uEdit: Adopted Haitian girl finds home near Green Bay

Patrick and Jaime Richard of nearby Suamico returned from Haiti with their adopted baby girl, Shae, to Austin Straubel International Airport in Ashwaubenon, Wis., Monday afternoon, Jan. 25, 2010. The whole adoption process, which had been stalled for a very long time, was sped up by local politicians putting pressure on the situation after the massive earthquake a few weeks ago.

It was a quick situation at the airport, a "homecoming" with no family members present, and an impromptu press conference in the airport concourse. Every picture kind of looked the same, and because I had to shoot video at the same I was shooting stills, I couldn't work the situation for stills as much I normally would... video needed more shot options and brought up the ultimate multimedia dilemma: when you're capturing video (or audio) you're potentially missing moments for stills.

So, it brought up an editing dilemma. What picture says it all? Fellow photographer Evan Siegle and I bounced thoughts off of each other for about 10 minutes and came up with three favorites (below) weighing the merits and drawbacks of each.


We felt (and I say "we," but it was only "we" after Evan made the case) that the vertical of mom and baby took you truthfully into the moment: mom's happiness to have the prolonged process complete, and the little girl's weariness from the weeks of post-earthquake stress and long journey to the U.S. We also liked the bear. :-)

The other pictures were decent but not quite doing enough. The third picture offers a bit more of a sense of place (something I initially thought was important, but it's not about the place... it's about the people.) The second picture certainly focuses on the little girl, but really doesn't capture the relief and happiness of the parents to have her.

At bottom is Tuesday's A1. Do you agree with our choice? Would love to hear your thoughts.

Uncle Kracker

Musician Uncle Kracker appeared in Green Bay for a semi-private concert Tuesday at a local radio station. Seems like a nice enough guy. Wish I could spell his name correctly without looking it up every time... variations have included Uncle Cracker and Unckle Kraker... lovely...

Musician Uncle Kracker performed a private concert at Midwest Communications/WIXX in Bellevue, Wis., Tuesday morning, Jan. 19, 2010.

Local angle on Haiti disaster

There's not much we can do in Green Bay, Wis., but for a local angle on the devastating earthquake Haiti we connected with a family who adopted two young Haitian boys last year and spoke with them about what they are hearing from their friends and contacts in Haiti.

Sarah Cruz sits for a picture with adopted sons Miles, 5, left, and Keenan, 5, right, at home in Allouez, Wis., Wednesday, Jan. 13, 2010. Cruz and her husband adopted the two boys from Haiti in 2009.

Packers lose a heartbreaker

A deflated Green Bay Packers quarterback Aaron Rodgers (12) sits alone reading a team communication as he and other players cleaned out their lockers at Lambeau Field in Green Bay, Wis., Monday morning, Jan. 11, 2009, the day after losing to the Arizona Cardinals in the NFC Wildcard playoff game, 51-45. Rogers said in an interview with members of the media, "The tough part is that we have a lot of guys with uncertain futures. Guys you care about and guys you have worked with for a number of years. You never know what the next season is going to look like."

Marines return home

Gotta love the news biz... second time in a week I got called off my scheduled work into a breaking news situation. We got word well after 5pm on Friday (a terrible time to send any media organization a press release, by the way) that a large group of Marines would be returning to Green Bay after several months in Iraq.

They all went out together and all came back together. That, sadly, doesn't always happen.

The photos I got were so-so. I would have liked a better frame of Xander and his father, below, but the kid was so conscious of the camera. And when you're shooting pictures on deadline, and the pictures kind of had to be in 10 minutes ago... you can't be a beggar...

Cpl. Ryan Blake of Manistique, Mich., leads the group of 14 Marines from the Detachment Bulk Fuel Company Bravo 6th Engineering Support Battalion of Green Bay into the concourse of Austin Straubel International Airport in Ashwaubenon, Wis., as they returned home from Iraq, Friday evening, Jan. 8, 2009.

Xander Caron, 3, hangs onto his father, Cpl. Jimmy Caron of West Bend, Wis., as he and 13 other Marines from the Detachment Bulk Fuel Company Bravo 6th Engineering Support Battalion returned home.

Which do you pick?

A lot of times, especially from sports assignments, I'll have a series of photos from a burst of frames that makes editing hard. Choosing one frame over another can be like splitting hairs. Last night I had these two frames and chose the latter because I liked the hand jammed in the face... even though the top photo is cleaner and more true to the moment (a body contact shooting foul on the Wright State player).

Which would you have picked?

Wright State University's LaShawna Thomas (3) gets a hand in the face while fouling University of Wisconsin-Green Bay's Celeste Hoewisch (4) in the first half of a game at the Kress Events Center in Green Bay, Wis., Thursday evening, Jan. 7, 2010.

