Jason Hursh Pro Debut

Jason Hursh was the first selection made by the Braves in the 2013 draft. He immediately signed and was sent to Class A Rome to begin his professional career. Rome hired me to shoot his first start and it was a pretty good one. Two innings pitched, 3 K's, 1 BB.

The game didn't start on time like I had hoped. It had been raining all week, and this game was delayed by 2 hours. By the time first pitch was made, it was 9:35 and it started to rain AGAIN. Luckily though, they didn't bring the tarp out again and continued on with the game, so it made for some great rain shots.

1/400 f/2.8 ISO 500

70-200mm f/2.8

Nikon D3

1/400 f/3.5 ISO 1600

70-200mm f/2.8

Nikon D3

 1/160 f/4.5 ISO 4000

400mm f/2.8

Nikon D3s

1/500 f/2.8 ISO 3200

400mm f/2.8

Nikon D3s

1/500 f/2.8 ISO 3200

400mm f/2.8

Nikon D3s

1/800 f/2.8 ISO 3200

400mm f/2.8

Nikon D3s

Major League Baseball contacted the stadium after the game looking for photos. I sent them a few to choose from and they used one for their article on the official Minor League Baseball website.

Then & Now Project

Today I wanted to continue working on a project that I started last year and kind of deserted for awhile. The project is about merging photos together taken in the same exact spot, but many years apart. I call it the "Then & Now Project.". I found a lot of photos and ideas on www.atlantatimemachine.com which is a really cool site with hundreds of photos from Atlanta's past. 

Here's a few of my final pieces:


Flatiron Building: the oldest standing skyscraper in Atlanta. Original photo from circa 1897

Downtown Connector. Before the highway was built, it was just a ton of dirt, which was dug through to make way for I-75/85

Life of Georgia Building. Original photo dates to the construction in 1966.

You can view more on my website at http://www.kylehessphotography.com/#!then--now/c6i9

After I finished taking the "Now" photos, I went over to the Varsity to try it for the first time. It's an Atlanta Landmark but I can't quite understand the hype after eating there since it tastes like basic concession stand food. I took a couple photos afterwards to add more to my city photography page on my website:

10 seconds f/18 ISO 100

Nikon D3s

Sigma 15mm f/2.8 Fisheye

2.5 seconds f/11 ISO 100
Nikon D3s

Nikkor 24-70mm f/2.8

Rome Braves vs Hickory Crawdads

I shot for the Rome Braves again and had a blast. This is a great stadium to watch a game and they have a really good attendance. 

I notice it's much easier for me when I shoot at a venue at least once, because shooting here just a couple weeks ago made me learn which spots are the best to shoot from and I was able to get much better composition.


Here's some of my best from the game:

 1/2000 f/4 ISO 1250

Nikkor 400mm f/2.8 & 1.4x TC

Nikon D3s

 1/4000 f/4.5 ISO 800

Nikkor 400mm f/2.8 & 1.4x TC

Nikon D3s

 1/1250 f/3.2 ISO 1600

Nikkor 400mm f/2.8

Nikon D3s

 1/6400 f/3.2 ISO 500

Nikkor 70-200mm f/2.8

Nikon D3

 1/800 f/3.2 ISO 2500

Nikkor 70-200mm f/2.8

Nikon D3

1/800 f/3.2 ISO 2500

Nikkor 70-200mm f/2.8 

Nikon D3

1/800 f/4 ISO 4000

Nikkor 400mm f/2.8

Nikon D3s

After a couple innings, someone in the dugout told me to be ready because one of the employees was going to come out in-between innings and propose to his girlfriend, who also works for the team. I got in place and here's how it went:

 1/1000 f/3.2 ISO 1000

Nikkor 70-200mm f/2.8

Nikon D3

  1/1250 f/3.2 ISO 1000

Nikkor 70-200mm f/2.8

Nikon D3

 1/1250 f/3.2 ISO 1000

Nikkor 70-200mm f/2.8

Nikon D3

 1/1000 f/3.2 ISO 1000

Nikkor 70-200mm f/2.8

Nikon D3

 1/1250 f/3.2 ISO 1000

Nikkor 70-200mm f/2.8

Nikon D3

 1/2000 f/3.2 ISO 1000

Nikkor 70-200mm f/2.8

Nikon D3

 1/1000 f/3.2 ISO 1000

Nikkor 70-200mm f/2.8

Nikon D3

 1/1600 f/3.2 ISO 1000

Nikkor 70-200mm f/2.8

Nikon D3

 1/1000 f/3.2 ISO 1000

Nikkor 70-200mm f/2.8

Nikon D3

1/1250 f/3.2 ISO 1000

Nikkor 70-200mm f/2.8

Nikon D3

Now that was perfect. I got in a good position, and there was an overcast sky so there was perfect lighting to work with. I'm excited to get these photos to the couple.

The skies weren't perfect for long. There was a big storm coming in, but somehow it completely missed the stadium. There were storms to the right of the stadium, as well as the left. While the dark clouds hovered in the background of the stadium, I quickly put on my fisheye lens and took a few shots around the stadium. You can actually see it raining to the right of the stadium.

 1/250 f/4 ISO 500

Sigma 15mm f/2.8 Fisheye

Nikon D3s

 1/250 f/4 ISO 500

Sigma 15mm f/2.8 Fisheye

Nikon D3s

1/250 f/4 ISO 640

Sigma 15mm f/2.8 Fisheye

Nikon D3s

Memorial Day 2013

For Memorial Day 2013, I decided to take a trip to the Marietta National Cemetery. It was mentioned on the news that flags were placed on every grave, so I knew it would be picture-worthy. When I first got there,  there was a ceremony going on at one end, so I went to the other to get away from the crowds. 

