The 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing was the first Olympics for me, and one that I will never forget. At that time, I was not able to get "up credentialed" to shoot the opening ceremonies, but I was able to get a premises pass that would let me shoot from outside the Bird's Nest.
Every Olympic year, there is a lot of talk about how the host city is not ready for the Games. Although I have found this to be a lot of hype, there is also some truth to it. I shot this photo of a Chinese man working on the Olympics grounds at midnight, the day before the opening ceremony.
Here is one of my favorite moments from the Beijing Olympics. Having a chance to see and photograph Michael Phelps in many of his competitions, I had a smile from my face for days.
Approximately two years later (2010), I was photographing the Winter Olympics in Vancouver. And this time, I was able to get a ticket into the Opening Ceremonies and experience that for the first time. (Even press have to be ticketed for certain "high impact" events.)
One part of the Olympic Flame failed to rise from the floor, but I didn't care. It was still beautiful, and made for a good story.
This fish eye shot was one of my favorites from the Vancouver Olympics. I was shooting (and continue to) for USA Hockey in the Winter Games and feel honored to do so. I love watching and playing hockey, so this is very natural for me.
In 2012 I was in London to photograph the Summer Olympics. Here is photo from their Opening Ceremonies. Ever time I look at these photos, it brings back memories for me. I remember having to be in the stadium for 7 hours prior to the start of the ceremony and the many hours of anticipation leading up to the event.
I was sitting in the "head-on" photo position, which save me a clear shot of each team entering the stadium. This photo was one of my favorites from the London Opening Ceremonies, as the home team entered for the first time. I still get chills when I see this.
The Summer Olympics in 2012 was my first time shooting for USA Water Polo and it ended up being an amazing experience. I really enjoy the sport, and more importantly I love the support people at USAWP and the athletes themselves.
Photographically, it was a challenge to get unique shots for the team, but the team was very happy with the results. So much so that we are working together again in Rio.
This photo was one of my favorites from London, because it was the first time I ever photographed a Gold Medal match for "my team". I am hoping that I am in the same situation with both the men's and women's teams this year!
My favorite moment from the London Games happened hours after this photo was taken. After hours of editing and posting for the team and their advertisers, I was invited to the team party. Not as their photographer, but as a part of the team. I remember talking to many of the athletes who told me that they could not wait to get back to the village after each game to log in and see the photos that I had taken. How cool is that?
And then there were the 2014 Games in Sochi, Russia, where I was once again photographing for USA Hockey as my primary team. For these Opening Ceremonies, I was sitting in a higher position, but still able to zoom in and capture Team USA entering the stadium. Chills once again!
As many of you know, Sochi had a lot of challenges for myself and the other media. But overall, I still think of those Games with fond memories. Heck, I came home with a ton of really crazy stories to share with all of you.
This photo shows one of my favorite moments from the Sochi Olympics when T.J. Oshie was called upon to make one shootout goal after another. It isn't often that I get to see and feel the game when I am shooting, since I am concentrating on getting good photos, in focus and at the peak of action. But this game was incredibly exciting, even for me as I was doing my job.
I took this night shot of the Olympic Flame towards the end of the 2014 Winter Olympics. Being one of the last shots taken at that Olympic Games, It is the perfect transition photo to the next Games.
After years of planning, I am very excited about my upcoming trip to Rio. I am flying there 5 days before the Opening Ceremonies, so that I can shoot and share lots of behind the scenes photographs with all of you!
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