USA v Mexico…Three Nill

Midfielder Kristine Lilly #13 of the USA lays on the ground after she is tripped during the USA v Mexico Women’s International Friendly Soccer Match at Torero Stadium on March 28, 2010 in San Diego, California. USA won 3-0. (Photo by Donald Miralle/Getty Images) 

Here’s some pics from the USA Women’s Soccer Team’s spanking of Team Mexico in San Diego today. I love shooting soccer because it only takes up part of your day (I spent the morning swimming with my boys), and you don’t have to run around but rather just sit and wait for the action to come to you. The overheads were all shot with a 400mm and a 70-200mm from the video tower which has been my spot at this stadium for years now, and the net cams remotes were a 14mm on a Canon 5D on one goal and a 16-35mm on a Canon DS Mk3 on the other. As always your feedback and comments are appreciated, and if anyone needs help in South Africa for the World Cup later this year give me a shout!

Goaltender Erika Vanegas #1 of Mexico jumps to try to blocka shot during the Women’s International Friendly Soccer Match against the USA at Torero Stadium on March 28, 2010 in San Diego, California. USA won 3-0. (Photo by Donald Miralle/Getty Images) 

Rachel Buehler (from Torrey Pines San Diego!) #26 of USA heads the ball during her team’s Women’s International Friendly Soccer Match against Mexico at Torero Stadium on March 28, 2010 in San Diego, California (Photo by Donald Miralle/Getty Images) 

Abby Wambach #20 of the USA pushes the ball during the USA v Mexico Women’s International Friendly Soccer Match at Torero Stadium on March 28, 2010 in San Diego, California. USA won 3-0. (Photo by Donald Miralle/Getty Images) 

Goaltender Erika Vanegas #1 of Mexico pulls the ball out after a goal by Amy Rodriguez #8 of the USA during the Women’s International Friendly Soccer Match at Torero Stadium on March 28, 2010 in San Diego, California (Photo by Donald Miralle/Getty Images) 

(Here’s the moment with my 400mm from tower) Team USA celebrates a goal by Amy Rodriguez #8 during the Women’s International Friendly Soccer Match against Mexico at Torero Stadium on March 28, 2010 in San Diego, California. USA won 3-0.  (Photo by Donald Miralle/Getty Images) 

Abby Wambach #20 of the USA signs fans autographs after the USA v Mexico Women’s International Friendly Soccer Match at Torero Stadium on March 28, 2010 in San Diego, California. The USA won 3-0. (Photo by Donald Miralle/Getty Images)

Taking It In and Giving Some Back…

After nearly a week of looking through some 3,000 entrants from 147 countries submitted more than 50,000 still images, some would think that judging the Best of Photojournalism for the second consecutive year would be mind numbing, but it was truly a pleasure. Not only did I get to soak in some of the best work by the top photojournalist around the globe, but I also had the chance to debate over what we thought were the best images, and in the process learn more about photography and expand my own horizons. It was nothing short of inspirational. Meeting people like Dr. Vme Edom Smith, who is the sharpest 81 years I have seen, brought to tears when telling us of her father’s (Cliff Edom) legacy, while she sat through two days of judging. Many of the photographs I judged left an indelible impression on me like Barbara Davidson’s of the Los Angeles Times picture of U.S. Army Sgt. Major Leroy Walker crying at Fort Hood, or Charles Ommanney’s striking set of photos of President Barack H. Obama’s inaguration, or Rina Castelnuovo’s frame of the Jewish settler throwing wine on the Palestinian woman. If they are not already, years from now they will all be viewed as iconic images from this era. In the current despondent state of the photographic industry, seeing such beautiful imagery being produced with limited means in harsh conditions, gave me hope that we are all doing the right thing and we are still headed in the right direction. It reminded me that giving freely of your time for the betterment of others around you, and taking in and listening to what people are trying to communicate in words and photos, can really change who you are and is better than any monetary compensation.

Still judges Donald Miralle, Monte Trammer, Sandy Ciric and Sherman Williams (Photo by Clyde Mueller)

Special thanks again to Harry Walker, Lyntha and Terry Eiler, Kenny Irby, Clyde Mueller, Regina Combs, Thomas Kenniff and all the rest of the BOP Committee Members and Poynter staff for inviting me back and being such great hosts. Thanks to the other still judges Sandy Ciric, Sherman Williams, and Monte Trammer for being open with themselves and listening to what I had to say even if I was a broken record at times. Big recognition should go to Martin Gisborne of Apple, who supplied all the computers and software to make this happen, with the assistance of Keri Wiginton and Will Vragovic, who volunteered their time away from the St. Petersburg Times to help drive the competition. Also a special shout out the multimedia judges Mike Stocker, Alex Garcia, John Kaplan, Phaedra Singelis, Theresa Collington, and Vidisha Priyanka; it was a pleasure to meet you all and hang out.

The Still and Multimedia Judges shot on an overexposed frame on my G-11 before the battery died (L-R): Sherman Williams, Donald Miralle, Theresa Collington, Alexandra Garcia, Mike Stocker, Phaedra Singelis, Sandy Ciric, John Kaplan, Monte Trammer, Vidisha Priyanka.

Make sure to check out all the winners at http://bop.nppa.org/2010/ and all the judges comments at http://www.nppa.org/. I’ll leave you with an short unedited and very candid video conversation with Dr. Vme Edom Smith on her thoughts on the selection of Los Angeles Time’s Barbara Davidson’s portfolio winning the Cliff Edom “New America Award”.