I couldn't help but follow this guy around. He was walking by himself, going grave to grave reading every one. He turned out to be a great subject.

1/4000 f/3.5 ISO 250

70-200mm f/2.8

Nikon D3s

 1/6400 f/3.5 ISO 250

70-200mm f/2.8

Nikon D3s

 1/3200 f/3.5 ISO 250

70-200mm f/2.8

Nikon D3s

Afterwards I got a couple shots of the graves

 1/400 f/3.5 ISO 250

70-200mm f/2.8

Nikon D3s

 1/8000 f/2.8 ISO 125

Nikon 70-200mm f/2.8

Nikon D3s

As I was leaving, they were just about to do a 21-gun salute, so of course I had to get a shot of this

 1/640 f/4 ISO 125

Nikon 70-200mm f/2.8

Nikon D3s

1/640 f/4 ISO 125

Nikon 70-200mm f/2.8
Nikon D3s

Super Full Moon

Tonight, there was a "Super Full Moon", but I didn't find out about it until the very last minute. I read that the moon would reach 100% illumination at 12:25am, so I packed up my gear and drove over to Acworth Beach by midnight.

I kept messing up. First, I left my tripod next to my car, so I had to drive back to get it. Then when I get there, I realized I forgot my remote shutter release. I also realized it was so dark but I forgot my flashlight. Then in the end, I forgot to shoot RAW, and was shooting just JPEG the whole time without even knowing it. I guess that goes to show that no matter how fast you're trying to work, make sure you're not forgetting anything! Double-check settings, and double-check your gear. 

I didn't stay for too long, but this is what I came up with in the end. I played around with my 24-70 at first but wanted a wider angle, so I switched to a Sigma 15mm f/2.8 Fisheye lens. It's a really cool lens, and it's known to be sharper than its competitor, the Nikkor 16mm f/2.8 (which is $200 more too). Sigma has been designing a lot of really good lenses the past few years that are finally starting to compete with Nikon. This is one of those lenses that just really blows me away with the quality. 

2 second exposure, f/3.2 ISO 400

Sigma 15mm f/2.8 Fisheye

Nikon D3s

See the light coming from behind the trees? That's actually light pollution coming from Atlanta. It's very hard to get dark skies when you're close to a city. Atlanta is 30 miles from this location, but it'll still show. Rural locations are always the best to get a good night shot. You'll be able to use just the moon for lighting and more stars will appear in the sky.

Rome Braves vs Ashville Tourists

Tonight I shot my first game for the Rome Braves, which is the Class A affiliate of the Atlanta Braves, located a couple hours northeast of Atlanta. I was hired to shoot this game as well as next week. I haven't been to this stadium since April of 2011 when I watched Bryce Harper make his minor league debut, but I figured I could still work around and find good locations to shoot from. 

This was technically a double-header, since the game from the night before was rained out, so the game continued in the top of the 4th inning with 2 outs, then the second game would be limited to 7 innings to prevent tiring out the players. Luckily for the first game, Atlanta Braves 2012 first round pick Lucas Sims was pitching, and I really wanted to get some good shots of him. If he turns out to be a big star someday, these pictures would be great to look back on. 

Here's a few of my favorite shots of Sims from the day:

1/2500 f/4 1000 ISO

Nikkor 400mm f/2.8 & 1.4 tc

Nikon D3s

1/2500 f/4 1000 ISO

400mm f/2.8 & 1.4 tc

Nikon D3s

1/2500 f/4 1000 ISO

400mm f/2.8 & 1.4 tc

Nikon D3s

1/1000 f/3.5 640 ISO

70-200mm f/2.8

Nikon D3

1/1600 f/3.5 640 ISO

70-200mm f/2.8

Nikon D3

In-between games I ran out to get a good shot of the stadium. This one satisfied me enough, though I wish that car wasn't in the shot. 

1/400 f/5 200 ISO

15mm f/2.8 Fisheye

Nikon D3s

BirdZerk was also in attendance. For those who have never heard of him, BirdZerk is a nationally touring mascot that puts on quite a show. Fans really seem to enjoy it.

1/640 f/3.5 640 ISO

70-200mm f/2.8

Nikon D3

1/500 f/3.5 640 ISO

70-200mm f/2.8

Nikon D3

1/1250 f/3.5 1600 ISO

70-200mm f/2.8

Nikon D3

1/640 f/3.5 640 ISO

70-200mm f/2.8

Nikon D3

1/1000 f/3.5 2500 ISO

70-200mm f/2.8

Nikon D3

And here's a few more images from the game

1/5000 f/3.5 1000 ISO

70-200mm f/2.8

Nikon D3

1/6400 f/4 1000 ISO

400mm f/2.8 & 1.4 TC

Nikon D3

1/3200 f/4 1250 ISO

400mm f/2.8

Nikon D3s

1/3200 f/3.5 1250 ISO

400mm f/2.8

Nikon D3s

1/800 f/3.5 1600 ISO

400mm f/2.8

Nikon D3s

1/640 f/3.5 2000 ISO

400mm f/2.8

Nikon D3s

1/800 f/3.2 2000 ISO

400mm f/2.8

Nikon D3s