2012 Summer Olympics: USA Water Polo Women vs. Hungary (another nail biter!)

Last night was the first water polo game for the women of Team USA and they came through with a win against Hungary. It was another nail biter, winning by just one point, just like the men's team the night before. And here are some of the photos from last night's game.

Just before the team comes out of the locker room area, they wait to be announced. I managed to get some shots of them as they anticipated their Olympic debut. There were many different emotions, captured in numerous images. A cross between excited, ecstatic, pensive, curious and heavy concentration.

A wide shot of the venue taken from my shooting position on the pool deck.

Before the warmups had started, I noticed that the pool was perfectly still and the ball was placed for the beginning of the match. I shot this to highlight the colors of the ball, but also include the Olympic logo in the background. (All of these shots were taken with the upcoming Canon 200-400 L series lens).

It is truly amazing how high these women can get their bodies out of the water.

I like this shot but saw something really cool...

...so I cropped in and created this image. This is one of my favorites from the Olympics so far. I love the way that the logo and the tattoo are so perfectly in line with each other.

Maggie Steffens was absolutely amazing with 7 (yes I said 7) goals in this game. She is one of the youngsters on the team and came through big last night! The following shots were in taken in succession (at 12 frames a second with the Canon 1Dx). Look at the power in her shot.

Score on the penalty shot!

And yet another shot showing the pure determination on Maggie's face.

Brenda Villa taking a shot into the net.

Another cool shot showing the water trail behind the ball.

After each game, some of the athletes will join the press in the "mix area" and I capture some images there as well. Here is Brenda Villa being interviewed.

The coaches reaction to the game.

Jessica Steffens being interviewed and asked about her sister's performance. Look at that great smile!

Maggie being interviewed after her 7 goal Olympic debut. Not a bad way to start the Games for her. After looking at the successive shots (post above), I decided that I should create a montage of those images for the team. Here is what I created for them.

Both men and women teams has won their first games. Lets hope they keep that streak going!

2012 Summer Olympics: USA Mens Basketball vs France

For the last two days I have been shooting a ton and yesterday and this morning I have been playing catch-up on the blog. So, here are images from the USA vs France basketball game from two days ago. Sorry about the delay in getting these out. Even with 5 hours sleep, there is so little time to get everything done.

The beginning of the game. I was shooting from a high position, since they reserved the lower positions for the pool photographers and those who "needed their shots". I was just there for fun, therefore sent up to the higher position. :(

Great intensity in front of the net.

Kevin Durant doing a little slam dunk.

Deron Williams going down...

Carmello Anthony guarding the French player.

Kevin Durant showing his moves again.

The crowd was really into the game and having a good time.

Chris Paul (CP3) was enjoying himself too.

A breakaway play with the Americans rushing down the court.

Westbrook catching some good air!

And then at the very end of the game, all of the American athletes came over to the stands, about 10 rows down from me and started shaking hands. Little did I know that Michelle Obama was down there watching the game. This is the best picture I could get under the circumstances.

USA Water Polo: Men's first game (vs. Montenegro) - A VERY exciting game!

Last night was the first game for the men of Team USA Water Polo and it was a great game. A real nail biter at that! The US won the game with a score of 8 to 7 and it came down to the last minute with some great defense by the Americans.

Since I am shooting for this team primarily, I feel much more connected to them and REALLY wanted them to win. Here are some of the shots from that game.

Merrill Moses was awesome in net.

When studying the team members in the months prior to the Olympics, I noted that Merrill Moses shows more reaction than any of the other team members, so I watched him after Team USA scored any goals.

These guys are beasts! It is hard to remember that they are not standing on the bottom of the pool. They come out so high and with such force.

A classic battle in front of the cage.

These guys were going at it in the 2 meter position. I could have shot photos of just them during the game.

Tony Azevedo scored a clutch goal in the last couple of minutes of the game to give the US the lead. Once again, I keyed in on Merrill, who did not disappoint.

Pure physical power in front of the cage.

As the buzzer sounded, signaling the end of the game, it was time to celebrate the first win (hopefully of many). Tonight is the women's first game. Let's hope they can grab a win too.