A visit to Portland's own "Little Sweden" Thursday, January 22, 2009

The view from red line MAX (light rail) train as it crosses I-205 in Northeast Portland.

No parks this week. Perrie had some shopping to do on Sunday morning so we boarded the MAX out to Cascade Station, a big-box type mall right by PDX airport. It was a beautiful sunny day, about 30°F at 9 a.m. as we rode out to visit Little Sweden.

We went so early in part because we had several other errands and appointments that day, but also to take advantage of their ultra-affordable breakfast.

[left] Another view from the MAX, eastbound alongside I-84. [below] The cafeteria at Ikea serves breakfast for just $0.99 (left) or a slightly larger version (right) for $1.99. Coffee and tea are free until 10 a.m.







After breakfast I wasn't really inspired to take any pictures until I saw this (left) as we descended the escalator. I thought there were quite a few shoppers in the store, but I guess they expected more! The mass of waiting carts looked pretty cool, so I shot it from several angles.

Another chilly Sunday, another cool park Saturday, January 17, 2009

Perrie O'Tierney walks under trees covered with Methuselah's Beard moss Jan. 11 at Tualatin Hills Nature Park in Beaverton, Ore.

Last Sunday Perrie and I drove out to Beaverton to check out Tualatin Hills Nature Park. It was a pretty arbitrary choice—I picked it because it was the biggest park on the west side of Portland. It turned out to be the perfect place for a morning walk.

The 222-acre greenspace is right in the middle of Beaverton, with a convenient MAX (light rail) stop at the northern edge of the park. It is well-developed, with about 1-½ miles of paved and 3 miles of unpaved trails, all well-signed. The park contains a variety of forests, ponds and a large trail-less wildlife preserve area.

It also has an interpretive center with interactive exhibits and a classroom that, I suspect, is well-used by the local schools during the week.

I didn't bring my camera with me, but Perrie had her point-and-shoot so we took turns with it. These photos are a mix of hers (e.g. at right) and mine (e.g. above).

All around the park are signs warning visitors not to step on—or even touch—the newts. Since it was somewhat less than 50°F we didn't expect to see any, but sure enough we found one on the trail just before we got back to the interpretive center. It was moving ... very ... slowly, trying to eat a tiny worm (that's what appears to be a cigar in the second picture). Eventually the salamander won.

[left] Matthew works his magic on some hapless individual.

Rough-skinned newts are a type of North American salamander with particularly poisonous skin. They are probably not toxic to the touch, but certainly would be if ingested. I suspect that is why dogs are not allowed in the park. You can read more about the newts and their poison here.

Sunset vs. Westview: away from the action Tuesday, January 13, 2009

Westview fans razz Sunset's Wade Moyer as he waits to inbound the ball in the second quarter of the Apollos' 58-55 win over the Wildcats Jan. 9 in Beaverton.

Since Westview and Sunset are just three miles apart, both high schools had a lot of fans in attendance at last week's basketball game. And with such a close game between the rivals, there was a lot of emotion on and off the court. Here are some non-action photos from the game.

[below] Sunset fans participate in a group cheer in the fourth quarter.






[left] Sunset coach Todd Sherwood gives directions to his team in the fourth quarter.

[right] Westview junior Hayes Garrity appeals to the referee after being called for an offensive foul in the fourth quarter.





[left] Westview coach Pat Coons wonders what's going on. [below] Sunset cheerleaders and fans react after Wade Moyer sinks a three-point shot to put the Apollos in the lead with 14 seconds left in the game.
















[right] Sunset fans stream onto the court to congratulate the players after the Apollos came from behind to upset Westview 58-55 Jan. 9 in Beaverton.

Metro League basketball: Sunset vs. Westview Monday, January 12, 2009

Sunset guard Anthony Holton drives past Westview's Tim Coons Jan. 9 in the second quarter of the Apollos' 58-55 win over the Wildcats. The eighth-ranked Apollos came from behind to beat no. 2 Westview in the first game of the 2009 Metro League season.

In the powerful Metro League every game is a must-win situation, and the Sunset Apollos got the season off on the right foot last Friday night with a 58-55 win at home against Westview.

Sunset, ranked 8th in the state, took control of the game in the second quarter. But second-ranked Westview carried momentum into the break as senior Tim Coons drained a 70-foot shot at the buzzer.

Over the next 8 minutes, the Wildcats outscored Sunset 16-7 to carry a 5-point lead into the final frame.

But they couldn't finish off the Apollos. Westview missed several key free throws in the final minutes, and was unable to contain Sunset at the other end of the court.

