June 2019 Favorite Images

As a photojournalist I find photographing parades very difficult and also a great work out. Nothing like running a mile trying to perfectly frame someone doing a back flip in front of a float. I found this moment of Caeden after running the whole parade and getting a ton of pictures of the event. I saw him walking back to his families car and asked him to pause for a portrait. This turned out to be my favorite image from the entire Pride event.

Caeden Nobiling, 14, of Moline pauses for a portrait after the Unity Pride Parade displaying his hair that his mother did for Pride, Saturday, June 22, 2019, in Rock Island.

This was just a, “Go out and find a feature.” picture we all get on a slow day but a beautiful sunny day. I spent time with the two men playing basketball. I saw the clouds and laid on the court until I finally got a good shot of the clouds and the young man shooting his shot.

Isaiah Miles, 17 of Michigan goes up for a shot while playing a pick up game of basketball against his brother Tavian Dunlap of Davenport at Centennial Park, Monday, June 24, 2019, in Davenport.

I have COMPLETELY SLACKED

Going to make up for almost an entire year of not posting by posting my favorite images every month that I missed it.

A month of sports portraits

Beto O'rourke

Memorial Day ceremony at Rock Island National Cemetery

First time shooting indoor football

Spelling Bee

Foggy Evening

I left work a tad early this day just so I could surround myself in fog. I love fog and knew i wanted to make a frame. So I went into the woods near where I lived and I ran into this guy and for the first time ever that worked out well for me. Got a good frame and called it a day. It’s nice to live in a place that does have different seasons even if the winter one is currently kicking my ass.

Closing of Save a lot

The closing of the Save a lot in Rock Island was devastating to the area residents. I was sitting in the parking lot watch as people walked up and tried to enter the doors. Only to be met with a sign saying that they were closed. This coming as a shock due to it being open the day before. This was a place for those who could not travel far to get food for themselves and also a place for people who didn’t have incomes to afford regular grocery stores. I heard as single mothers and other residents came up to me and explained how they don’t know where they’re going to go. These images might be simple, they might not be the best I’ve ever produced but it was a story that needed to be told.

Imam Saad Baig leaves the QC to new adventures in Baltimore

Director of ICQC, Imam Saad Baig, shakes hands of his congress after his sermon, Friday, Dec. 7, 2018 in the Moline Islamic Center of Quad Cities. Baig will soon be leaving his position at the center, were he has been for ten years, to his new position in Baltimore.

Season of Giving

Throughout the month of December (this is very late post) people are feeling extra generous, so here is a collection of those images.

Blizzard!

Calvin Taylor, 4, of East Moline, speeds down the Schadt Park sledding hill Monday, Nov. 26, 2018, in Silvis. According to the National Weather Service Sunday night's blizzard dropped 13.8 inches of snow. The winter storm caused area schools to cancel classes giving kids a whole day to play in the snow.

Paul Draffkorn of Rock Island works his way down 17th Street in Rock Island while trying to get back home after Sunday night blizzard with 13.8 inches of snow being reported to have dropped on the Quad Cities, Monday, Nov. 26, 2018.

Charlie Taylor, 6, of East Moline sleds down a hill at Schadt Park in Silvis after Sunday nights blizzard with 13.8 inches of snow being reported to have dropped on the Quad Cities, Monday, Nov. 26, 2018.

James Roberson of East Moline shovels the snow out of his family drive way after Sunday nights blizzard, Monday, Nov. 26, 2018.

Calvin Taylor, 4, of East Moline hikes up a snowy hill at Schadt Park in Silvis, Monday, Nov. 26, 2018. According to the National Weather Service Sunday night's blizzard dropped 13.8 inches of snow. The winter storm caused area schools to cancel classes giving kids a whole day to play in the snow.

Cora Taylor, 6, of East Moline falls over while sledding down a hill at Schadt Park in Silvis after Sunday nights blizzard with 13.8 inches of snow being reported to have dropped on the Quad Cities, Monday, Nov. 26, 2018.

Fall Colors

Voters!

2018 Midterm Elections

U.S. Rep. Cheri Bustos, D-Moline speaks with media outlets after the Rock Island County Democrats' election night party, at the Holiday Inn Rock Island, Tuesday Nov. 6, 2018.