Judging Underway for the BOP!

Best of Photojournalism judges Donald Miralle, Sherman Williams and Sandy Ciric discuss photos at the Poynter Institute in St. Petersburg, Florida (Photo by Will Vragovic)

After a journey cross-country yesterday, we began judging the NPPA’s Best of Photojournalism this morning in Florida with the company of other great jurors Sandy Ciric, the Senior News Editor at Getty Images, and Sherman Williams, the Assistant Managing Editor at the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel. I was glad to be back invited back as the returning judge this year, which is customary to help with the continuity of the contest. With the aid of a great online pre-judging system that the NPPA has entooled for a couple years now, we were able to remotely judge and do a wide edit of the massive amount of entries this year. Last year we went through over 50,000 images from 3,000 entrants from 147 countries and I think the numbers are comparable for 2010. The onsite judging is taking place at the contest’s host site, The Poynter Institute for Media Studies in St. Petersburg, where we go through the tedious process of judging the anonymous entries projected on large screen with the help of Macs and Apple’s Aperture program. 

The simple yet effective judge’s interface that results in an “in or out” vote for many photos before out final discussions for the winning photographs. (Photo by Donald Miralle)

Today went as smooth as possible, we finished several categories and the results will be posted shortly on the NPPA site at http://www.nppa.org/ and more information on the contest can be found at http://bop.nppa.org/2010/. 

Sandy, Sherman and I bring the printouts for finalists in a category to the table for the final debate. (Photo by Martin Gisborne)

This Always Makes My Day…

I love it when I go to check-in the night before a flight and I get this message:

Wonder what movie will be offered and what will be for breakfast tomorrow? Probably not a breakfast burrito and a little too early for mimosas I think…regardless, it is a very nice perk getting the complimentary first class upgrade just because you’re either a 1K or premier executive with United.

That leads to my one bit of advice I would give to any young photographer or professional who is planning to do a lot of traveling for his/her job – get all your points under one roof. Whether it be United or American, Marrriott or Hilton, Visa or Amex, make sure to sign up for a mileage or points program so everytime you fly a mile or spend a dollar you get something back. In the past 13 years, I have NEVER had to pay for a flight or hotel on a personal vacation, most of which where international excursions. There have even been some Christmas’s in the Miralle household where all the presents Santa brought came straight from Amex points! I fly United, bed Marriott and use Visa accounts that dump additional points per dollar spent into my United and Marriott accounts. It will take a minute of your time to sign up online for a program but if you’re diligent about traveling with the same carrier, staying at the same hotels, or putting all expenses under one card it will pay off indefinitely.

Now off to Denver for an hour layover on the way to Florida for a week to judge the Best of Photojournalism contest. It is may second year on the jury as they asked me back after judging last year’s comp. I will be packing my reading glasses rather than my sunscreen as I will be sitting in a dark room staring at thousands of photos for the next week. Looking forward to seeing some good pics…

He’s Back…

Tiger Woods looks on during the Masters Golf Tournament at the Augusta National Golf Club in 2008. (Photo by Donald Miralle for GolfWorld/Golf Digest)

“The Masters is where I won my first major and I view this tournament with great respect. After a long and necessary time away from the game, I feel like I’m ready to start my season at Augusta,”  Woods said in a statement Tuesday that he will make his comeback at Augusta, ending a four-month hiatus brought on by a highly publicized sex scandal. I’m sure PGA Tour commissioner Tim Finchem, the Augusta National Golf Club Chairman Billy Payne, as well as Nike, ESPN and CBS executives are all putting their glasses up after Tiger announced his return. Hell, I’m raising my glass because golf is just a boring sport to shoot when Tiger is not around. Not only is the Masters the most viewed golf tournament in the world, but also with the Tiger Media circus full frenzy the ratings will be off the charts. The PGA needs Tiger probably as much as Tiger needs to play golf. And even though there are still Tigre-haters out there, and many of his fans as well as his sponsors have hid in embarrassment for his “indiscretions”, he is the best thing for the sport. The bottom line is Tiger Woods is the number one golf player in the world, and quite possibly the best player the game has ever seen, and that’s how he should be viewed. We live in a world where athletes are placed on unrealistic pedestals of being icons, heroes, and role models. Unfortunately, we forget they are human just like us and their fall from grace is just as fast. I am not saying what he did was justifiable even if you are a sex addict, but the media and tabloid frenzy that ensued was as despicable and deplorable as the infidelities he committed in my opinion. It’s time to move forward, let the family heal privately and you can scrutinize his public game as much as possible. As Tiger said in his public statement “What I did is not acceptable, and I am the only person to blame…I ask you to find room in your heart to one day believe in me again.” I think people will start to make room for him come April in Augusta…

Tiger Woods tees off the 17th hole en route to missing the cut on the second day of the 138th British Open Championship at Turnberry Golf Course in Scotland. (Photo by Donald Miralle)

I am assigned to shoot the Masters next month for Gold World/Golf Digest, which I am very excited to do with their great staff. It will be a media circus out there for sure, but it will hopefully add to what I think is the greatest golf course and tournament ever. Tiger Woods is probably the athlete I’ve photographed the most in my career (Michael Phelps a distant second) so I spent most the day going through archives looking for my favorite shots from the past 13 years. Here’s a little gallery of Tiger photos chronicling most of his career to preview what we have in store next month…enjoy!

