Play-Offs, the off season, and a lesson about assumption

OK, so on 8/4/11, I, along with a couple of good friends, headed off to Coventry for the EPL Play-Off weekend. It's basically a big social event with some hockey thrown in there, just to keep us all amused.

It was a great weekend, I met new people and got to know my friends even more. The only bad thing was Phoenix going out in the semi-final stage with 20 seconds of overtime left. But as the saying goes, "Que sera, sera". It wasn't a big photography weekend, my lens still hadn't been repaired, so I just took my compact camera and gave it a test or 2, then just sat and enjoyed the games.

So, now we're into the off season, the rumor mills are in full swing, and I've got Sundays free again. I've no idea what I'll do with the time, but until uni finishes, I'll be working on my films. "Plexi" is now at a point where I can put it on the back burner, as my other 2 shoots are coming up, so that's good. I'll have more film news once the shoots are over, I'm sure.

News on my lens, it's fixed! It came back yesterday with a replaced scale ring, whatever that means. All I know is, it's back, and that makes me one happy photographer.

Now for that lesson in assumption. I had to go to Manchester yesterday for a chat about possible employment after uni. All went well, and I head to the station to get the train home. I go to the platform where I normally get trains home from, the first calling point and eventual destination are correct, so on I get. I notice the little scrolling LED isn't working, and the driver only announces the next stop and destination, so still I think all is well.

Train goes to the first calling point, but then at what should be my stop, I see Wilmslow out of the window. Hang on, I think, I've gone somewhat wrong here. So I fortunately get off at Crewe, the next stop. If I hadn't, I'd have ended up in London. Cue another train journey to get to where I need to be. So, let this be a lesson, even though all seems correct, never assume the train you're getting on is going where you think it should!

What a Weekend!

All I can say is, wow! I have had a mad week. As I wrote before, my main lens for shooting the hockey had to be sent off for repairs, and this left me with a situation when it came to shooting the weekend's games. I couldn't use the kit lens that came with my camera, I've tried before and it's just not good enough. So, I was able to borrow a Nikon D90 from the uni, and shoot on that. It was a bit weird, I'm a Sony user and there are some fundamental differences, but I managed to get my head round it all for the trip to Peterborough on Saturday.

At that point, Phoenix needed a point to take the League, and we all thought it'd be done that night. The atmosphere among the traveling Phoenix support was immense, but alas, it was not to be, we lost 6-2.

It was a pretty subdued journey home, but really, looking back, I'm glad we lost.

Because it set up an amazing end of season clash between Phoenix and the Swindon Wildcats. The Ice Dome was packed, and the atmosphere was electric. I don't think I'll forget looking round as the intro video played and seeing packed blocks, with everyone on their feet, clapping and cheering, something I'd never seen before.

The game was a nervous affair for me, and also for Helena, but Phoenix did us all proud and won the title, with a 5-2 victory. This is where the atmosphere basically went from electric to what can only be described as "all hell breaking loose" both on and off the ice. It's also where I learned that yes, I am getting the hang of this photography business, because in between turning to Helena and shouting "We've done it, we've done it! We've won the League!", I was able to capture some cracking shots of the players celebrating. Some of them are below:

More can be found on my Flickr page here: http://www.flickr.com/photos/45456370@N02/

Now, onto some film news. I've got a target time of 6 minutes for "Plexi" and my 2 other films are taking shape. I got a lot of advice about "Plexi" from my supervisor, who said that once I've transcribed my interviews, I can basically build a script and edit it to that. I'll be having a go at that during the week. I'm also hoping to have cut together a trailer by the end of the week and will hopefully have it online ASAP.

The Future

Two words that at the moment, I'm seeing a lot. I'm in the process of applying for jobs for when I leave university. This also means thinking about accomodation, location etc. I'm going to be honest, it's scaring me somewhat at the moment, there's a worry that I won't get to do what I want, that I'll be stuck in a job I hate, and loads of other things.

But, I'm staying positive, I'm getting my CV in order and applying for work. I'll get there, it might just take time.

So, film-wise "The Other Side of the Plexi" is now into the post production stages, where I'm really having fun working with the footage. I'm also working on the pre production for my other two films.

Photography wise, I'm very sad. Over the weekend I was down in Milton Keynes at a Phoenix game, and after, my 70-300mm lens began making some rather odd grinding noises. At the home All Star game on Sunday, it was really struggling to auto focus, so I shot the whole thing in manual focus mode. I haven't looked at the shots yet but I think some may be a little soft. So, yesterday, my lens was picked up by courier and is going to be repaired.

But it does essentially leave me camera-less for the next few hockey games. This is where being a uni student is good, I can book a stills camera through uni and carry on shooting! Hooray! Although, I'm a Sony girl, and the uni has Nikons, so Friday night will be spent with me trying to figure out how to work the D90.

I also got to relax a little yesterday. Making use of a free day, I headed up to the rink in Altrincham for a skate. I've not been on the ice since summer, it was a quiet session, and all my stress just eased. I also picked up a couple of new skating skills, such as a 2 foot spin and a new way of going from forwards to backwards skating.

So hopefully next time I write, I should have a rough edit of "Plexi" online to show.

Photos, filming and editing

Yep, this blog entry will cover all of them. I'll start with the photos. Last Sunday, I was lucky enough to go to an away game in Sheffield. Another new experience, IceSheffield is the nicest rink I have ever been in. It was purpose built and it shows. Anyway, the game was a weird one, 3 fights across 2 periods. This gave me lots of practice at shooting fights, and the photos can be seen, as always, on my Flickr page.

