Last Picture Show - The Sequel

What once wasn't.. now is again!

The Stadium Theater in Jerseyville IL is reopening after being closed by AMC.  After a huge public outcry, AMC negotiated a reasonable sale price to the new owner and after many renovations is open for business again.

(Jerseyville, IL) The once shuttered Stadium Theater is now reopen after extensive renovations.  The theater was closed by AMC last year and after a huge public outcry and show of commnuity support it was purchased and renovated by a local independent theater chain operator.

(Jerseyville, IL) Stadium Theater owner Steve Dougherty stands in the doorway of his newly renovated facility during an open house held to show off the renovations the night be fore the theater officially opens.  The theater has been upgraded to digital projection, surround sound and 3-D capability.

Opening night photos coming soon.

http://www.thestadiumtheatre.com/

Carrollton High School Basketball Championship

The Carrollton High School boys basketball team went all the way to the final game of the IHSA Class A playoffs.  These are selected images from the last day of the event that cover their final day in the competition.  The complete catalog of images from the semi-final and championship games (includes game play action photos) is available online by clicking on the link below:

http://www.michaelrweaver.com/f641314038

(Peoria, IL) It's about 9:30 AM on the day of the Carrollton High School Hawks championship basketball game for IHSA Class A schools.  The team is loading onto the bus for their ride to a morning practice before the game at 2 PM.

(Peoria, IL) The Carrollton High School players bus takes to the streets of Peoria to deliver the team to a local high school gym for a practice before their 2 PM state championship game.

(Peoria, IL) The Carrollton Hawks arrive at Peoria Christian School to use the school's gym for practice after a win the previous day that places them in a championship game at 2 PM.

(Peoria, IL) Carrollton High School basketball coach Jeff Krumwiede tapes an ankle for one of his players before practice at Peoria Christian School the morning before their IHSA Class A championship game later that afternoon.

(Peoria, IL) Carrollton High School basketball coach Jeff Krumwiede begins talking to his team immediately before practice.  He is apologetic and in the process of explaining that he does not have video of the opposing team for them although he understand that their opposition has requested material from anyone that may have it.  The coach used the opposition's statistics to date to brief the team on how to handle their upcoming opponent.

(Peoria, IL) Members of the Carrollton Hawks basketball team walk down the long entry corridor at the Peoria Civic Center before their Illinois Class A championship game.

(Peoria, IL)  Carrollton basketball team members check in with tournament officials before being allowed into the arena.

(Peoria, IL) The Carrollton Hawks make their last walk to the locker room at the Peoria Civic Center before the Illinois Class A basketball championship game.

(Peoria, IL) The Carrollton Hawks head to their locker room after watching the game to decide who takes third and fourth places at the Illinois Class A basktball state tournament.

(Peoria, IL)  Carrollton High School basketball player Jordan Harr leads the team from the locker room onto the floor of the Peoria Civic Center immediately before the start of their Illinois Class A high school championship game.

(Peoria, IL) The fans and cheerleaders get excited as the Carrollton High School basketball team is introduced before beginning their championship game at the Peoria Civic Center.

(Peoria, IL) The cheerleaders of the Carrollton Hawks performing for the fans during the Illinois Class A basketball championship game at the Peoria Civic Center.

(Peoria, IL) A television cameraman at work during the Illinois Class A high school championship game.

(Peoria, IL) Carrollton High School coach Jeff Krumwiede looks up at the scoreboard as his team plays in the Illinois Class A championship game.

(Peoria, IL) With his Carrollton High School basketball team surrounding him with 2.1 seconds left in the game and with them one point behind, coach Jeff Krumwiede tells his players that if they ever had dreams of making a half court shot... now was the time to do it.

(Peoria, IL) The faces of the Carrollton High School basketball team show their disappointment as they hold their second place trophy.

Game Face of the Week 3

Best game face this week is the Carrollton High School basketball head coach.

This image was taken during the championship game of the Illinois Class A Sectional played in Nokomis, Illinois.  Home team Nokomis lost the game to Carrollton.  Carrollton now goes on to play in the Super-Sectional game to be held in Jacksonville.

(Nokomis, IL) As a fan from the opposing team taunts him from behind, Carrollton High School basketball coach Jeff Krumwiede shows his disapproval of a referee call during the Illinois High School Association Class A sectional game at Nokomis High School.

 See all the photos from the game by clicking on the title.

The Easy Shot I Didn't Take

(Greene County, IL USA) A view of the intersection of US Highway 67 and Kane Road looking north with signs for the Kane American Legion, a church, politicians and realtors.

As I got ready to turn onto Kane Road, I looked around and thought what a pretty day this is for early in February.  We have had a lot of days like that this winter, but where I was headed it wasn't so nice.  It's not so nice for any number of reasons, but I suppose number one on the list of many is that just a few days before a mother and her child had died in a house fire.   The night it happened I had just returned from Cedar Rapids in enough time to shoot a basketball game at a local high school and then went home with hundreds of images to edit.  I didn't know about the fire until the next morning.  It was on the local morning news.  I knew sooner or later I'd probably need to try and get something related to the fire.

The oil and chip road leading east from US Highway 67 to the rural village of Kane, Illinois.  Kane Cemetery is to the left at the center of the image with the village in the treeline.