Tiger Woods follows his shot  during The Memorial Tournament at the Muirfield Village Golf Course on June 6, 1999 in Dublin, Ohio. (Photo by Donald Miralle/Allsport)

Tiger Woods celebrates his shot on the 14th hole during The Memorial Tournament at Muirfield Village Golf Course on June 6, 1999 in Dublin, Ohio. (Photo by Donald Miralle/Allsport)

Tiger Woods tees off during The Memorial Tournament at the Muirfield Village Golf Course on June 6, 1999 in Dublin, Ohio. (Photo by: Donald Miralle/Allsport)

Tiger Woods tees off as the gallery stands above him during the Nissan Open at the Riviera Country Club in Pacific Palisades, California on February 20, 1999. (Mandatory Credit: Donald Miralle /Allsport)

Tiger Woods hits out of the rough during the World Golf Championships in Akron, Ohio 1999. (Mandatory Credit: Donald Miralle /Allsport)

Tiger Woods reacts to the putts on the 18th hole to go to playoffs during the PGA Championship, part of the PGA Tour at the Valhalla Golf Club in Louisville, Kentucky.Mandatory Credit: Donald Miralle /Allsport

Tiger Woods smiles while holding the Wanamaker Trophy August 20, 2000 after winning the PGA Championship over Bob May in a three-hole playoff at the Valhalla Golf Club in Louisville, Ky. Woods birdied the last two holes in regulation, becoming the first player since Ben Hogan in 1953 to win three majors in one year. (Photo by Donald Miralle/Allsport)

Tiger Woods walks on after his ball during the AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-AM at the Poppyhills Golf Course in Pebble Beach, California on February 1, 2001. (Photo by Donald Miralle/Allsport)

World #1 and #2 David Duval and Tiger Woods have a laugh during the third round of the Verizon Byron Nelson Classic at the TPC at Las Colinas at Cottonwood Valley CC in Irving, Texas on May 11, 2002.  (Photo By Donald Miralle/Getty Images)

Tiger Woods wins the 102nd US Open on the Black Course at Bethpage State Park in Farmingdale, New York on June 16, 2002.  (Photo By Donald Miralle/Getty Images)

Tiger Woods kisses the trophy after winning the 102nd US Open on the Black Course at Bethpage State Park in Farmingdale, New York on June 16, 2002.  (Photo By Donald Miralle/Getty Images)
Tiger Woods smiles during the Mercedes Championships at Kapalua Plantation Course on 2002 in Maui, Hawaii.  (Photo by Donald Miralle/Getty Images)

Tiger Woods prepares to line up a putt on the 4th green as a parasailer comes in for a closer look during the 2nd round at the Buick Invitational at Torrey Pines Golf Course on February 14, 2003 in La Jolla, California.  (Photo by Donald Miralle/Getty Images)

My Wheaties box of Tiger Woods (circ. 2003)

Tiger Woods poses with the Arnold Palmer, Jack Nicklaus, and Byron Nelson Award Trophies all of which he won during the PGA Awards Ceremony for 2002 at the Torrey Hilton on February 12, 2003 in San Diego, California. The Jack Nicklaus Trophy is for Player of the Year, The Arnold Palmer Trophy is for Highest in PGA Winnings, and the Byron Nelson Award is given to the Lowest Scoring Totals for the PGA Year.  (Photo by Donald Miralle/Getty Images)

Elin Nordegren, Tiger Woods’ fiance, walks the course during the 2nd round of the Mercedes Championships on January 9, 2004 at the Plantation Course in Kapalua, Maui, Hawaii. (Photo by Donald Miralle/Getty Images)

Tiger Woods tees off the 6th hole during the final round of the Players Championships at the TPC at Sawgrass on March 28, 2004 in Ponte Vedra, Florida. (Photo By Donald Miralle/Getty Images)

Tiger Woods putts on the 17th green amidst a large gallery during the third round of the Players Championships at the TPC at Sawgrass on March 27, 2004 in Ponte Vedra, Florida. Scott leads the field at 10 under par. (Photo By: Donald Miralle/Getty Images)

USA team player Tiger Woods blasts out from a bunker on the 11th hole during the final practice day for the 35th Ryder Cup Matches at the Oakland Hills Country Club on September, 16 2004 in Bloomfield Township, Michigan. (Photo by Donald Miralle/Getty Images)

USA team member Phil Mickelson hugs teammate Tiger Woods during the Opening Ceremonies for the 35th Ryder Cup Matches at the Oakland Hills Country Club on September 16, 2004 in Bloomfield Township, Michigan.. (Photo by Donald Miralle/Getty Images)

Tiger Woods stretches during the 3rd round of the WGC- Accenture Match Play Championship at the La Costa Resort and Spa on February 27, 2004 in Carlsbad, California.  (Photo by Donald Miralle/Getty Images)

Tiger Woods follows his shot during the Mercedes Championships 2004 Plantation Course in Maui, Hawaii.  (Photo by Donald Miralle/Getty Images)

Tiger Woods tees off during the first round of the 23rd PGA Grand Slam of Golf on November 22, 2005 at Poipu Bay Golf Course in Kauai, Hawaii.  (Photo by Donald Miralle/Getty Images)

Tiger Woods reacts to a birdie putt en route to his 6th victory at the 23rd PGA Grand Slam of Golf on November 23, 2005 at Poipu Bay Golf Course in Kauai, Hawaii. Woods finished with a 13-under par and a seven stroke lead over Phil Mickelson.  (Photo by Donald Miralle/Getty Images)

Tiger Woods tees off on the practice range during fog-delayed 3rd Round for the Buick Invitational on January 22, 2005 atTorrey Pines Golf Course in La Jolla, California. (Photo by Donald Miralle/Getty Images)

Tiger Woods tees off the 13th hole en route to his victory in the final round of the Buick Invitational on January 23, 2005 at Torrey Pines Golf Course in La Jolla, California.  (Photo by Donald Miralle/Getty Images)

Tiger Woods tees off the ball during the 3rd Round for the Buick Invitational on January 23, 2005 atTorrey Pines Golf Course in La Jolla, California.

