Category Archives: senior sports portraits

Vanishing…

hay·mow/ˈhāmō/noun

  1. a stack of hay.
    • a part of a barn in which hay is stored.
Canon 5D Mark 3 | 70-200 Canon L IS lens | Off Camera Speedlight with Fong Diffuser

Hay mow (or, hay loft) basketball is a foreign concept to many young, up and coming basketball players these days. Back in the day when big red barns were more of a farm standard, the hay mow was the closest thing young people had to basketball skills camp. I’m sure the reffing was questionable and rules may have been bent, adapted or even eliminated. How did they ever survive?

This lucky young man along with his siblings and cousins have spent many hours playing basketball in this hay mow. Memories made and life lessons learned.

What are YOUR memories of games or shenanigans in the hay mow?

Canon 5D Mark 3 | 24-70 Canon L lens | Off Camera Speedlight with Fong Diffuser

Basketball… the will to prepare.

“The key is not the ‘will to win’… everybody has that. It is the will to prepare to win that is important” – Bob Knight

Composite by Joyce Meyer | Lightroom | Photoshop | Ashe Design elements | Topaz edits

“Tis the Season

Guess what I’ve been doing lately? Yep, designing grad cards. Graduation will be here before we know it!

Photography and design by Joyce Meyer.

Two images blended using Photoshop CC and topped off with Topaz Studio “Dreamy Day” action.

VB Montage

There is no glory in practice, but without practice there is no glory.

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Photography and montage design by Joyce Meyer ~ Unknown quote

Life Lessons

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Image and edits by Joyce Meyer

Baseball teaches that errors are part of the game. ~Ernest Kurtz

Glory Days

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Images, editing and design by Joyce Meyer. Baseball action image by Kelly Sayler.

The class of 2018 is cruising down the home stretch and ready to complete their final lap.  Be proud of your glory days as they represent a time in your life that can never be repeated. You are probably in peak physical condition due to the rigors of training along with youthful resilience, and have shared bonding experiences with teammates you have probably known and played alongside since elementary school.  When this time comes to an end you may feel an unusual combination of accomplishment and sadness.

Are we really saying farewell to the glory days? You couldn’t forget these experiences and memories if you tried. Rather, it’s a time to say to yourself, Wow, wasn’t that incredible?

To quote football coach, Lou Holtz:  The answer to three questions will determine your success or failure:
1 – Can people trust me to do my best?
2 – Am I committed to the task in hand?
3 – Do I care about other people and show it?
If the answers to all three questions are yes, there is no way you can fail.

So, be thankful for the experiences, apply the lessons learned and make sure to find a way to make the future even better than the past.

 

Photomerge…

Can’t back up enough to catch the entire image? Photomerge is your friend.

Line up the left side – click – hold level and move right with at least 25 per cent overlap – click.

In Photoshop CC 2017: file automatephotomerge – browse and select your images – check blend images together – I also checked perspective and content aware fill transparent areas – click O.K.

This gave me the background images. I then used select select and mask to bring in the foreground subject.

Finished it off with Topaz edits and some lightning using Photoshop brushes I found free (Brusheezy!?).

BOOM!! GO LANCERS!

 

 

Once a Wildcat…

The school is now closed and will no longer hold the cheers of a crowd, squeak of basketball shoes on the shiny, waxed floor, whistle of the refs and buzz of the clock. I close my eyes and these sounds and memories flood back to me as though it was just yesterday. Luckily, the passing of time means the memory filter allows only good vibes to flow through as I bid a final farewell to my last opportunity to click  the shutter of my camera within these walls.

Image and edits by Joyce Meyer

Nostalgia was the theme of the day for me on August 15, 2017. For 26 years I drove this route from early August until the end of May as I prepared and taught a new group of students each year at Grant-Deuel School located in Revillo, South Dakota.

Cheer, cheer for GDHS!

Wake up the echoes cheering their best,

Send the loyal cheers on high,

Shake down the thunder from the sky,

What though the odds be great or small,

The blue and white will win over all,

While our loyal sons are marching forward to victory, Fight!

Blessed be the memory…

South Dakota Sunset

The parched prairie remains vibrant along this hillside near Gary, South Dakota. We work hard yet still find time to play hard…

 

Class of 2017

Believe it or not, the prairie is brimming with opportunity for youth in our rural area. Musicians, artists, athletes…the list goes on. We have some of the finest schools providing a solid education along with extra-curricular activities to round out the experience. Many of these students are also working part-time jobs, perform volunteer work, and participate in other programs such as 4-H along with their studies. Thank you for allowing me the opportunity to be a small part of your high school experience.

The world may seem to be a roller coaster of events, but these examples of the class of 2017 give me hope.

Best wishes for the future and peace out!