Tag Archives: Bull Stock Media

PBR Livingston Classic Reply

Professional Bull Riding - PBR, Published, Sport, Travel, U.S.A. • Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Well a couple of my buddies are running their annual PBR Livingston Classic in a couple of weeks in Livingston, Montana.

So if you happen to be in the neighborhood, drop in, it is a great event.

I have written about these jokers before. They are the official Photographers for the Professional Bull Riders (PBR), and half decent fly fishers as well. Bull Stock Media.

Just down the road from Livingston is some spectacular scenery in Yellowstone National Park. So not only do you get to see some world class bucking bulls and cowboys, but also some really cool scenery and the odd Bison or plenty.

I took the photos on the promo poster at this same event in the last couple of years. The bull is ex World Champion ‘Big Tex’, a good looking bull if I do say so.

So get to Montana. Have a beer for me if you do… as unfortunately I can’t make it this year.

Baltimore. City of Bulls, Boats & Crab Cakes Reply

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Had crab cakes before… sure. Didn’t think they lived up to all the hype though. Bunch of filler with some crab mush (or something) in. Akin to eating fish tasting baby food.

So to try the real deal (Maryland Crab Cake) I went to Baltimore. Baltimore was on my ‘places to go to’ list, I had some real work to do there, and PBR was on the weekend that I managed to line it all up. Logic… do some work, quick look at Baltimore, try some crab cakes, tick another place of my travel map, then go and take some photos of Bull Riding with my buddies at Bull Stock Media.

First the place. I stayed downtown as it was walking distance to 1st Mariner Arena (where PBR was being held), and it was pretty central to all the other things that I needed to get done (ie work).

Baltimore Inner Harbor

Second. Crab Cakes. My self imposed mission was to have 1 serving per day at a different place each time (was there 3 days). As it turns out… quality had little to do with the location or establishment. Day 1 a colleague took me to a local place in Dundalk (explored by John Smith in 1608 as part of the Chesapeake Bay expedition). We ate at the type of place that several generations of the same family have been to, and you sit at the same table each time… likely served by a person who knows your name (and birthday). This was officially my first real Maryland Crab Cake. And there was no comparison to all those imposters that had been passed off to me as ‘crab cake’ previously. This thing actually had big chunks of real crab… and the whole thing literally fell apart (not like the porridge like experience with other crab cakes). It tasted fantastic… although I could feel my cholesterol meter going up with each tasty mouth full. One comment though from a crab cake amateur… it was luke warm, as were all three experiences. I like hot food to be hot, but I guess this is how you eat them.

Orioles Baseball Stadium from my hotel window

My next experience was downtown on Inner Harbor, at a nationally recognized seafood chain. I had eaten at this chain before in other U.S. cities. The food was OK (not fantastic… food for the masses). However I was in Baltimore, on the harbor, so I expected the crab cakes to be really good here. Unfortunately they were not, and would have qualified as the previously mentioned porridge variety. Very disappointing.

The winner though (narrowly tipping out Dundalk) was Faidley Seafood at Lexington Market. Lexington is the largest continuously run market in the world… more than 220 years, and Faidley has been around since 1886. It is currently owned by Bill and Nancy Devine, who are descendants of the original founders. I actually met Bill while I was there.Nothing fancy about this place. You line up. Order. Get it on a paper plate with plastic eating gear… and you stand up to eat it. However this just adds to the experience and the nostalgia of the place… and the actual cakes were really good… as was the company. My thanks to my friend Todd and his lovely wife and daughter for taking me there. Very enjoyable.

Me with the Stanley DeWalt Bull Riders

So with work and my eating out of the way… time for some bull riding. I have written about taking photos of bull riding several times before, so won’t bore you with the technical details of how it is done. I tried a few different things here this time, so will share that with you.

NOTE: if you just want to look at some photos… either click on the link at the end of this sentence or skip to the bottom for an animated slideshow of the PBR Baltimore Invitational. 100 Photos / 4 Minutes.

