along the sideline that would be intercepted by cornerback Patrick Peterson, here are a few frames from the interception, also as I looked around, I was the only photographer that appeared to be in that area to get the shot.
Sep 18, 2010; Baton Rouge, LA, USA; LSU Tigers cornerback Patrick Peterson (7) intercepts a pass against the Mississippi State Bulldogs during the second half at Tiger Stadium. The LSU Tigers defeated the Mississippi State Bulldogs 29-7. Mandatory Credit: Derick E. Hingle
Sep 18, 2010; Baton Rouge, LA, USA; LSU Tigers cornerback Patrick Peterson (7) pins the football against his body to secure an interception against the Mississippi State Bulldogs during the second half at Tiger Stadium. The LSU Tigers defeated the Mississippi State Bulldogs 29-7. Mandatory Credit: Derick E. Hingle
Following the end of every win LSU Tigers head coach Les Miles joins his entire team in singing the school fight song, this always makes a cool photo.
Sep 18, 2010; Baton Rouge, LA, USA; LSU Tigers head coach Les Miles joins his players in singing the Tigers fight song following a win over the Mississippi State Bulldogs at Tiger Stadium. The LSU Tigers defeated the Mississippi State Bulldogs 29-7. Mandatory Credit: Derick E. Hingle
Well that is all for now, I’ll be heading back to Tiger Stadium tonight for a game against West Virginia looking to try a few new things, should be fun. If you like what you saw please share it with your friends by using the twitter or facebook options at the top of the page. Until next time.