Tiger Woods reacts to a birdie putt on the 6th hole en route to his victory in the final round of the Buick Invitational on January 23, 2005 at Torrey Pines Golf Course in La Jolla, California.  (Photo by Donald Miralle/Getty Images)

Tiger Woods smiles on the 9th hole during a fog delay, en route to his victory in the final round of the Buick Invitational on January 23, 2005 at Torrey Pines Golf Course in La Jolla, California.  (Photo by Donald Miralle/Getty Images)

Tiger Woods hits in heavy fogin the final round of the Buick Invitational on January 23, 2005 atTorrey Pines Golf Course in La Jolla, California.  (Photo by Donald Miralle/Getty Images)

Tiger Woods yells after a bad tee off the 12th hole during the final round of the Buick Invitational on January 23, 2005 at Torrey Pines Golf Course in La Jolla, California.  (Photo by Donald Miralle/Getty Images)

Tiger Woods hits out of the rough during the 3rd Round of the Buick Invitational on January 28, 2006 at Torrey Pines Golf Course in La Jolla, California.  (Photo by Donald Miralle/Getty Images)

Tiger Woods looks on during his sudden death victory over Jose Maria Olazabal of Spain in the final round of the Buick Invitational January 29, 2006 at Torrey Pines Golf Course in La Jolla, California.  (Photo by Donald Miralle/Getty Images)

An image of Tiger Woods is seen on the side of a trailer beyond the gallery during the final round of the Buick Invitational January 29, 2006 at Torrey Pines Golf Course in La Jolla, California.  (Photo by Donald Miralle/Getty Images)

Tiger Woods hits out of the Bunker on the 17th hole during the 2nd Round of The Masters at the Augusta National Golf Club on April 7, 2006 in Augusta, Georgia. 

Tiger Woods and Phil Mickelson look up as they walk down the sixth fairway during the first round of the 2006 PGA Championship at Medinah Country Club on August 17, 2006 in Medinah, Illinois.  (Photo by Donald Miralle/Getty Images)

Tiger Woods reacts to a missed chip shot on the second hole during the final round of the 2006 PGA Championship at Medinah Country Club on August 20, 2006 in Medinah, Illinois.  (Photo by Donald Miralle/Getty Images)

Tiger Woods and his caddie Steve Williams walk up the 18th fairway en route to winning the 2006 PGA Championship with a score of 18 under at Medinah Country Club on August 20, 2006 in Medinah, Illinois.  (Photo by Donald Miralle/Getty Images)

Tiger Woods stands on the 18th green and acknowledges the crowd after winning the 2006 PGA Championship at Medinah Country Club on August 20, 2006 in Medinah, Illinois.  Woods won with the score of 18 under par.  (Photo by Donald Miralle/Getty Images)

Tiger Woods holds the Wanamaker Trophy after winning the 2006 PGA Championship at Medinah Country Club on August 20, 2006 in Medinah, Illinois.  (Photo by Donald Miralle/Getty Images)

Tiger Woods of USA compares wedges with team mate Phil Mickelson on the 3rd hole during the second official practice day of the 2006 Ryder Cup at The K Club on September 20, 2006 in Straffan, Co. Kildare, Ireland.  (Photo by Donald Miralle/Getty Images)

Caddy Steve Williams tries to retrieve Tiger Woods’ 9 iron after dropping it in the water by the 7th green during his singles match against Robert Karlsson of Europe on the final day of the 2006 Ryder Cup at The K Club on September 24, 2006 in Straffan, Co. Kildare, Ireland. (Photo by Donald Miralle/Getty Images)

Tiger Woods of USA crosses a bridge on the 14th hole with caddy Steve Williams during his singles match against Robert Karlsson of Europe on the final day of the 2006 Ryder Cup at The K Club on September 24, 2006 in Straffan, Co. Kildare, Ireland.  (Photo by Donald Miralle/Getty Images)

Tiger Woods of USA reacts to an approach shot during his singles match against Robert Karlsson of Europe on the final day of the 2006 Ryder Cup at The K Club on September 24, 2006 in Straffan, Co. Kildare, Ireland.  (Photo by Donald Miralle/Getty Images)

Tiger Woods of USA exits the course with wife Elin after Europe win the Ryder Cup by a score of 18 – 9 on the final day of the 2006 Ryder Cup at The K Club on September 24, 2006 in Straffan, Co. Kildare, Ireland.  (Photo by Donald Miralle/Getty Images)

Tiger Woods smiles during the final round of the Buick Invitational January 28, 2007 at Torrey Pines Golf Course in La Jolla, California. Woods won the tournament with a 15-under par after the final round.  (Photo by Donald Miralle/Getty Images) 

Tiger Woods reacts to a missed eagle putt on the 13th green during the final round of the Buick Invitational January 28, 2007 at Torrey Pines Golf Course in La Jolla, California. Woods won the tournament with a 15-under par after the final round.  (Photo By Donald Miralle/Getty Images)

