Photographing a college football game - Appalachian State at Wyoming скачать в хорошем качестве

Photographing a college football game - Appalachian State at Wyoming

In September 2023, I flew from Charlotte, NC to Denver, CO to cover the college football game between the Appalachian State University Mountaineers and the University of Wyoming Cowboys. The game took place on the University of Wyoming campus in Laramie, about 30 miles or so west of the capital city of Cheyenne. My flight left Charlotte very early, so I had to get to the airport around 4:00 AM. Once I landed in Denver, I rented a car and began driving north toward Wyoming. I made a few stops along the way. First, in the town of Boulder, home to the University of Colorado. Next, I stopped in Fort Collins, home to the Colorado State University Rams. I also had lunch in Fort Collins before crossing the border north into Wyoming. When I arrived in Laramie, I parked my car in the media parking lot and began walking around and exploring campus. I finally made my way into the stadium. After dropping off my camera bag and laptop in the press box, I made my way down to the field to take some pregame photos. A longtime friend of mine, Kenzie, cheers for Appalachian State, and I looked forward to seeing a familiar face while I was two time zones away from home. Her parents, whom I have known for a very long time as well, were also in attendance at the game, so it was great to see them as well. I am so glad they were there, because I went outside the stadium to take some photos of the tailgate scene. After having fun doing that, I discovered I didn't have my cell phone! I started to panic! Kenzie's mom, Heather, let me borrow her phone to try to find mine or at least get ahold of my provider to get my phone shut off. I kept calling and calling my number, but no luck. A few minutes later, her phone rang and it was a call from my phone! A tremendously nice man named Dave said he found a phone in the tailgate lot and had it. I explained it was mine and he told me where his tailgate was. I made my way there and got my phone back. I offered him a reward for finding it and returning it, but he wouldn't have it. He told me that is what good people do! Wow, did I get lucky. What great people in the state of Wyoming! I finally got back in the stadium to take photos and just missed the opening kickoff. It didn't matter, I had my phone and all was good! I had a great time not only shooting the game, but all of the other stuff that makes the sport of college football so magical! The crowd, the bands, the cheer teams, the mascots, the traditions! I got my picture taken with both school mascots, as I like to do when covering games. As I was snapping some pictures of the Wyoming cheer team during a timeout, I heard one of them say, "where can we find these pictures?". I gave her my Instagram account and told her I would be glad to share all of the pictures with her and her team to use for their social media. They were very excited, and I was glad to do it. It was a great game, coming down to the wire. Wyoming won by the score of 22-19. After the game, I drove to my Airbnb on a ranch halfway between Laramie and Cheyenne. The next morning, I drove to Cheyenne to explore the town for a bit before returning to Denver. I had been to Wyoming a couple of times before, but covering this college football game, seeing old friends, and making new ones, is something I will always cherish! Enjoy the video!