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Keith posing with CHKD fund director Karen Gershman.

Go all in for the kids by joining David Wright, third baseman for the New York Mets, as he hosts Vegas Night to benefit Children’s Hospital of The King’s Daughters. The event is Friday, January 13, 2012 at the Virginia Beach Convention Center.
The evening will include cocktails, heavy hors d’oueuvres and dessert with a live/silent auction and casino gaming including craps, roulette, blackjack, horse racing and poker. Attire is “Vegas casual.

Hopefully my contributions will make a difference in a child’s life.   Our children are our future!!

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As you can see, everthing is still pretty sharp.

I've been photographing sports for over a decade. I've photographed events such as the 2011 Pro Bowl in Hawaii to NBA play-off and Major League Baseball games across the country. My camera of choice is the Canon 1D MK4 because of it's uncanny tracking system and the AI Servo mode. If you talk to any sports photographer, they will tell you that to get the shot, certain things have to be in place. First of all, you have to have the right camera and the appropriate lens. Canon or Nikon are the cameras of choice. You can't go wrong with either of the two. I typically bring (2) Canon 1d MK's, Canon 300 2.8L, Canon 70-200 2.8L and a Canon 24-70L to an NFL game. Second, the shot has to be in focus. If it is slightly out of focus, it will normally go in the trash bin. And finally, you have to anticipate the game of football. What I mean by that is if you know it's 3rd down and 18, it's probably not going to be a running play. So now you can key on the receiver. If it's 3rd and 1, it's probably going to be a running play. So you can focus on the running back. Knowing a little bit about the game could make the difference between a good shot and a great shot!

 

AI Servo is my mode of choice.  AI Servo AF is an autofocusing system designed exclusively for Canon EOS cameras.  It uses a form of Artificial Intelligence (AI) to determine the speed and direction of moving subjects, then focuses the camera lens to a predicted position (Focus Prediction Function) in order to increase the probability of obtaining a sharp photograph.  AI Servo has enabled me to is the tracking mode which will allow you to track your subject while shooting 13 frames per second. It’s pretting amazing!!  Here are a series of the impeccable AI Servo tracking capabilites in motion. The first series to took were in Lincoln Financial Field in a game against the Philadelphia Eagles and the New York Jets. Pro Bowler quarterback Michael Vick is one of my favorite athletes to photograph because of his unbelievable athletic ability. In the end zone, I track him in the pocket and follow him in AI Servo mode. Although the leap was slightly out of focus, still good enough to keep because of the degree of difficulty.

The next series of shots were taken at Fed Ex Field in Washington, DC. Once again in AI Servo mode, Michael Vick took a bad snap and I was in great position to track this incredible series of shots. The focus was single spot in dead center. I find this works better for me because the single spot doesn’t drift like the other modes. Normally when I’m shooting, I’ll blow out the background at 2.8 or 4.0. That way the focus will always being on the subject. My buddy and dear friend Steve Smith, staff photographer of the Minnesota Vikings, showed me the benefits of back focusing. Three years later, I still use his valuable advice. Thanks Steve!! All you have to do is go to the Custom Function 1V: Operations/Others mode. Go to 2 and press 1:disable and you are good to go!!

Hope this information helped and good luck shooting sports!!

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A nail-biter of a game between the Washington Redskins and the New England Patriots has ended in another loss for our beloved Redskins. The Redskins drove the ball down the field and had it inside the Patriots’ 15-yard line with two minutes left, but after a touchdown was called back, Rex Grossman’s pass went off Santana Moss’ hands and was intercepted by Jerod Mayo with 22 seconds left. The play was upheld on review, and the Patriots were able to seal a 34-27 victory to move to 10-3 on the year. Washington falls to 4-9.

The Redskins appeared ready to score when, on second down and goal, Moss caught a pass on a rollout for a five-yard touchdown. However, Moss was called for an offensive pass interference, bringing the ball all the way back to the Patriots’ 15-yard line. Grossman found David Anderson for a six-yard gain to set up third and goal from the nine, but his next pass was intercepted.

Tom Brady threw for 357 yards, three touchdowns and one interception for the win, while Grossman had 252 yards, two touchdowns and one interception. Rookie sensation Roy Helu racked up 26 yards on the ground for Washington. Rod Gronkowski had 160 yards and two touchdowns receiving for the Patriots.
The highlight of the game was the half-time tribune to Navy SEAL Aaron Carson Vaughn and all of his fallen shipmates killed in combat in Afghanistan. His lovely wife and former Washington Redskin cheerleader Kim Vaughn, was saluted by the 65,000 screaming fans chanting, “USA, USA, USA! It was truly a magical moment!

Notes:

• The Redskins were the only current NFL franchise New England had never beaten on the road.
• Roy Helu (126) became the first Washington rookie to run for 100 yards in three straight games.
• Patriots WR Wes Welker became one of three players in NFL history with four 100-catch seasons, joining Jerry Rice and Marvin Harrison.
• Redskins FB Mike Sellers hyperextended his right elbow.
• The end zones were marked “Army” and “Navy,” leftovers from the game the stadium hosted a day earlier.

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Okay, so…when you tally all that up, Steve Smith has 628 catches for 9062 yards and 54 TDs. That’s good enough to put him at #46 all-time in terms of yardage. And keep in mind, he’s not done yet. I’d venture to say that given Cam’s ability to the throw deep ball and find Smitty, there’s a chance he could keep piling up enough yardage to get into range of being considered for Hall of Fame induction. It would take more than a few sustained years of 1,000-yard seasons to pull it off, but it just might be attainable. But even then, every HoF voter will compare him to other WRs throughout the years, as well as the others who might be competing with him even now.

So, who might he be chasing among his peers, you ask? Well, first you should know that Muhsin Muhammad still holds the all-time receiving yards record for the Carolina Panthers. He’s currently #22 with 11438 yards in his receiving career. If Steve can compile a couple more 1000-yard seasons, it’s entirely possible he could surpass Muhammad and climb into the Top-20 all-time. If, during that time, he can chase and actually win a Superbowl, that would obviously increase his chances, magnifying it ten-fold even. But, within Chudzinski’s TE-happy offense, is it still possible? It’s certainly fun to imagine. And, given the performance this past Sunday, we saw Steve continue to lead the team in offensive output, even while Shockey and Olsen combined for comparable yardage at their position, too. So, yes…maybe it IS possible.

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I am soooo excited about establishing a relationship with Media Relations Director Ryan Anderson for the Carolina Panthers this season.  Already covering the Charlotte Bobcats in this region, now we will be bringing the Carolina Panthers news back to Hampton Roads!!!!   This season, I will be covering the Washington Redskins, Baltimore Ravens, Philadelphia Eagles, Minnesota Vikings, Washington Nationals, Baltimore Orioles and numerous others,.  You know of any pro sports team with local ties to Hampton Roads, please email me at: kcephus@cox.net.

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Sneak preview!!  WVEC-13′s Regina Mobley married Clyde Taylor at an intimate setting on Sandbridge Beach.  Clyde works for ESPN as an Operations Manager in the Charlotte region.   Much more to come!!!

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