Tiger Woods hits out of a bunker on the 12th hole during the first round of the 107th U.S. Open Championship at Oakmont Country Club on June 14, 2007 in Oakmont, Pennsylvania.  (Photo by Donald Miralle/Getty Images)

Tiger Woods hits a shot out of the church pew bunkers during the second round of the 107th U.S. Open Championship at Oakmont Country Club on June 15, 2007 in Oakmont, Pennsylvania.  (Photo by Donald Miralle/Getty Images)

Tiger Woods hits out of a bunker on the 17th hole during the final round of the 107th U.S. Open Championship at Oakmont Country Club on June 17, 2007 in Oakmont, Pennsylvania.  (Photo by Donald Miralle/Getty Images) 

Tiger Woods tees off the fourth hole during the first round of the Buick Invitational at the Torrey Pines Golf Course January 24, 2008 in La Jolla, California. Woods was 5 under par for the day. (Photo by Donald Miralle/Getty Images)

Tiger Woods places his ball on the green during the first round of the Buick Invitational at the Torrey Pines Golf Course January 24, 2008 in La Jolla, California. Woods was 5 under par for the day.  (Photo by Donald Miralle/Getty Images)

Tiger Woods reacts to a missed birdie putt on the 16th hole during the third round of the Buick Invitational on January 26, 2008 at the Torrey Pines Golf Course in  La Jolla, California.  (Photo by Donald Miralle/Getty Images)

Tiger Woods walks through the gallery during the third round of the Buick Invitational on January 26, 2008 at the Torrey Pines Golf Course in  La Jolla, California.   (Photo by Donald Miralle/Getty Images)

Tiger Woods tees off the 4th hole during the final round of the Buick Invitational on January 27, 2008 at the Torrey Pines Golf Course in  La Jolla, California.  Woods won by a 8-stroke lead with a 19-under par for the tournament.  (Photo by Donald Miralle/Getty Images)

Tiger Woods reacts to a birdie putt on 11th green during the final round of the Buick Invitational on January 27, 2008 at the Torrey Pines Golf Course in  La Jolla, California.  Woods won by a 8 stroke lead with a 19 under par for the tournament.  (Photo by Donald Miralle/Getty Images) 

Tiger Woods hits out of the rough in the gallery on the 9th hole as caddie Steve Williams looks on during the final round of the Buick Invitational on January 27, 2008 at the Torrey Pines Golf Course in  La Jolla, California.  Woods won by a 8-stroke lead with a 19-under par for the tournament.  (Photo by Donald Miralle/Getty Images) 

Tiger Woods tees off the 6th hole during the final round of the Buick Invitational on January 27, 2008 at the Torrey Pines Golf Course in  La Jolla, California.  Woods won by a 8-stroke lead with a 19-under par for the tournament.  (Photo by Donald Miralle/Getty Images)

Tiger Woods hits his 2nd shot out of the green bunker on the 4th hole during a the final round of the 2008 Masters on April 13, 2008 at Augusta National Golf Club in Augusta, Georgia. (Photo by Donald Miralle for GolfWorld/Golf Digest)

Tiger Woods tees off during a the final round of the 2008 Masters on April 13, 2008 at Augusta National Golf Club in Augusta, Georgia. (Photo by Donald Miralle)

Tiger Woods hits out of the bunker during a the final round of the 2008 Masters on April 13, 2008 at Augusta National Golf Club in Augusta, Georgia. (Photo by Donald Miralle)

Tiger Woods holds his head in his hands on the fairway of the 12th hole during a the final round of the 2008 Masters on April 13, 2008 at Augusta National Golf Club in Augusta, Georgia. (Photo by Donald Miralle) 

Tiger Woods throws his hat and club reacting to a missed birdie putt on the 5th hole by throwing down his putter and hat during a the final round of the 2008 Masters on April 13, 2008 at Augusta National Golf Club in Augusta, Georgia. (Photo by Donald Miralle)

Tiger Woods hits his 2nd shot out of the rough in trees as Caddie Steve Williams watches on the 13th fairway during a the final round of the 2008 Masters on April 13, 2008 at Augusta National Golf Club in Augusta, Georgia. (Photo by Donald Miralle)

The opening spread in GolfWorld Masters issue of the same frame…

My EA sports jacket cover.

Tiger Woods walks past Phil Mickelson on the tenth tee during the second round of the 108th U.S. Open at the Torrey Pines Golf Course (South Course) on June 13, 2008 in San Diego, California.  (Photo by Donald Miralle/Getty Images)

Tiger Woods looks on from a bunker on the 12th green during the second round of the 108th U.S. Open at the Torrey Pines Golf Course (South Course) on June 13, 2008 in San Diego, California.  (Photo by Donald Miralle/Getty Images)

Tiger Woods hits his tee shot on the first hole during the final round of the 108th U.S. Open at the Torrey Pines Golf Course (South Course) on June 15, 2008 in San Diego, California.  (Photo by Donald Miralle/Getty Images)

Tiger Woods celebrates with caddie Steve Williams after holing out from the rough for birdie on the 17th hole during the third round of the 108th U.S. Open at the Torrey Pines Golf Course (South Course) on June 14, 2008 in San Diego, California.  (Photo by Donald Miralle/Getty Images)

