inspiration: catching it...

oh, i would like this job.

chasing the shot, catching the moment, the way corey simpkin does here.

all photos by corey simpkin via the ny daily news.

originally published october 5, 2011, on nydailynews.com

see the fun, full gallery by the ny daily news staff...

us open 2011: ladies' game (the glam, doubled)

gisela dulko and flavia pennetta

photographed on sept 5, 2011

© anita aguilar

us open 2011: ladies' game (shotmaking, etc)

the ferocity, the vulnerability, the delight--all doubled.
love it.

flavia pennetta

roberta vinci

sara errani

gisela dulko

all photos taken sept 5, 2011

© anita aguilar

us open 2011: the ladies' game

It is beauty itself

that lives

day by day in them

idly—

This is

the power of their faces

It is summer, it is the solstice

the crowd is

cheering, the crowd is laughing...

---william carlos williams, via the poetry foundation

roberta vinci (ita)

flavia pennetta (ita)

sara errani (ita)

gisela dulko (arg)

***

all photos from sept 5, 2011

© anita aguilar

us open 2011: from the pit

well not really, the "pit" because on court 17 there is no photographer's pit. just media seating in the first row.

i'd been snuggled into a seat in row 2 and loved it when, toward the end of the first set of dolgo/dr. ivo, the pros showed up with the big guns.

there is one photographer who i see every year, and i couldn't resist asking his name.
meet "arata" (in photographer in the middle).

i think i threw him off a little when i introduced myself--he seemed a little embarrassed.

but then he was back to covering the scene:

us open 2011: statue-esque

i caught dr. ivo, practicing before noon on saturday, the day he was set to play alexandr dolgopolov. i was amazed at how slow and easy his entire service motion was. i wondered, is he posing just for me?

his arm position, even his hands, reminded me of a greek statue.

but then i caught him during the match and everything was exactly the same. his motion wasn't any faster, his form was rarely imperfect. that's just how he does it.

he was easy to photograph, but after a time i yearned for something different.

***

i do love how he barely grips the racquet here...

***

and well, for something different, one can rely on karlovic's oppenent that day.

the crowd tittered a bit when the players first marched on court--hard not to be shocked to see the two of them (and not assume one of these guys is going to get crushed).

but the "little guy" prevailed...

tale of the tape:

alexandr dolgopolov 5' 11", 157 lbs

ivo karlovic: 6'10", 230 lbs

dolgopolov def karlovic: (6-7(4), 6-2, 6-4, 6-4).

us open 2011: magic man 3

alexandr dolgopolov

court 17

sept 4, 2011

© anita aguilar

us open 2011: magic man

in one afternoon at the open, i took roughly 750 shots. that's me "holding back."

for the first two hundred or so, i was fiddling with different settings -- trying to find the right shutter speed and ISO combination that would stop action, and give a more crisp line. i figured it out, generally, though there's a lot more practice required. i want to have a better understanding of what to do when the light and conditions change, and learn how to make images with more impact.

but there are certain players who give you chance after chance after chance to get something good. it always feels like "magic hour" with them-- you just make sure your battery's charged and you've got plenty of room on the card.

an editor will spot easily the best of the bunch that i took of alexandr dolgopolov. but i pretty much love them all, for the amazing torque, height and lift he gets. and i'll remember the excitement of sitting second row, in the new court 17.

i'll start with these... from his victory over ivo karlovic (6-7,6-2,6-4,6-4)

alexandr dolgopolov on court 17

sept 3, 2011

all photos © anita aguilar