So, yesterday, I began shooting one of my films for the semester. I tend to get very nervous about shoots, I don't know why, because 99% of the time, everything goes OK. Anyway, I headed up to Altrincham for the game, as usual. What was unusual was a) my mum was driving and b) I had Rich and Marco, my trusty crew with me. So, we got to the rink, and started filming interviews, then went and filmed the game. It was an experience. It's hard to predict what's going to happen during a game, or where people will be, but we filled one memory card and started on the other, so footage shouldn't be in short supply.

Now, I'm capturing it all, and beginning to edit. I love editing, I can just stick a pair of headphones on, and become lost in my own little world. And it's one area where I'm actually not bad. So, I'll update more when all the footage copies over and I've got it into Final Cut, but so far, so good!

Lots of Firsts

Well, as the title says, there have been a lot of firsts since my last blog posts. Where to begin, I wonder?

I'll start with my first trip to a Phoenix away game, in Peterborough. This was great fun, I was in good company, and I got to experience one of those lovely photography moments that, unfortunately, don't happen very often! A fight broke out, directly in front of me, on the ice, I hasten to add! This was fantastic from a photography point of view, as the seat I was occupying was at the back, in line with the staircase going up the block, meaning, no one to stand in front of me and block my view!

The results speak for themselves, and I'm immensely proud of them!

So, after this, I was advised to send some of the shots, including those 2, to a hockey website called British Ice Hockey (www.britishicehockey.co.uk). They've since come back to me, asking me to send 5 to 10 images to them after each game! So that's another success, and again, I'm very proud. Nothing's gone up there yet, but I'm keeping an eye out.

Anyway, I also went to an away game at Telford, and got my first taste of just how awful the lighting in some rinks can be. It was orange! So a lot of post production work has gone into those photos, although they're not online just yet. There was another fight, although this time, I was sat up at the back of the away block with Helena, and everyone stood up, so we didn't see a thing! Ah, the joys of being 5 foot 2!

That was a Saturday game, and we played Telford at the Ice Dome on Sunday, and it was back to business as usual. I got a lot of nice shots, but there's one I'm VERY proud of, and a lot of people seem to like it, so I'll post it here:

Now, onto film news! My individual film idea, has changed! The dance idea just wasn't coming together well in my view, and it would've been a very weak film. So I'm playing to my strengths and doing another documentary, about something I know lots about an am very passionate about: being a hockey fan. Things are going well, I have contributors, I have permission to film on a gameday, and I almost have my crew. I just need a location for my interviews.

The collab is going well, we're hopefully basing something around a park that's local to Holly, so that should be awesome.

It's Been a While

So, after my last post, it's been a little while since I've written here.

A lot has happened, some good, some not so good, but progress is being made on all fronts, which is very good.

So, the individual film. The idea has changed slightly, because before, I couldn't pin it down and that would only cause problems later on in the process. The idea is still centered around a musician and dancer, only now, it's two friends, who have come together to rehearse for a show. This is a show with a difference though. It's in total darkness, the pair illuminated only by glowsticks, and maybe the odd disco light, if it doesn't ruin the effect.

I tried something similar last year, and a lot of people said it was a good concept that just needed more time and development. Last time it was simply a series of moving glowsticks, this time there's a story and something more substantial there.

Anyway, obviously I'll need actors for this, and I did my auditions on 16th February. They went well and I basically have my 2 actors, which is fabulous.

Now, the main bulk of the work is researching the concept, and scripting etc.

The collab idea, well, it's getting there. We've not hit on an idea we're confident with yet but we're hoping to do that within the next week. I can't really say more than that to be honest, as we're still working on things.

On the photography front, I think I'll leave that for another post. It's getting there, but I've still got 2 games' worth of photos to edit, so will share more when they're done, which should hopefully be later today.

Community Spirit

I know this is a film and photography blog, but I just want to get a quick message out. To cut a long story short, my good friend Helena's hip popped out of place at Sunday's Phoenix game, meaning an A&E trip. Now, I'd like to say thank you.

To every single person in that rink who helped us, supported us, or asked after us, THANK YOU! It was appreciated immensely.

Special thanks have to go to Jason, who kindly transported Helena and I to A&E in his wheelchair accessible car, meaning we didn't have to get an ambulance out. If you read this, you are a lovely person and we can't thank you enough for your help.

And a big thank you to Richard and Yolanda, who joined us at A&E after the game (we left at the end of the first period) and helped Helena deal with the pain, as well as keeping us both entertained through the rather lengthy visit.

So, what's this got to do with community spirit?

I've been told by various relatives, of a time when people would routinely call in on older relative or neighbors, who'd look out for each other during bad weather etc. You just don't see that very often now. But the hockey community should be very proud. People made sure that Helena got the help she needed, and a fair number asked after her. Word can spread quickly in an ice rink, and when the message got to us that all these people had been asking after Helena, it brought a smile to both our faces.

Helena and I have a group of friends we call our Phoenix family, because of how well we get on and how welcoming they've been to both of us this year. And now I understand that nickname more than ever, families look out for one another, as do communities, and I can now use both words to describe the lovely people I see in the rink every week.

So to those that say community spirit is dead, I urge you to talk to some ice hockey fans, because I bet there are a lot of stories like this one out there.