In 2014, I photographed a conference where one of the speakers was former NFL lineman Matt Birk. He said the most successful people he knew, athletes or otherwise, were fanatic about fundamentals. When Birk started to play center, his coach asked him to come to practice 15 minutes early. He did, and he spent that […]
Tag: Mentorship
You Might Be Surprised
In the fall of 1986, I returned to the photojournalism lab at Northern Illinois University. I was two years out of college and supporting myself by delivering pizzas while struggling to establish a foothold in the journalism profession. There had been other jobs. I caught on with Young Athlete Magazine right out of college. Young […]
How I Knew What Was in Store for Alex
In my last post, I said I knew the challenges awaiting Alex in Florida. Here’s how. In the summer of 1987, I was working for the Shoe Service Institute of America in Chicago’s Western suburbs. I edited their magazine, Shoe Service, and thoroughly enjoyed it. My boss had just announced his retirement. At their summer […]
Forward, Together Forward
“Forward, together forward” “There’s victory in view” “Come on you Huskies, fight on you Huskies” “And win for NIU” Huskie Fight Song, Northern Illinois University The last time I saw Rus Elder in person was Homecoming of 1992. I lived in Maryland, but was excited about returning to DeKalb for the festivities. I was excited […]
Fourth and Lincoln
My first assignment in my 1983 photojournalism class was to photograph the intersection of Fourth Street and Lincoln Highway in DeKalb, IL. I didn’t understand the assignment. Why are we photographing an intersection? What’s the point? Still, I headed out with my camera and took some pictures that I thought were pretty good. I handed […]
Rus’ First Lesson
People sometimes ask what settings I used to take a certain photo. I’m always happy to answer. But when I start talking about aperture, shutter speed, and ISO, I can see it in their faces—I might as well be speaking a foreign language. What they’re really asking is: “Which icon do I turn the dial […]
Breeding Success
When Dakota was a puppy, I got a message from Kathy Salvucci. “Dakota looks like she is going down in pastern. If she is on puppy food, get her off and put her on adult food.” I didn’t understand her concern. “The pastern is between the knee and foot on the front leg. It should […]
Happy Birthday, Robert
Almost 40 years ago, during an exhausting day, I was taking a break when a man I’d never met came over, put a bottle down in front of me and said, “You look like you could use a beer.” Before the bottle was empty, Robert DiRinaldo and I were no longer strangers. That conversation marked […]