Dodgers vs. Braves photo essay: July 30

On July 30 I had the privilege to attend the Dodgers vs. Braves game that Zach Greinke excellently pitched and Matt Kemp provided just enough offense for en route to a 3-2 victory in extra innings. I was also lucky enough to sit in some choice seats behind home plate, courtesy of a friend of a friend as these things go. The camera I brought was probably a bit beyond regulations, but I managed to get some fun shots that I wish to share with you now.

We were a hair to the Dodger dugout side in section 5, and it was fun to see who was up at the rail at different times. This is an early in the game picture, where Clayton Kershaw was my target. This later one I was trying to get at Don Mattingly.

With the on deck circle right in front of us, I tried my hand at a handful of player profiles as well. It took me awhile to realize I needed to go to manual focus, as on autopilot my camera kept couldn't decide if I wanted to focus on the netting or the player. Once I was in manual mode, I felt like a real photojournalist. Scoops McGee gets her man, they'll say. Always on the case.

Dee Gordon here with what looks like a mic pac or a large paddle in his back pocket.

Yasiel Puig is a big man.

Matt Kemp is a fan of his bat, which he should be. It's a very nice bat.

Bat flips take practice.

Life is not getting any Ethier for this man.

Sports photography is a tough gig. The lighting changes on you over the course of three to four hours, so just finding the right settings for properly lit profiles is a challenge. Once I had that down I tried a few action shots, like this one of Scott Van Slyke taking off from home plate.

Here's Kemp asking for time.

Kenley Jansen gave up an equalizing dinger, but I liked his focus here.

I had a lot of fun pretending to be a sports photographer, and would love to get to do it again. There's much I have to learn about composition, lighting, focus, and all that good stuff. Hopefully you liked my pictures.