I normally hang out in the shark cage in the middle of the arena (I did this one night here also). On the second night I stayed up on the chutes with the cowboys. My buddy Matt (Bull Stock Media) has been taking some really cool shots up close, so I thought that I would give it a try. It isn’t for the faint hearted, as one swipe of the bull’s head (big horns) could take a finger or two off, or even worse, wreck your camera and lens. I have extra fingers, and some other cameras… so let’s give it a try.

Douglas Ferreira on South Point

It is a little hard to describe the experience when you are up on the chutes with the cowboys while they are loading up. It is organized chaos, but if you know where to stand (and where not to), it is a cool place to be. Once the cowboys get to know you they are very accommodating. The bulls on the other hand… don’t give a crap, literally. Taking these photos literally means getting down on your knees, and sticking your camera into the bull chute, between the legs of either the officials or the cowboys helping to rope down the rider. It is like a dance. If it gets out of sync, someone gets stepped on.

It is also very noisy so you can’t really communicate by talking (when the rider is about to come out of the chute). So you develop a morse-code type arrangement by tapping on legs etc to let them know that you are there and where you are in relation to them and the ‘escape route’. They don’t have to look, as they know it is you. The other major consideration is the TV camera guys. These guys are busy, and need to get the shot, as many times it is live TV. They are also very accommodating once they know that you know what you are doing, and won’t get in their way. The arrangement (this time by way of head nods)… when they don’t need the shot… I (or Matt) duck into the slot and get some stills, then pull out just before you know that they will need to get back in. The other issue is getting out of their way when they are shooting. If the bulls go ape-shit and lift up in the chute, the camera guy needs to get out of the way in a hurry. So you need to give them some elbow room, and make sure that if they need to step, that they won’t fall over you (remember I am on my knees at their feet at this point).

At the end of the day though, everyone has a job to do to make the event run, and for it to be successful. So as long as you know what the order of priority is, the sequence of events, and your role in it – all works fine.

Marco Eguche on Black & Decker Orange Crust

Ryan McConnel on Bar Code / Score 85.50

So to briefly give you the specs on how these shots were taken.

Camera: Canon EOS-1D Mk IV

Lens: Canon EF16-35 f/2.8L II with Tiffen HT (high transmission) filter

ISO: 3200 – 6400 (these were at 5000)

Shutter: 1/800th

Aperture: f/2.8

2010 World Champion Renato Nunes on King Lopez / Score 86.75

While it may seem cool to be standing (kneeling) on the chutes… and let me tell you… it is, you have to be prepared to wear some big clods of mud (which sting when they hit you in the face), bull snot by the gobs, and the odd bit of green stinky bull crap… all of which invariably hits your camera, the front of your lens… and you.

As described in some of my previous blogs, the ph0tos are sent directly via wireless transmitter on the cameras, via ‘The Photo Commander’ at Bull Stock Media up to PBR Live Photos. Bull Stock Media do an excellent job at this for fans to see live footage from the events.

Guilherme Marchi on Dark Shadow sent from my MkIV

I leave you with this shot of PBR Bull ‘Back Bender’. He (like most world class PBR bulls) has a head the size of a small car. I had my EF16-35 f/2.8L II literally touching the front of his nostril inside the chute, hence it is way out of focus. The highlights you see near his nose… that my friends is the proverbial ‘Bull Snot’ as he is breathing out. I had to clean big gobs of it off once he left the chute… along with the mud and bull crap that he so generously shared as he exited.

Ty Pozzobon on Back Bender

In case you are interested…. here is an animated slideshow from the PBR Baltimore Invitational. Click on this link to watch it on YouTube or use the embedded video below.   100 Photos / 4 Minutes

The Photographers of the PBR 2

Equipment, Professional Bull Riding - PBR, Sport, Techniques, U.S.A. • Tags: , , , , , , ,

I have written about Professional Bull Riding a few times in the past, however over the next couple of posts I would like to talk about the photographers who bring you the great images from the PBR each and every week.

As you would expect I got paid a bundle to put this together. Well, Andy bought me a sandwich and a diet coke. I work for love and kisses. That, or I just really like taking photos up close at the PBR methinks.

Seeing as how it is my blog I also get to shove in a few of my shots… they won’t mind as I am sure that they have seen the odd bull riding photo or two.