Tiger Woods reacts to his birdie putt on the 18th green to force a playoff with Rocco Mediate during the final round of the 108th U.S. Open at the Torrey Pines Golf Course (South Course) on June 15, 2008 in San Diego, California.  (Photo by Donald Miralle/Getty Images)

Tiger Woods tees off the 12th hole en route to his 3 & 2 victory over Brendan Jones during the first round of the Accenture Match Play Championships at the Ritz-Carlton Golf Club at Dove Mountain on February 25, 2009 in Manana, Arizona. (Photo by Donald Miralle/Getty Images) 

Tiger Woods walks on a bridge en route to missing the cut on the second day of the 138th British Open Championship at Turnberry Golf Course in south west Scotland, on July 17, 2009. (Photo by Donald Miralle)

Tiger Woods tees off in the gallery en route to missing the cut on the second day of the 138th British Open Championship at Turnberry Golf Course in south west Scotland, on July 17, 2009. (Photo by Donald Miralle)

Tiger Woods hits off the 17th fairway en route to missing the cut on the second day of the 138th British Open Championship at Turnberry Golf Course in south west Scotland, on July 17, 2009. (Photo by Donald Miralle)

Tiger Woods tips his hat after putting out on the 18th green after missing the cut on the second day of the 138th British Open Championship at Turnberry Golf Course in south west Scotland, on July 17, 2009. (Photo by Donald Miralle)

It’s Cool to See Your Pictures Used in Big Ads…

(Photo by Donald Miralle)

It’s cool to see your pictures used in big ads…even when you don’t directly get paid for it, right? That’s what friends and collegues asked me about my photo of Canadian Skier Emily Brydon that had big placement in the Visa “Go World” Ad Campaign during the Olympics. Licensed through Getty Images, Visa ran my photo on posters, billboards, cars, shopping bags, and just about everywhere you looked at the Vancouver Olympics. Even when I walked out from my hotel there it was taunting me on the skytrain wall and the side of the HBC Building. It would be nice to have gotten a percentage of royalties for this ad placement. However, when I made the decision to leave my staff job at Getty Images back in 2007, I relinquished any chance of receiving fat royalties on commercial usage for past editorial shoots. I guess that’s the trade-off going freelance. But moving forward I’m excited to have the freedom to shoot the creative images I envision and then license those images, including the ones from the last two Olympic Games.

I have absolutely no ill will towards my friends at Getty with whom I have great relationships and who continue to offer me some good editorial work, as well as distribute my stock imagery. To their credit, I understand that Getty now pays staffers percentages for commercial usage/work, which is a step in the right direction.

Here’s the original photo I shot at the Torino Olympics when I was staff at Getty (Photo by Donald Miralle/Getty Images)

It was placed on bags in all the Olympics stores.

Mobile ATM Machines

and Billboards…

(Photos Courtesy of Visa)

Of course, as soon as I was flying home from the Olympics, and was just getting over my Visa ad, I picked up a Golf Digest (one of my editorial clients) and saw my photo of English golfer Luke Donald I shot for Getty from 2009 used in a double page ad for Ralph Lauren Golf. Glad Ralph Lauren and Visa like my work, I’ll add these to my scrapbook.

Lucha Libre Movie

So at long last Tijuana Lucha Libre video is up and running…I shot this in 2007 as a feature over the course of a couple months, driving over the USA-MEX border between San Diego and Tijuana. The fights were held on Friday nights at the Auditorio Municipal de Tijuana, located in kind of a sketchy part of town, so I usually rolled in with nothing but my cameras that I was shooting with and left nothing in the car. Also, to be on the safe side I purchased Baja California Car Insurance for the months I was driving back and forth shooting this feature. I took this on right at the beginning of when the drug cartel wars really started to get bloody in Mexico and TJ; I don’t think I would do this today with the current state down there. Special thanks goes to my brother-in-law Danny Inskeep who did the bulk of the production of this video on Adobe Aftereffects, Charlie Newman with the San Diego Union Tribune for great driving directions, and my family who put up with my frequent jaunts to TJ on Fridays nights. I’m trying to get the HD version of this up on my livebooks site, but am still working out some kinks to get it streaming smoothly. If you have any suggestions, advice, or comments please feel free to post! Thanks again for viewing…

Completely Un-Related to Photography, But It Saves Lives…

After spending many of my adolescent summers as a lifeguard, being certified in CPR and lifesaving was a mandatory prerequisite. Luckily, I never had to use CPR or the Heimlich Maneuver on anyone during my lifeguarding stint, but rather spent my shifts tanning and checking out bikinis with my sunglasses on. But twice in the last year (and just yesterday) I had to use the Heimlich Maneuver. We were having a normal breakfast yesterday morning and my sons were eating cereal and fruit bars off the rotating Miralle breakfast menu. Then suddenly my wife let out a scream while she looked over at Micah, who will be two later this month. As he was holding his throat, his face was turning red and his eyes were bulging, while not making a sound. My wife started to panic, but without really thinking I calmly walked behind him, wrapped my arms around him and put my right hand in a fist, and gave him a quick thrust near his solar plexus region below his ribs an above his belly button. The obstruction of a balled-up piece of fruit bar popped out and he immediately started to breath and talk. We coolly told him he should take smaller bites of his food, and everything was back to normal. Just last fall Lauren’s grandmother Janey choked on something during our Thanksgiving dinner and I did the same thing, which easily opened her airway. I cannot stress how important it is to know the Heimlich and CPR especially if you have children or elderly family members. We also just enrolled both kids in swim lessons this week to prepare them for the pool parties and beach time this summer, which is another must for water safety and toddlers in my opinion.

