It's been a while since I posted anything. Started a new job, moved, dealt with life in general. New job - awesome. New apartment - awesome. Life In General = Life in general. 

One of the really cool things I've been doing is getting to use amazing gear such as the Nikon D4 and 200-400 f 4 as well as just about all the cool Nikon gear that I would want to. For those that know me the transition has been seemless and the gear has exceeded my expectations at every turn. 

One of my first major events for the new job (working as a Professional Markets Tech Representative for Nikon Inc) was to support the professional photographers at the 95th PGA Golf Tournament that was being held in Rochester NY. As a photographer Rochester holds a special place in history. This was only second time I'd ever visited the city and the first time I was really able to explore at all. More on that in a later post. 

The layout of the course has the 10th hole literally steps away from the media tent where we were holed up for the duration of the tournament. This was convenient since during the first two days of a major involve having half the golfers start on 1 and half start on 10 to improve the flow and keep the timing right. This meant that Tiger Woods was starting on 10 which was right outside my door. 8:35 am. I took the quick walk and was anticipating some amazing shots of Tiger teeing off. Instead I was greeted by a mass of humanity gathered to watch Mr. Woods attempt to break out of his current majors slump. There was a palpable sense of anticipation as he was about to begin his quest. I had packed light for the morning taking the D4 with the 80-400 rather than the 200-400 f 4 that I would normally have reached for. For half a moment I had considered the 400 2.8 since I was hoping to really knock out a less than attractive background at the hole (i had taken a look at it the previous day preparing for this situation). Instead i grabbed the lightest of the glass available and the shot I took ended up being my favorite shot of the week. Rather than a simple shot of Tiger driving I was able to show the man being swallowed by his fans. The light cooperated as the tee box is surrounded on both sides by trees and crowds and the only light coming in unmolested was straight on Tigers face. 

1/2500th @ f5.6 ISO 800 Nikon D4 with Nikkor 80-400 Lens

As much as we all like to tell ourselves that we need the biggest, fastest, most glamorous piece of equipment sometimes that can keep you from recording the moment the way you see it. If I had the 200-400 I would not have been able to maneuver through the crowd. I would have missed this shot and while it was not the shot I was seeking it turned out far better than what I had been looking for.