I took the following photograph this past weekend in Columbus at the penultimate round of the 2011 PBR season… from here the traveling roadshow heads to Las Vegas for the World Finals, and the subsequent crowning of a new Champion. The photo was taken from the ‘Shark Cage’ in the middle of the arena, which I would have to say is my favorite place to be at these events. It is really cool.

Here’s Looking At You!

So who are the PBR photographers?

With the amount of imagery that gets created you would think that it is a large crew. In fact it is just three (3)… of the nicest people around… and very busy ones at that. Husband and wife team Andy & Jacey Watson who live in Montana, and Matt Breneman who is based in California.

They are BULL STOCK MEDIA.

Matt, Jacey & Andy at the 2010 World Finals in Las Vegas standing with the Champion’s Trophy & a couple of really big Checks!

As you would expect, after years of experience and practice they have it down to a science. Each of the three plays a part, and it goes something like this.

So what do you get when you cross a keen fisherman with a boy who grew up in a Montana National Park playing with Buffalo (I made the buffalo bit up… I think), who likes taking photos of dangerous bulls up close, and is into rebuilding old pick up trucks? That would be Andy.

For those who were surprised to hear in a prior blog that the photographers are on the actual arena with Flint and the Bull Fighters (and the Bulls), this is where Andy is located. You can see him in the below photograph taking a photo of former World Champion Mike Lee. Yep… I know what you are thinking… ‘whack-job alert’. For sure that is not a place to be if you don’t like beef up close or are a vegetarian.

Former World Champion Mike Lee in Columbus

Andy’s job is to to shoot (document) every ride that comes out of the chute, as you never know which one is going to win the actual event, or post a record score.

As the arenas’ are relatively dark for capturing good images of fast moving objects he has eight (8) high powered professional flash (strobe) units up in the rafters. He installs these at nearly every event, then they get shipped along with the rest of the PBR equipment to the next location on the PBR haulers.

Note: for those feeling sorry for Andy for having to lug these around…. he made me carry all 8 of the damn things down by myself last weekend… he had to take care of the ‘technical’ part of the diss-assembly. Yeah right… an Aussie doesn’t know how to disconnect a US extension cord?? Mind you… it seems that we are dumb enough to be a pack mule though. Still, I got to see the arena from a place that not many ever will. In case you are wondering… yes we are very high up here. That is a humpin’ big twin cab Ford pick up truck down there.

Andy ‘grizzly adams’ setting up Strobe units in Columbus

Andy uses a Canon EOS-1D Mark IV camera and an EF70-200 f/2.8L lens, and fires the strobes in the rafters with a Pocket Wizard MiniTT1 transmitter. He is also an accomplished fence jumper… which he is known to do on occasion to avoid the odd bull heading his way.

Time for me to squeeze in another one of my shots… taken from the Bull chutes at the Cooper Tires Invitational in Columbus with a Canon EOS-1 Mk4 camera and a Canon EF70-200 f/2.8L II lens. Focal length at 70mm as he was pretty close at the time.

Brazilian Robson Palermo

Not sure how many Bulls Matt got to hang around with in Orange County in Southern California but he seems to like getting up close and cuddly now.

Matt is the ‘everywhere’ photog. He shoots the portrait sessions (see the cowboy photos on the PBR website for example), as well as any functions and events. When he is finished with these activities he hangs out on the Bull chutes with the cowboys and gets up close and personal as the bull riders get on the bulls and exit the chutes. Having done this myself with him… you can’t be scared or allergic to bull-snot and bull-crap to be this close… and there is gobs of it to go around.

Now while this may not seem as dangerous as being on the arena, there are a lot of moving parts apart from the bull to be careful of. You share this space with the bull riders, the TV camera guys, the officials, and the stock contractors. And as you can see, Matt gets up close to the bull here, even sticking his camera through the rails as you will see in the below video, so it has its moments.