A woman at the Rock Island County Democrats' election night party, at the Holiday Inn Rock Island, Tuesday Nov. 6, 2018.

Kylar Eliott 7, Kenlie Stokes 7, and Kaysen Stokes 4, sit and waits for voting results during the Rock Island County Democrats' election night party, at the Holiday Inn Rock Island, Tuesday Nov. 6, 2018.

Those attending celebrate while U.S. Rep. Cheri Bustos, D-Moline speaks during the Rock Island County Republicans’ election night party, at the River House Bar & Grill, Tuesday Nov. 6, 2018, in Moline.

A woman celebrates during the Rock Island County Democrats' election night party, at the Holiday Inn Rock Island, Tuesday Nov. 6, 2018.

October 2018 Post

Some of my favorite images from this month. I also worked on a photo essay about a community of local witches in the Quad Cities. If you would like to see that it is in my stories section of my website. First image I was at a soccer game and at half time turned on my scanner app and heard of a fire and booked it on over. When I got there was getting mostly just smoke images then a pizza delivery guy distraught in trying to find the home he was suppose to deliver to .

Second image was from when I went to go for a run on my day off and saw a group of people playing in the flood water in Credit Island and this was the image I took as I was walking away.

Third was a portrait of a woman I found while trying to find a weather feature sunning herself in her store window.

Fourth rained out football game and needed a picture of the paper and this supportive dad in the stands made the cut.

Micheal Streeves an employee of Pizza Hut tries to locate a home to deliver their pizza while passing by a house fire at 2501 47th Ave. in Rock Island where responders were working on containing the fire, Saturday, Oct. 13, 2018.

Lisa Benningfield, of Davenport, rests Wednesday on the "Road closed" sign at the entrance to Credit Island Park in Davenport, while her friend's dog, Lucy, naps underneath it. In the background her friends are fishing in the flooded road to the island. Credit Island is closed to flooding on the Mississippi River, Wednesday, Oct. 10, 2018.

Margaret Pankey suns herself in the window of her shop, Carbon Cliff Bait & Tackle, Monday, Oct. 15, 2018. Pankey, who has owned the store since 1958, said she sits in the window to keep warm on a cold day. The forecast for the Quad Cities calls for crisp fall temperatures with highs in the upper 40's all week.

Donte Farrow from Rock Island wears his son's, Terrance Russell jersey while he waits for the official cancellation of the Rock Island vs Moline football game Terrance Russell, j Friday, Oct. 5, 2018.

September 2018 Post

In effort to make my blog less of a mess I will be posting a end of the month blog post with my favorite images from the month!

I am currently on the night shift/weekends at the Dispatch/Argus which means covering a lot of sports and also a lot of fun weekend events.

Martin Chaney of Moline performs the bear dance to the music of The Spirit of the Water Drum during the Tipi gathering at Illiniwek Forest Preserve. Chaney recently had heart surgery and his goal was to be able to dance in this years annual Tipi gathering. He says that the bear dance is all done by the spirit of the bear nothing is planned and he lets the spirits take control. Sunday, Sept. 30, 2018.

A street kart racers in the Rock Island Grand Prix takes off down the course in downtown Rock Island on Sunday, Sept. 2, 2018.

Moline's Gabbi Lopez competes in the 2x200 yard Medley two man replay at the Rock Island girl's swimming invite at Rock Island High school Saturday, Sept. 8, 2018.

Jon Van Pelt (60) of Moline catches the ball and scores a touch down during the Friday, Sept. 7, 2018 against Rich South High school at the Browning Field in Moline.

Rockridge players warm up before their game against Newman at Rockridge, Friday, Sept. 21, 2018.

Day one of three of the Quad Cities Hosting the BMX North Central Gold Cup Championships where 500 BMX riders will be competing at the East Moline BMX, Friday, Sept. 14, 2018.

Taming of the Slough Adventure Triathlon took place Saturday morning in downtown Moline where competitors took a kayak or canoe through the Sylvan Slough, then a bike race on the trails on Sylvan Island and ending with a two mile run along the Moline riverfront to Tame the Slough, Sept. 15, 2018.

Taming of the Slough

Got to ride in a Combine

Rock Island vs Geneseo