When I arrived in Kane, I traveled the streets of the town and finally at the corner of Hinton Street and Hinton Alley, I found the burned out remains of the home.  When I first arrived, it was deserted with no one in sight.  After a few minutes a pickup truck arrived and the occupants got out and started talking to a person who lived close to the burned out house.

There was a younger man there with what I assume was his son.  He saw me with a camera and started toward me, glaring at my media credentials hanging around my neck. He walked away and took his son to the cross with the pile of stuffed animals.  I watch from behind them as he kneels down with his young son, holding him ever so close.  It was from a photographer's view a great moment.  An easy shot that I didn't make.  It was such a personal moment for them that I couldn't do it.  I had them framed in the viewfinder but got up and walked to my car.

(Kane, IL) The burned out remains of the home where Breanne Ferguson and daughter, Tristan Stark lost their lives in a house fire on January 25, 2012.  Friends and family created a makeshift memorial at the foot of the "Dead End" street sign.

Rather than intrude into the lives of two grieving people, I stopped by the Kane Cemetery and found the fresh graves.  The digging equipment tracks are still visible as I walked to the spot.  Side by side, mother and child.  Not so far away, across an open field from the town with the burned out house.

(Kane, IL) The graves of 28-year- old Breanne Ferguson and her daughter, 10-year-old Tristan Stark.  Both died in a house fire in the small rural village of Kane.  The village is visible across the field behind the graves.

All the President's Men & the Teleprompter

I know there has been much controversy about President Obama and his use of a teleprompter.  I've seen the equipment several times when covering the President's visits.  Once in Kansas and then again in Iowa.  For what it's worth, I don't think there is anything wrong to with using a teleprompter.  Considering that I used to travel so much that it was hard to remember exactly where you were staying for the night and once tried to use a hotel key to enter the room I'd stayed in the week previous, I can certainly understand the need to use a teleprompter when you are scheduled to be in two or three locations a day. 

When you cover an event where the President is going to attend, the process for getting in place to do your job generally means you have an hour or so of time with little or nothing to do before he arrives. You can walk around in your designated press area and maybe photograph or interview members of the public that are streaming in to find their places.  With so much structure and being corralled like an animal, it's hard to do anything much but wait.

Well, while standing around in Cedar Rapids I see the teleprompter equipment with no one at the controls. There is always a Secret Service agent close or sitting at the controls, but this time the chairs were empty. So I, and another photographer, took the opportunity the grab a few shots of the equipment. Within seconds, a White House staff person descended on us and said that we could not photograph the equipment. Well... He was too late! Directly below is the super secret teleprompter that can't be photographed.

(Cedar Rapids, IA USA) Teleprompter equipment used by President Obama scrolls Lincoln's Gettysburg Address immediately before the President is due to speak before an audience at Conveyor Engineering.  The image was taken immediately before someone with the President's advance party informed the photographer that the equipment was not to be photographed.

So, what we see here is teleprompter equipment in travel case, three (3) laptop computers, a folding table, one (1) empty folding chair, one (1) empty Gatorade bottle and headphones.  Other than the sensitivity factor about using a teleprompter, I'm not sure there is any reason not to photograph this table.

Upon the President's arrival, but before he walked to the podium, a three ring binder was removed from the lectern and brought to the table where the teleprompter equipment was located.  The Secret Service agent provided the person with the binder some updated pages that were inserted and then the folder was placed back on the lectern.

(Cedar Rapids, IA USA) A US Secret Service agent sits typing on a laptop computer while another person inserts updated pages into a binder that will be placed on the lectern where President Barack Obama will be speaking.  The agent is sitting at the table where the President's teleprompter equipment is managed.

It would appear we have a President that embraces technology and uses it.  So now you have seen what allows the President to speak in multiple cities a day and still maintain some idea of where he is and who he is talking to.  Yes, I'm sure that the White House would rather you not see the equipment, but it's how business is being done today.

The Eagle has Landed!

(Grafton, IL USA) People inside the Pere Marquette State Park Visitor Center watch the video screen as a remote camera located high in a tree shows the first American Bald Eagle returning to the nest for the 2012 season.  The nest is located approximately 100 feet above the bank of  the Illinois River in Jersey County Illinois.

It's that time of year again when you need to be really careful.  Careful of the person in the car driving in front of you as they slam on the brakes because they see an American Bald Eagle in a tree.  Every year the eagles come south because of ice that generally covers the rivers where they normally catch fish.  The area close to the confluence of the Illinois and Mississippi rivers is prime eagle watching territory.  Thousands of people travel to the area every season to see the eagles.

The eagles are opportunists and the photo below is of an eagle that was feasting on a road kill Whitetail Deer near a cornfield.

(Calhoun County, IL USA) An American Bald Eagle takes to flight after feasting on a Whitetail Deer carcass.  While eagles are thought by most people to be fish eaters, eagles are opportunistic and will feed on most any type of meat or fish that it may find.  Eagles have also been known to take small dogs, cats and squirrels.

Rolling in the New Year

The local hospital didn't know if they would have any new babies anytime soon (According to them it might well be Tuesday for a new baby.), so I headed off to the local bowling alley.  When I arrived, I soon realized that the place was packed as families and friends bowled in the new year.

(Jerseyville, IL USA)  Young bowlers take their turns on the lanes at the Tri County Bowl.  The lights are turned down and disco type colored lighting illuminates the lanes for the New Year Eve "cosmic" bowl.