Seven kids in a minivan

Got called off a basketball game to cover a head-on crash on the other side of town. Non-life-threatening injuries, but interesting circumstances. The driver of the minivan with seven children in it is allegedly a jail escapee who was being followed by law enforcement following a shoplifting incident (allegedly involving her and her children) at Woodman's Food Market.

People never cease to amaze me.

Emergency personnel attend to a victim of a two-vehicle crash on Shawano Avenue near South Platten Street in Green Bay, Wis., Thursday, Jan. 7, 2010.

A Green Bay Police Officer takes a photo of a van involved in the two-vehicle crash.

Green Bay Press-Gazette Photos of the Year 2009

Produced the video below to showcase our staff's best photos from 2009. Go full screen! Thanks for watching!

UWGB women beat the Salukis

Southern Illinois players Teri Oliver (22), left, and Katrina Swingler (20), top, reach in as University of Wisconsin-Green Bay's Heather Golden (24) controls a loose ball under the basket in the second half of a game at the Kress Events Center in Green Bay, Wis., Monday evening, Dec. 28, 2009.

University of Wisconsin-Green Bay's Celeste Hoewisch (4) gets fouled under the basket in the first half.

Hoewisch (4) doesn't get fouled under the basket in the second half.

Stuffed Hash Browns

Not a great picture here. Not a newsworthy story. Just thought I'd let you know that I've found heaven on a plate and it's in Green Bay.

Clockwise from left, Chili Cheese Stuffed Hash Browns, Mexican Style Stuffed Hash Browns, and Benedict Stuffed Hash Browns at The Pancake Place in Green Bay, Wis., photographed Monday, Dec. 21, 2009.

Backseat baby

Alyzabeth Sue Malinski, less than one day old, is held by her mother Samantha Malinski of Oconto, at Bellin Hospital in Green Bay, Wis., Thursday, Dec. 17, 2009. Malinski gave birth to the baby girl in the backseat of a Chevy Impala early Thursday morning near U.S. 41 and Lakeview Drive in Howard. Crowding around is Malinski's other daughter Hailee, 3, right, and Kyli Carter, also 3, the daughter of Alyzabeth's father, Wes Carter of Little Suamico.

Prison expansion

Alyssa Nass, 15, pulls her brother Sam, 6, right, and neighborhood friend Sasha Waller, 5, on a sled in their Allouez, Wis., backyard, Wednesday afternoon, Dec. 16, 2009. The Coolidge Street residence of Tim and Kelly Nass, Alyssa and Sam's parents, is adjacent to Green Bay Correctional Institution and one of its guard-towers. Consultants are recommending renovations to the prison to accommodate as many as 700 more inmates.

Keeping Perspective

My good friend Kevin Martin down in Baton Rouge started "The Visual Student" blog a few months ago and it's really taken off. It's a great resource for students, young professionals, and aged pros, to boot.

Since the launch, I've basically helped out when I can by playing the role of "HTML paramedic" when Kevin's posts didn't look right. He kept asking me to write something, or contribute something and I just didn't feel like I had anything worthwhile to say. That all changed after the Atlanta Photojournalism Conference when Dave LaBelle's words really resonated with me.

So, last week I wrote a column for "The Visual Student." You can read it here.

Speed skating championships

Got my safe shots and then played with some slow-shutter during time trials. Came out with one frame that I was somewhat happy with. Gotta love red...

Morgan Izykowski (23) of the Bay County (Mich.) Speedskating team turns a corner during time trials Friday, Dec. 11, 2009, at Cornerstone Community Ice Center which hosts the U.S. Junior Short Track Championships in Ashwaubenon, Wis., this weekend.

Visiting principal

Wang Li, an elementary school principal from Harbin, China, sits down next to kindergarten student Lauren Diemel, 6, while spending time at Hillcrest Elementary School in Hobart, Wis., Monday morning, Dec. 7, 2009.

Blizzard

More than a foot of snow was dumped on northeast Wisconsin overnight Tuesday into Wednesday, easily the biggest storm we've had since I moved here.

The one thing I love about snow is the sound of silence... the blanket that the snow creates over the earth and the deadness in sound that results. It's an awesome sensation that gives me shivers. Here's a photo I took as I walked out the door of my apartment building to start my day. Snow up to my knees...

Traffic proceeds slowly on U.S. 41 near Wrightstown after an intense winter storm dumped more than a foot of snow on Northeast Wisconsin and the Green Bay area early Wednesday morning, Dec. 9, 2009.