[right] Senior Wade Moyer was the hero for Sunset, sinking a 3-pointer to give the Apollos the lead with 14 seconds left to play. The guard played for Westview in his freshman and sophomore seasons.

The packed house went wild as senior Wade Moyer (who used to play for Westview) put the Apollos up 56-55 with a 3-point shot with 14 seconds left on the clock. Wes Wenzel rounded out the scoring with a pair of free throws.

The teams will face each other twice more in the regular season.

[left] Ryan Kroon (right) of Sunset tips the ball away from Westview's Robert Casteel in the first quarter.

[right] Westview junior Hayes Garrity elevates for a shot in the third quarter. Garrity scored 17 for the Wildcats.

[below, left and right] Westview's Austin Kuemper draws a crowd of defenders every time he touches the ball. Even so, the 6-10 sophomore scored 15 points in the game including 8 in the third quarter.

Headliners: Issa Wednesday, January 07, 2009

I put a new interview up on Northwest CanCon on Monday. Back in December, Issa (formerly known as Jane Siberry) stopped in Portland to distribute CDs to her fans.

We talked about her change of name, her stripped-down lifestyle, and her new album, Dragon Dreams. You can read more and hear the Issa interview here.

Kelley Point Park Sunday, January 04, 2009

This morning was cold and grey—but dry—so Perrie and I went for a walk around Kelley Point Park in North Portland. The park is named for the point which, in turn, is named for Hall Jackson Kelley (1790-1874), a New Englander who visited Oregon in 1834 and advocated for the settlement of the territory in the early 1800s. Read more about it here.

It is located right at the confluence of the Willamette and Columbia rivers. The main trail is paved and very flat, so it was easy walking.

More on the NBA experience Monday, December 29, 2008

As a follow-up to yesterday's post, I thought I'd write a bit about shooting pro basketball (now that I have all that experience under my belt).

This was the first basketball game I've shot since last March, so I expected to be a bit rusty. My reactions were a bit slow, and there were some things I kind of forgot about until partway through the game.

For the most part, though, it went really well for me. To be honest, in most respects I found shooting the game a lot easier than shooting high school hoops. Why? Let me tell you.

Shooting NBA is easier than HS because:

1. The lighting is better. It's brighter than a HS gym—two full stops better than some gyms I've been to. And the lighting is even across the court—no dark spots. Most of the light comes from the outside, so you can see the faces of the players when they're looking at the hoop. Every lamp gives off the same color of light—a pretty decent color at that—and, best of all, they don't flicker. Not only does the bright light allow for a faster shutter speed and lower ISO, it also makes it easier to focus.
   
2. The background is better. The fans aren't as brightly lit as the court, and most of them a lot farther away from the action than at a typical high school gym. Yeah, you have to put up with some advertising in the photos, but it beats fluorescent lights and steel girders.
   
3. The NBA 3-point line is farther from the hoop. That spreads everybody out, leaving more room for them to drive to the basket and more room for me to shoot between them.
4. The players are better. They're bigger, they're stronger. They jump higher and seem to hang there longer. They make—or at least attempt—amazing plays on pretty much every possession.

Having said that, there are some challenges in shooting the NBA that you don't face with high school hoops.

First of all, the access is much more restricted. For high school games, you can pretty much shoot from any position outside of the court, as long as you don't block the team benches or scorer's table. For my game at the Rose Garden, I was assigned shooting lane no. 20—that's third from the right side of the court on the south baseline. It's a pretty decent place to be, but it doesn't offer you much variety. Between the court sweepers, Blazers Dancers, the Reuters photographer, the AP photographer, the team photographer, TV crew, and other media photographers, there isn't much room to move.

With so many other shooters in the house, the other problem you face is shots overexposed due to other photographers' flashes. Some of the guys who shoot regularly at the Rose Garden have strobes up in the rafters that give the court even more light. That's fine, except when they fire at exactly the same time as you—mostly at the key moment of big plays. That's what happened with all of the examples in this post. It's hard to believe that you could pick the same 1/800th of a second to shoot as the guy next to you, but it happens.

I imagine I'll be shooting a bunch of high school games over the next few months—I'm looking forward to fighting through the challenges that brings and making great images in spite of them.

For a limited time only, you can see more of my images from the Trail Blazers game on my SportsShooter page.

Blazers burn Raptors, 102-89 Sunday, December 28, 2008

LaMarcus Aldridge rejects Chris Bosh's layup attempt in the first half of the Trail Blazers' 102-89 win over Toronto Saturday night in Portland.

The Portland Trail Blazers faced Toronto Saturday night at the Rose Garden, and I had the opportunity to shoot the game. It was a pretty exciting assignment for me as I'd never shot any of the four major pro sports before.