There are different techniques for the Heimlich and CPR for adults, children, and infants and you can go to the American Heart Association site for more info on the Heimlich Maneuver and how to properly administer here:

http://www.americanheart.org/presenter.jhtml?identifier=4605

And more information on CPR and getting certified here:

http://www.americanheart.org/presenter.jhtml?identifier=3011764

Interview with Tutti Fotografi

I just finished up an interview with Paolo Namias of Tutti Fotografi, one of the biggest Italian photography trade magazine websites, that is running a piece on the World Press Photo Winners from this year. If you speak Italian you can read the interview here http://www.fotografia.it/home.aspx for the rest of you English-speaking folks the interview is below. This will probably answer a lot of the questions I received on how I prepped for this long day on the Big Island…If you have any other queries or comments please don’t hesitate ask!

TP: In which situation did you shoot the awarded photo?

I was awarded for a picture story on the Ironman World Championships in Hawaii, the premier triathlon event. Considered one of the most grueling races in the world, competitors must endure crosswinds over 45 mph, 95 degree temperatures in the lava fields and a scorching sun in completing a 3.86 km swim, 180.2 km bike, and a 42.2 km marathon within an 17 hour time cutoff to be called an “Ironman”. I shot the race back in 2000 for Allsport Photography, enjoyed it immensely and have always wanted to go back and do a proper story on it.

TP: Did your reportage require a long preparation?

I thought about how I wanted to cover the race for nine years after covering it for the first time, so most of the preparation involved the logistics in the shot-making and travel to Hawaii as well. I wanted to shoot the mass start of the race as I did from the water with my underwater housing but there were some above water shots of the start that I felt I needed in the story as well. The water start with nearly 2,000 competitors from all walks of life is something to behold, so I set up remotely fired cameras around the docks and bay before sunrise to shoot so I could have multiple angles while shooting in the water with my hand held waterhousings. So at 5am, I set one camera on the TV tower above the start, which I hoped would show the mass of people entering the water from a elevated graphic angle. Little did I know that the 16-35mm lens I used for this camera had impact damage on the trip over so the plane of focus was a little off, but it accidentally worked in my favor giving the photo an almost a tilt-shift throwback feel to it. Another camera was placed directly behind the start focused on all the competitors heads and a third was placed on the dock for the classic start shot with the sunrise and boat in the background; both of these angles didn’t make the final edit into the story. All cameras were fired on pocket wizard transceivers set on intervalometer mode firing a frame every several seconds.

After I set up these cameras with large CF cards to handle all the throw away frames it was nearly 6am and only an hour from the start of the race, so I quickly changed into my wetsuit and scuba gear, grabbed my underwater housings. I swam out about 300m into the bay where the water was deep enough (about 20m) that I could get a good angle of the start from an underwater perspective directly under them without interfering with the race at all. Unfortunately, I had ruptured my eardrum the day before while on a night manta ray dive with a friend, so it made the descent down to the bottom a little more painful than usual with a blood coming from my ear and mouth to chum the water. I sat at the bottom for about a half hour watching little fish swim by, then at 7am the start horn went off and I shot the pack swimming out from deep angle and then kicked in and shot them swimming back over the coral reef and exiting the water (both of these frames made the set).

After the last large pack of competitors finished their swim, I quickly collected all my cameras, with the exception of the one on the TV tower which I flipped to the other side of the tower to catch the finish line from above and switched the lens to a 50mm. It was good that I left this camera up as it captured a nice moment of Chrissie Wellington breaking the 16 year-old course record about 8 hours later. I dumped all my extra cameras in the media center, changed out of the water gear and into shorts and a shirt and lathered on the sunscreen. My bike driver, who was the same person who drove me 9 years prior (and ironically like myself had not done a race since), picked me up on her chopper outside of the media center. I had two cameras on my shoulders, a helmet and hung onto her for dear life as we tried our best to catch up with the lead pack. Luckily for me, I scouted the course the day before I noted places where I would stop along the long stretch Queen Ka’ahumanu Highway to shoot things like the dinosaur lava sculpture and the rock signs along the way.

After taking photos on the bike for about 45 minutes, we parked the bike at the helipad, which was at about the halfway point of the bike, and boarded a chartered helicopter I had reserved for a one-hour flight. I had them take off one door and harness me in so I could shoot over the landing gear and directly down to the ground below. There was pretty much one shot that I wanted to capture from above and it was the lava fields on Queen Ka’ahumanu Highway where locals have made signs with bleached rocks for love ones who have passed away or for words of encouragement for competitors. I got one frame I was happy with, when a sole biker passed through an area with lots of signs, as I hung out the helicopter hovering 200ft above the ground.

Before I knew it the flight was over and we landed, jumped on the bike and tried to intercept the bikers on their way back to the transition area to start their run. I was able to hit a couple of them on a nice long stretch of road where they popped out of the heat mirage on the ground like it was liquid. At this point it was already mid-afternoon and I was getting very tired and hungry. So my bike driver and I made a quick pit-stop at a food station along Queen Ka’ahumanu Highway, refueled on some burgers, pineapples and water, then jumped back on the bike to shoot the marathon.