Brandon Quinn runs his snowblower outside of his home on Lost Dauphin Road in De Pere, Wis., after an intense winter storm dumped more than a foot of snow on Northeast Wisconsin and the Green Bay area on Wednesday, Dec. 9, 2009.

A street clock in De Pere.

Our A1 the next morning.

Snow weighs down tree branches on Lost Dauphin Road in De Pere, Wis., after an intense winter storm dumped more than a foot of snow on Northeast Wisconsin and the Green Bay area on Wednesday, Dec. 9, 2009.

Colleague Corey Wilson tends to me and my car while stuck in a ditch on Reforestation Road in Suamico. My car was pulled out by a wrecker about 8 hours later.

I just wanted this photo:
Evergreen trees near Suamico, Wis., were weighed down by heavy snow after an intense winter storm.

Yeah. Not worth it.

Plows drive southbound on U.S. 41 near Howard.

Dan Shadian with Shadian Landscaping runs a snowblower between rows of Christmas Trees in a tree lot next to the I-57 Service Center on University Avenue in Green Bay, Wis., Thursday, Dec. 10, 2009.

"I don't know what I'm going to do with all of this snow," said Luke Drummond of Racine, a freshman at the University of Wisconsin-Green Bay as he dug out his vehicle in a campus parking lot in Green Bay, Wis., Thursday, Dec. 10, 2009.

Snow crusts the entrance to an apartment on West Shawano Avenue in Green Bay, Wis., Thursday morning, Dec. 10, 2009.

A.J. Hawk visits an elementary school

As a guy who's lived his entire life cheering for the Buckeyes and watching Ohio State games, it was pretty cool to document Green Bay Packers linebacker A.J. Hawk visiting a local elementary school. He seems like one really good human.

Students wait with signs in hand for the arrival of Green Bay Packers A.J. Hawk at Valley View Elementary School in Ashwaubenon, Wis., as part of the NFL's PLAY 60 campaign, Tuesday morning, Dec. 8, 2009.

Valley View Elementary School fifth grade student Mya Whiters reacts to the scene in front of the school while arriving with Hawk in a limousine.

Hawk entered the gymnasium to roaring cheers.

Hawk gets ready to jump rope with Whiters and her classmates. The rope was a tad small for him.

Stretching after exercise turned into an information question and answer session.

ESPN's 'Chalk Talk' in Green Bay

Pretty cool assignment to photograph ESPN Monday Night Football's Chalk Talk at Lambeau Field. It's a special thing with a bit of history. From the ESPN press release: "The MNF Chalk Talk Series renews a tradition that originally began in the 1970s with local luncheon events in the early years of sports television’s signature series. On-air personalities in town to cover the game shared their insider perspectives with invited guests from the local community."

Today's dignitaries? Steve Young, Suzy Kolber, Ron Jaworski, and former Packers players Antonio Freeman, William Howard and Desmond Howard. Even for a "transplant" to Packerland like me, it was cool experience. I even rode the elevator down with Steve Young after the event.

Monday Night Football reporter Suzy Kolber takes questions from the media before ESPN's Monday Night Football Chalk Talk held at the Lambeau Field Atrium in Green Bay, Wis., Monday, Dec. 7, 2009.

ESPN analyst Steve Young, right, and Kolber, talk with former Green Bay Packers Players, from left, William Henderson, Desmond Howard, and Antonio Freeman during the program.

Steve Young, left, Ron Jaworski, and Suzy Kolber.

Former Green Bay Packers players William Henderson, Desmond Howard, and Antonio Freeman share a laugh while telling stories during the program.

ESPN analyst Steve Young talks with fans, including Ryan Knorr of Appleton, background, after Monday Night Football Chalk Talk held at the Lambeau Field Atrium in Green Bay, Wis., Monday, Dec. 7, 2009.

UWGB Phoenix beat No. 21 DePaul

Fun game to shoot at the Kress Events Center as the UWGB Phoenix solidly beat DePaul, 79-68. Here are a few of my favorites...

University of Wisconsin-Green Bay's Celeste Hoewisch (4) and DePaul's Maureen Mulchrone (33) scrap for a loose ball in the first half of a game at the Kress Events Center in Green Bay, Wis., Wednesday evening, Dec. 2, 2009.

University of Wisconsin-Green Bay's Hannah Quilling (10) and DePaul's Sam Quigley (22) converge on a loose ball in the second half.

University of Wisconsin-Green Bay's Julie Wojta (32) goes to the hoop against DePaul defenders Felicia Chester (41), left, and Katherine Harry (51) in the first half. Wojta had a game-high 25 points on the night.

University of Wisconsin-Green Bay's Hannah Quilling (10) gets hit in the face by DePaul's Sam Quigley (22) as they race to a tipped ball in the backcourt during the second half. No foul was called.