The Trail Blazers have been playing pretty well this year, but many of the key players have not been playing up to their potential recently. Saturday night, though, they were firing on all cylinders.

Toronto came out firing in the first half, building a 57-49 lead at halftime. (They should have had a 11-point lead, but Travis Outlaw launched a Hail Mary from the center line just before the buzzer.)

The Blazers took control of the game in the third quarter, though, outscoring Toronto 20-10 and taking a 2-point lead into the final frame.

The Raptors, who had played the night before in Sacramento, completely lost their legs in the fourth quarter. Brandon Roy tore up the court scoring 18 of his 32 points in the last 12 minutes.

LaMarcus Aldridge and rookie Greg Oden both had their best games in a while for Portland. Aldridge scored 21 points and grabbed 9 rebounds for the Blazers. Oden recorded his team-leading ninth double-double, with 16 points and 10 rebounds.

When the final buzzer sounded, Portland won 102-89 to improve their record to 19-12 and move within 1/2 game of Denver for first in the Northwest Conference. Toronto fell to 12-18.

[left] Portland's 7-0 center Greg Oden puts a hook shot up over Toronto's Andrea Bargnani in the second quarter.

[right] Brandon Roy fakes an outlet pass as he drives the lane against Toronto's Jermaine O'Neal.

[below left] Steve Blake (no. 2) chases a loose ball in the third quarter.

Read the full game story here.

This is getting crazy ... Wednesday, December 24, 2008

As you probably know by now, Portland is experiencing its snowiest December in 40 years. The temperature hasn't been especially cold—in the 20s and low 30s—but it's stayed that way for more than a week now, and we've had quite a bit of precipitation to go with it.

Several times over the week I've seen cross-country skiers go past on the street below my window. If I knew where my ski boots were, I might join them. But just a few minutes ago, I witnessed something I never expected to see on the streets of Portland: dog sleds.

That's right: a pair of honest-to-goodness dog sleds turned onto NW 22nd Ave. off of Flanders.

It's kind of a bad picture—I just happened to look up from my desk and see them, so I grabbed my camera, threw open the window and fired a frame just before the second one got out of site. I had my wide-angle lens on there (not the ideal) but at least the exposure was set pretty close.

Unbelievable. I wonder if the polar bears are far behind?

[update: No polar bears yet, but I just saw a snowmobile drive down NW 22nd.]

Walking in a Winter Wonderland Sunday, December 21, 2008

This weekend Portland was socked with the biggest snowstorm to hit the area in at least 10 years. At least 6 inches fell across downtown Portland on Saturday, followed by about 3/8-inch of freezing rain. More snow fell this afternoon, and more is expected tonight.

The temperature has been below or close to freezing for more than a week now. For an area that typically gets just a couple of below-freezing days per year, the current cold spell is astonishing. And forecasters say the temperature won't get above 36°F until next Saturday.

Here are some photos I made today walking around Washington Park, the International Rose Test Garden and the Northwest shopping area.

Making a Christmas wish Thursday, December 18, 2008

Make-a-Wish recipient Kim Hale sits on Santa's lap Dec. 7 at Macy's in downtown Portland. The teenager, who has leukemia, was given $1800 in Macy's gift cards and the assistance of a personal shopper for the day.

The Make-A-Wish Foundation of Oregon is in the business of making dreams come true for kids across the state. Kim Hale's special day arrived Dec. 7.

Kim arrived at Macy's around 10 a.m. with her father and sister. They were joined by three people from Make-A-Wish, four or five people from Macy's, three television crews and me. Santa Claus even made a brief appearance.

[left] A gaggle of media and others followed Kim as she moved around the store.

Kim is pretty shy, and I think it was a little overwhelming for her. I don't think the television crews got any usable audio from the three wireless mics she was wearing. But, to be fair, if someone gave me $1800 to spend at Macy's I wouldn't know where to start.





Kim's wish included a limo ride to the store, lunch downtown, and the assistance of a personal shopper for the day.











Her shopping list included a dress for an upcoming dance at her school.











Having her jeans hemmed.













Jene Hale, left, stands out of the way as his daughter tries on some outfits.

You can watch KGW's story here.

Elliott Brood: not a person, not bluegrass Tuesday, December 16, 2008

Casey Laforet (left) and Mark Sasso, two-thirds of the Toronto band Elliott Brood, pose by the fire pit outside the Doug Fir lounge in Portland.

It took a little longer than I'd hoped, but my recent interview with Elliott Brood is online now at Northwest CanCon.

The guys were great to talk to ... and so the interview went longer than usual. With that, and the fact that we had to move from one room to another part way through, I broke the interview up into three parts for your listening convenience (if you download the podcast on iTunes you get one file with all three parts).

