About Me

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Long Beach, California, United States
Welcome to my blog. Looking through my posts you will find that I love and have a passion for photography and although my expertise so to speak is in Sports Action, I have been getting into wildlife and senior portraits. No matter what I'm shooting I want to bring my client the best possible shot I can and give them / you a photograph that you will cherish for a lifetime. If your looking for someone to capture your child in action, to show the intensity and emotion in which your child plays, look no further. Just drop me a line (e-mail) at homerkenpo@aol.com. I cover most areas in Southern Califoria.

Monday, June 15, 2015

2015 Southern California Special Olympic Summer Games

The Southern California Special Olympic Summer Games is something I look forward to every year.  Don't get me wrong, by the end of the weekend I am worn out and tired, but I do enjoy each and every minute I'm out there shooting for the So. Cal Special Olympics.

This year was a little different as I had a lot more freedom to shoot the events I wanted.  Normally I'm given a shot list on what my assigned events are, so I loved having the freedom to shoot what I wanted.  Now some might think that I would focus on only an event or two, but to be honest I love getting shots from all of the sporting events, or at least as many as possible.  I don't come away with a ton of shots from any one event, but I do finish my weekend with great shots from almost if not all of the events.

I will say I was a bit disappointed with track this year for a couple of reasons. First there seemed to be a lot more pressure put on photographers in regards to where we could shoot from.  Bottom line - I do what the officials and people involved want and follow the rules they put in front of me, but it was a little disappointing not getting the angles I wanted.  The other part was there just weren't many fans in the stands this year.  First I love it when the stands are full as it gives me a great colorful background, which I didn't have this year.  Second these athletes should have people in the stands supporting them while they compete and I feel this way at any sporting event where I see the lack of participation with fans.  So that was disappointing.

The opening ceremonies was as it always is - outstanding and full of excitement and energy.  I just love the interaction between the athletes and law enforcement.










The running of the torch brings the start of this years Southern California Special Olympic Summer Games.

Please enjoy the shots as much as I enjoyed taking these.





































Tuesday, June 2, 2015

Middle School Cross Country Championships

 This past Friday the Long Beach Middle Schools held their cross country championship at Heartwell Park in Lakewood.  Its an event I enjoy to cover as I get a chance to see a lot of young faces I know I will see over the next few years competing at the high school level.

This event usually starts with the 4th and 5th grade kids racing a shorter version of the race, which is followed by six races, the girls 6th grade, boys 6th grade, girls 7th grade, boys 7th grade, girls 8th grade, and then finally the boys 8th grade race.

I wasn't sure of the start time so I headed to the park right after work and got there just as the 4th and 5th grade race started, so I did miss that one,but I know the route they run so I was ready at the start of the 6th grade girls race.

A little side note - once I got home and began uploading all of my shots one of my cards failed on me.  It was the card that had the whole 8th grade girls race on it.  Not sure what the issue was, but my computer wouldn't acknowledge it and I tried two different card readers.  I also put the card back in the camera hoping I could transfer the photos that way, but even my camera said there was an error and would read the card anymore.  Not sure what I can do at this point as recovery would only be good if I could open the card on my computer.  I do have a couple of other things I can try though.

In the meantime here are a bunch of shots from the races.

Starting off with the boys 6th grade race.








Below are some shots from the girls 6th grade race





 

Below start the boys 7th grade race.







Followed by the girls 7th grade race.









And ending with the boys 8th grade race.