Timbers, Earthquakes and Sounders

I had just left the office, heading home on a sunny Wednesday evening when my cell phone rang....it was a photographer that often shoots for the Portland Timbers Professional USL Soccer Team. He had a conflict that evening and asked if I was available to shoot the Timbers vs San Jose Earthquakes US Open Cup match that evening. This was a cool opportunity, so I quickly took him up on his offer. Game time was in a little over an hour...I just happened to have my camera gear with me so off I trucked to PGE Park. I met Collin Romer, the Timbers' media relations manager, got the lowdown on what he was looking for and then headed down to field to shoot the match.

Unfortunately for the Timbers, going up against an MLS team in the second round of the Open Cup dashed the hopes of going further in the competition as San Jose downed the Timbers 2-0. I was able to pull off a handful of decent shots that were used for the MatchDay game report on the Timbers Web Site.

Collin was pleased with my work and offered me the opportunity to shoot another match a week later when the Timbers took on their arch rivals, the Seattle Sounders. PGE Park in the late afternoon presents some fairly challenging light conditions with half the field in dark shadows and half in bright sunlight. One is either shooting into the sun or blowing out the background with shadowed players against the sunlit outfield wall. This match the Timbers and I both faired well with their 1-0 victory over the Sounders and my photos that once again used for the MatchDay game report.