Next up is Issa (formerly known as Jane Siberry), who made a quick stop in Portland last week to deliver her new album to fans. Look for that podcast before the end of the year.

What in the world ...? (answer) Sunday, December 14, 2008

People are starting to ask me for the answer to last week's "What in the world ...?" puzzle, so here you go:

A giant Foucault pendulum swings from the north tower of the Oregon Convention Center in Portland. The 900-pound (408-kg) bob may be the largest in the world. It is suspended by a 27-m (90-foot) wire, among the world's longest.

Here are some additional pictures of the Foucault pendulum hanging at the Oregon Convention Center.

First demonstrated in 1851, Leon Foucault devised the apparatus to show the rotation of the Earth.

Because the pendulum is free to swing on any plane, its apparent path changes as the Earth rotates underneath it. At the north and south poles, the plane of the pendulum will rotate once per day. On the equator, it won't change at all. At points in between, its rate varies with the sine of the latitude. (In Portland, which is close to 45 degrees north, each cycle is about 1.4 (the square root of 2) days.)

You can read more about the history and physics of Foucault pendula here and here. Wikipedia has a list of pendula here.

As usual, Jef was on track when he recognized the tower of the OCC. But I have to admit that I was surprised when my brother, Stuart, emailed me with the correct answer barely two hours after I posted it. (Well, he didn't identify the OCC, but he did figure out that it was a Foucault pendulum ... pretty impressive.)

[below] The Oregon Convention Center sports twin glass towers that make a distinctive mark on the Portland skyline. (The north tower is on the right.)

Winter comes to Portland

A couple walks through the South Park Blocks in downtown Portland, Ore., Sunday afternoon as a snowstorm dumped more than 3" of the white stuff on the Rose City. Weather forecasters expect area temperatures to remain below freezing throughout the week.

A severe winter storm slammed into the Northwest Sunday morning, dropping temperatures well below freezing and dumping inches of snow on the area, even down to the valley floors. Additional snow is expected Sunday night, and again on Wednesday or Thursday.

Travel is treacherous as roads across the region are snow-covered and icy. Several sections of major highways and freeways have been closed at different times throughout the day, and ODOT is requiring drivers to use chains or traction tires on all state highways in the Portland area until at least Monday morning.

Most schools in the area will be closed on Monday, and many other events have been postponed or canceled.




The streets of downtown Portland were unusually quiet Sunday afternoon. There were shoppers in the malls, but not as many as one might expect on the next-to-last weekend before Christmas.

[below] The snow does make the holly look good.

What in the world ...? Tuesday, December 09, 2008

I made this photo on a scouting trip this afternoon, and thought it might be good for another "What in the world ...?"

This might be the toughest one of these yet. Unlike most (all?) of my previous WITWs, this is not a small detail from a larger photo—this is the whole thing.

Any ideas on what it might be? Hints: it's here in Portland, and it may be the largest of its kind in the world.

(Another) new home for nwCanCon Thursday, December 04, 2008

Just a quick note to mention that Northwest CanCon now has a permanent home: nwCanCon.com. The site is still hosted by Trillium Media Services, but the new address is much easier to type and remember. Feel free to update your bookmarks if you so desire. (The old address will still work.)

And be sure to stay tuned for our next interview, with Elliott Brood, who are playing at the Doug Fir tonight. It should be online in about a week.

All aboard the grocery bus! Tuesday, December 02, 2008

Here are a couple of pictures I shot on assignment for The Columbian a couple of weeks ago. I'm sure they could have run the story right away, but in November newspapers typically like to build up a bit of an inventory of non-time-sensitive stories to keep the paper full over the holiday weekend. I'm sure the same is true around Christmas.

Anyhow, the story is about a church that organizes bus rides from the Fruit Valley area of Vancouver over to WinCo Foods in Hazel Dell so that seniors and others who have trouble getting around the city can stock up on groceries. (I won't rehash the details here. The story ran Dec. 1; you can read it here.)

I was called last minute on this one because they had just found out that the one and only bus trip for the month was going to happen that night.

It was a pretty tough assignment, really: the sun sets early at this time of year, so it was already pretty dark by the time I got there. Add to that the confinement of a moving bus, fixed seating positions for the subjects, and the presence of a reporter who has limited options in trying to stay out of the picture. And then, for this trip anyway, the turnout was lower than expected—just two riders—limiting the opportunities for interaction between the driver and passengers.

On top of all that, you have a photographer who thought the story was going to focus on the driver (Val Bieber, right) and spent most of his efforts trying to get good pictures of her. Laura did a much better job on the story than I would have; I guess that's why she's the writer and I'm not!