Matt on the Bull Chute in Madison Square Garden New York City

Now I have to tell you a bull crap story. Bulls seem to be factories for both crap and snot, and when they get excited in the chutes just before they try and buck the rider off… they don’t mind sharing it around. Last year in Billings Montana I was up on the Bull chutes with the TV camera guy when this bull unloaded on him and the end of the camera lens, and I mean unloaded. Being the pro that he was he simply got a big stack of napkins out of his pocket (yes he was prepared), simply wiped off the lens, and kept on trucking.

Matt runs two (2) cameras, both hooked up to WFT’s. A Canon EOS-1D Mark IV, typically with an EF70-200 f/2.8L II lens, and a Canon EOS-5D MkII with either an EF16-35 f/2.8L or EF24-70 f/2.8L lens. On the Bull chutes even a 16mm lens may not get it all in as you are so close.

Below is a short video (and a crappy one at that – a lot of crap seems to be flying here) that I took with my GoPro of Matt in action on the chutes last weekend. It is ‘as shot’ out of the GoPro with no editing so it is what it is. Turn the volume up…  and check out where he is putting the camera (and himself).

And last, but by no means least… is the brains of the operation… Jacey (a.k.a. Photo Commander). To this day I have no idea how she does what she does. Maybe it is a girl thing, meaning that she seems to be able to do a hell of a lot of complicated things at the same time… with a smile on her face. I think it is the red wine myself.

To explain what Jacey does it is probably easier to simply explain how a typical event goes once the announcers say… ‘Welcome to the PB-RRRRRRR’.

The Photo Commander

Andy and Matt (and me if I go) have their cameras hooked up to Canon Wireless File Transmitters (WFT), which then in turn are connected to an FTP site (via a wireless connection/network and laptop that they have located just outside the main arena floor next to where Andy stands – he can actually lean over the fence and watch the live feed that Jacey is posting).  What is really cool about how this works is that more often than not, Jacey is in Montana while the event is running… this is where the red wine comes in.

The photos hit Jacey from 3-4 separate cameras while the event is running. She selects, then crops and posts directly into the PBR.com Live Event Center ‘Live Photos’ section. Now while that is clever in itself, what is really clever (and ambidextrous) is the fact that she also carries on a conversation with all her ‘Herd’ as she calls them… which is several thousand people who log-in to the live feed, both to view the photos, and to communicate with other members of the Herd… it is a community of people who may have never met… but all like Bull Riding.

Live Photos Live Feed Chat

PBR turned on their new website this past weekend which has moved the Live Event Center, so here is the new link if you want to check it out. PBR LIVE PHOTOS. It isn’t the easiest thing to find now, so once you get there you will need to click on the drop down as per the below.

PBR Live Photos

So to close out this basic summary of Team BSM. What they do is both somewhat unique and unusual, and certainly not for the faint hearted. They make it look simple, and they try to make the PBR fans feel like they are part of the action and closer than they will likely ever get… and they are good at what they do.

Well that is enough on these yahoos for now. I will check back in after the PBR World Finals in Vegas.

See you next time. Same Place.

Me & Matt on the Chutes

SHUTTERBUG Magazine… Got Published! 2

Professional Bull Riding - PBR, Published, Sport, U.S.A. • Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Got published in the June edition of SHUTTERBUG Magazine.

It is an image taken at the opening round of the Professional Bull Riding (PBR) season in Madison Square Garden in New York City in January 2011.

Taken sitting in the Shark Cage in the middle of the arena.


In the Shark Cage… PBR Style Reply

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The original blog is posted HERE on the Bull Stock Media website.

Check out BULL STOCK MEDIA for the best in Professional Bull Riding (PBR) photography.

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Continuing the Bull Riding series for Bull Stock Media…

Well it is time to look at some photos and talk a little about how they were taken. I am going to tackle this topic in three (3) separate sections. Andy on the arena; Matt on the chutes; and yours truly screwing around.

Before I do though I need to share a joke from my 12 year old son… ‘what do you call a dog with no legs?.. it doesn’t matter… as he won’t come anyway’.   Sorry… I thought it was funny.

With that, and given that I already have the images I will cover my piece first, and then show you how the experts do it in future blogs.