Most of the marathon shots happen along Ali’i Drive right next to the beach, where I got a nice frame of a competitor shot through a rock wall; also further down the course near the power station where since there are less fans there it a much more bleak feel to it. I pretty much followed the leaders for most of the marathon and broke off with about 10 miles left to ensure I had a finish line position. I woke up the remote camera in the tower which I had focused, framed and placed on sleep hours beforehand and shot the top 25 competitors coming through the finish including the male winner Craig Alexander of Australia and the female winner Chrissie Wellington of Great Britain, who crushed the course record in only her third try and third straight victory in the Ironman. I pulled down my remote camera, and jumped back on the motorcycle to shoot more detail and sunset shots, as many of the competitors who were going to finish close to midnight and the 17-hour cut-off time.

While I was back out on the course and the sun was going down, I caught word that 21 year-old Rudy Garcia-Tolson, a double above knee amputee, was looking like he would not make the bike cutoff time and therefore not be allowed to start the marathon. We backtracked along the bike course until we saw him. He was barely hanging on and myself and another bike crew for NBC was filming him in his final miles of the bike. He kept on asking us “will I make the cut-off time?” None of us had it in us to tell him he would probably not make it so we just cheered him on and he found the inner strength to pedal hard all the way to the finish. When he got to the transition area, he did miss the cutoff by 5 minutes and in tears his race was over. A month later in Arizona,  Garcia-Tolson the two-time Paralympic gold medalist, become the first double above-knee amputee to ever finish a full Ironman. Seeing Rudy’s and others inspiring performances is was kept me going for over 17 hours and made shooting with a ruptured eardrum from the water, land and sky easy, in an attempt to give the Ironman story the justice it deserved.

TP: Which magazine published the awarded photo (reportage)?

Triathlete Magazine and Inside Triathlon published a handful of photos from the race, as did Sports Illustrated, which selected and published my underwater start photo in their Photos of the Year issue.

TP: In your opinion, does the layout of the published article respect your concept, as photographer?

I appreciated that the photos were used in those publications because many people saw some of the fruits of my work as well as it ended up covering most of the costs of the trip; but the entire story was never run as a series, which is how I intended it to be presented. So I entered it into the World Press as a sports action story, and was overjoyed and overwhelmed when I saw that it won. Now it could finally be seen as I saw it and published as a whole for the first time.

TP: Was the reportage commissioned to you by the publisher, or a your production then proposed to the publisher?

This was a personal assignment, and completely self-funded with no guarantee that I was getting paid for it. I emptied my frequent flyer account to fly myself, my wife and our two boys out to the Big Island of Hawaii on vacation and planned to shoot the race on the tail end of the trip. We stayed at a friend’s timeshare for free and rented car, scuba gear, and helicopter all out of pocket. Luckily over the years I have built good relationships with editors like Jimmy Colton at Sports Illustrated, who has been instrumental in my career running different photos of mine that nobody else took a risk on. I sent him a handful of selects after the race; he didn’t run them in that week’s issue but one frame ended up making the SI Photos of the Year which made me quite happy. I also swim on a Masters Team in San Diego with the publisher of Triathlete Magazine and owner of Multisports John Duke, who ended up running the photos in two of his publications.

TP: What do you think about the photoreporter’s work to-day (difficulties, satisfaction, internet, future) ?

It is definitely a tough time for photojournalist worldwide. I resigned after 10 years from a very cushy senior staff position at Getty Images in December of 2007 (which people thought I was crazy for doing at the time) and jumped into the freelance market right when things started to take a nosedive.  The photography and print media market worldwide has been at a all-time low the last couple years, with ad sales down, papers and magazines going bankrupt and folding, photo budgets being cut in half or completely dropped and really talented photographers finding themselves without a job. I think the most important thing to do in these times is just figure a way to make things happen by finding alternative funding, diversifying yourself and your clientele base with both editorial and commercial work, and as a freelancer you will be alright. There are good and bad things about the internet, with the immediacy of digital photography, the availability of high end SLR’s in the hands of “prosumers” – but you just have to try to make it work for you to get your name and pictures out there. And no matter what you shouldn’t be deterred to shoot something personal or important to you just because you don’t have a paid assignment out of it on the front end. If the piece is marketed correctly, you can make more money on the backend and still retain the rights to your photos in the end. I think there will be a major shift in the business model and other aspects of photography in the next couple of years, and hopefully we will all be able to change with it.

My First Time Lapse Movie…

I have no plans to transition into motion and call myself a DP anytime soon, but now that I’m back home and have some down time, I’ve finally gotten around to getting some multimedia files prepped for the web. The first of a series that I plan to upload to my website and this blog is a time lapse of the Great Reno Balloon Race 2009. I used an upgraded version of Quicktime Player ($20) to make this time lapse photography video as the upgrade gives you an easy option to open a sequence and make a movie from it in seconds. I chose the frame rate of 6 photos a second and did the title page and final fade in and out with Adobe Aftereffects. I used 475 frames shot from a Canon DS MII with a 16-35mm lens set on shutter priority on a tripod. A Pocket Wizard MultiMax was used on intervalometer mode firing every 5.5 seconds over the course of an hour and a half. I had a volunteer watch the camera to make sure no one took it as I was shooting the race from a balloon (the third one up in the video, blue with rainbow stripe) so no one would walk away with the gear. Since there were so many photos, nothing is toned or cropped, just the raw images straight from the camera into a time lapse that crunched 475 frames from over 90 minutes into a one and a half minutes of video. Turn up your volume, Strauss’ On The Beautiful Blue Danube was a nice fit for the balloons…Hope you enjoy!