Phillip in the Shark Cage

In the Shark Cage

At this year’s opening round at Madison Square Garden Andy shoved me in the ‘shark cage’ in the middle of the arena. This is the steel cage that Flint dances on, and the Versus TV camera guy sits in. If you ever wanted to feel like a rock star in your own lunch time…. walk out onto the center of MSG with a full house. Note that I said ‘feel’ like one… I think I probably looked like a ‘dork’ with a camera.

Matt tossed me his Canon EF300 f/2.8L lens (this costs as much as a small car)… and my instructions were… ‘you won’t likely get many keepers, but get some tight shots’. OK I say. Hell what do I know. Big Bull. Big Lens. How can I miss.

So I get in there. Not long after I make friends with the Versus guy (after all this is his house not mine), Flint climbs in through the bars, rips his  Cooper Tires shorts off and hands them to me, and he puts on some jeggings. So…. this bull riding gig is really dangerous I am thinking to myself.

Flint in his Jeggings

Flint in his Jeggings

Anyway the bulls start bucking. My head is at ground level; I am looking up at the bull (they look reeeeeally big from this angle). Brazilian Silvano Alves comes out and gets absolutely pounded (I don’t know how he gets back up). I fire off some shots. It happens so fast that I am not sure whether to take photos, look at the rider getting slammed, or smile at Andy and Matt for letting me sit in here. This is so cool.

Silvano doing the 'Money Drag'

Silvano doing the ‘Money Drag’

So how did I take these photos? It is actually harder than it looks (says me). With a 1.3 crop in the sensor of the Mark IV, and the 300mm lens you are at an actual lens equivalent of 390mm… this is long when you are that close. So there was no way to get the entire bull and rider in the shot. What you see in these photos is what I saw in the view finder. I had the camera in ‘servo’ focus mode, which meant the center focus point continuously tracked the subject. I needed a relatively fast shutter speed given how close I was to a fast moving object (I was as 1/1000th of  a second at an aperture of f/2.8), and due to all this and the low lighting conditions I had an ISO of 3200. As mentioned in my last blog on equipment, the Mark IV was built for this so it worked fine. The issue was more the nut hanging onto the wheel (me).

Silvano getting pounded

Silvano getting pounded

I have been, seen, and done a lot of things all over the world… but let me tell you, being able to feel the breath of a large bull on your face as he is looking into the cage at you is one of the most coolest things I have ever done… and yes, I think I probably pee’d myself a little, but that is a story for another day.

To Andy & Matt… Firstly my thanks for smiling as you shoved me in there… I am going to do this again for sure.

BTW… Silvano stayed on for the full 8 seconds… he got pounded as he was trying to get off. Here he is below just moments after getting stomped on.

Silvano Alves... these guys have guts

Silvano Alves… these guys are Tough

PBR Bull Riding Camera Gear 101 Reply

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Original posted on the Bull Stock Media website: http://www.bullstockmedia.com/blog/?p=133

Check out www.bullstockmedia.com for the best in Professional Bull Riding (PBR) photography.

Time to talk about what gear the BSM team uses.

Typically a point-and-shoot, and a carrier pigeon. Well Andy does….

Due to the different types of situations that the guys get into I will cover this section in a couple of different blogs. Today we will simply cover their main kit.

Photographing any activity that does not give you the opportunity of a ‘redo’ means that you have to rely on your gear to stand up to the rigors of whatever you throw at it on a given day. Added to that, bull riding invariably tosses in a couple of other variables, namely; dirt, getting banged around, fast action, and low light.

Before I say what I am about to say… the BSM team are currently not sponsored by any particular camera manufacturer or supplier (hint hint). So like everyone else… they shell out for their own gear. And it is really cheap (not).

Canon EOS-1D Mark IV Camera

So what do they use you may ask? Canon! Nothing against Nikon and the like, but the pro series EOS-1D Mark IV camera body absolutely ROCKS. Even mugs like me use one. It is rugged, reliable, great image quality even at high ISO, and has a burst rate like Al Capone’s Uzi (10 frames a second). It has a 16.1MP APS-H CMOS sensor, and Dual.. yes 2, Digic 4 processors. The body is made from magnesium and is weather resistant. Nuff said. Matt also has a second body hanging off his shoulder, a Canon EOS-5D Mark II.

As for lenses, well it is a tale of two photographers in two distinctly different locations. Andy is on the arena with Flint and the Bull Fighters, and he is uploading to ‘PBR Live Photos’ on the fly. So he is taking a shot every second or so of every bull and rider. His lens of choice is the Canon EF70-200 f/2.8L so that he can get in close. This is probably one of Canon’s most popular lenses amongst pros of all types (including portrait photogs). Andy puts a number of high powered Flash units up in the rafters of the arena, which helps him get a decent lens aperture so that he is able to get the bull and rider in focus, and so that the flash ‘freezes’ the action. This additional light is required as the arena lighting is normally poor for photographing at high shutter speeds (which you would need without the added light of the flash units).

Canon EF70-200 f/2.8L II Lens

Matt on the other hand is up on the chutes with the cowboys, or taking shots of the pre events out in the corporate area. He also uses the EF70-200, which is usually strapped to his Mark IV. However given that he is up close and personal on the chutes and with people he has an EF24-70 f/2.8L hooked up to his 5D.

Why go to the hassle of carrying two cameras?… simply for speed and efficiency. It is a pain in the butt to have to continually change lenses, particularly if it means missing the action. Buckley’s law normally says that at the exact time that you need lens X, that it is safely ‘NOT’ on your camera.

We will take a break from gear in the next blog and look at some action photos and how they were taken.

See you next time. Same place.

Phillip

Blogging with the PBR Photogs – Bull Stock Media Reply

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Original post can be found here:  http://www.bullstockmedia.com/blog/?p=113

Check out www.bullstockmedia.com for the best in Professional Bull Riding (PBR) photography.

The Bull Stock Media gang have asked me to do some guest blogging for them… not that I know what I am doing mind you… but I do get to hang out with them from time to time and they let me pretend that I know how to take photos. My name is Phillip Wittke. I am Australian, and I think the BSM guys have one of the coolest jobs going (if you are into hanging out with 1,800 pound hairy bull-snot factories that is). And they are pretty nice people to spend time with as well.

So with the introductions over, the plan for my BlogSpot with BSM going forward is to cover a range of topics, varying from the equipment they use, how some of the photos get taken, and what it takes to do what they do.

I have been fortunate to have been able to take photos of a number of high level sports programs, including NASCAR, IRL Indy Cars, and NHRA Drag Racing. You would think that these types of events would be harder to shoot given the speed that they are travelling. While the ‘speed’ thing is something to deal with, for the most part, this type of sport is somewhat predictable. The car will invariably turn up in the same place at a predetermined time (i.e. it goes around a track and comes back to you), and unless the car tanks early in the race, it is going to keep coming back to you… so even a dummy photographer like me can get a half decent photo now and again. What do they say about blind squirrels and nuts?

Joey Logano driving the Joe Gibbs Racing Home Depot NASCAR at Bristol Motor Speedway.

A World Class Bucking Bull on the other hand is not predicable. And while it is not travelling at 200+mph, it is flicking its head around at a very rapid rate, making getting an in focus shot very difficult. Added to that… the photographer is on the arena with the bull and bull fighters, so not only are you trying to take a good photo, you may have to hightail it out of there and jump the fence (with your camera) if the bull comes over for a friendly chat.

The rider has to stay on for 8 seconds. BSM has between literally zero, and 8 seconds to take a decent photo of that particular bull and rider. Likely the bull won’t buck again that night. If the rider does not make the ‘short-go’… he won’t return either. So for the photographer… it is ‘get the shot’ on every ride.

So that’s it for the intro. I will be back in the future to talk about some of the gear that BSM uses to get those great photos you see. I will leave you with ‘Calm before the Storm’. A photo I took of Chad Berger’s famous bucking bull ‘Big Tex’ when he was in a nicer frame of mind. He bucked not long after this photo was taken.

PBR Bull Big Tex taking it easy.

In the fine words of announcer Brandon Bates… ‘Welcome to the PBR’, and to the fine photographers at BSM who bring you up close and personal to some of the finest bovine athletes on the planet.

See you next time. Same place.

Phillip