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|| SportsShooter.com: News Item: Posted 2004-02-02
The Crowning of Sir Brian
Brian Davies wins the coveted title of SportsShooter.com Photographer of the Year
By Chris Pietsch, The Register-Guard
Photo by Sol Neelman, The Oregonian
Brian Davies
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Gather around fellow SportsShooter.commoners, I have a story to tell.
You have seen the headlines! The lead has been written! His peers have spoken! A veritable butt spanking has been rendered. Not since Nixon defeated McGovern, not since the Yankees took the Padres in 4 games at the '98 World Series, has such a domination of the competition been tallied. I speak, of course my fellow lens-persons, of the crowning of none other than Sir Brian of Davies, formally of Fresno, as the first annual SportsShooter.com PHOTOGRAPHER OF THE YEAR 2003!
(Wild cheers)
I gather you here, however, not to state the obvious. History has been written. The Canon 1D is his. No my dear visual problem solvers, I risk revealing my own short comings as an orator and causing untold embarrassment to my friend and colleague Brian, to bring you the story BEHIND the headlines. I bring you this tale, because in my heart of hearts, I believe it holds a lesson for us ALL.
(Hushed and reverent silence)
This achievement is so grand in scope that one might be tempted to believe it touched by the "Hand of God." A body of work has been gathered in one gallery the envy of any snapper of moments. But please, please my light recording brothers and sisters, it would be folly to place the man on too high a pedestal. I know the man and he IS a MAN, like any other, possessed of faults and plagued by doubts as you or I.
A man thrust partly by choice and partly by fate into the role of staff photographer at a 75,000 circulation daily in a medium sized city in the middle of nowhere. A publication, better than some, but saddled with all the problems of the modern era. Limited resources, short staff, lack of planning and with untold holes to be filled to "break up the grey."
To be sure this reigning King of the SportsShooter.com world has his short comings. His skepticism of technology borders on phobia. A question about the merits of USB over Firewire has
Photo by Sol Neelman, The Oregonian
Brian Davies at University of Oregon football spring practice in April of 2003.
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been met by a blank stare as bereft of understanding as pure as that of a new born babe. While shooting with a company Nikon D1 at the height of celebration in the wake of an Oregon victory at the Holiday Bowl, our hero sought the council of his immediate superior declaring his camera dead. Upon further analysis, it was determined that the flash card had merely reached its capacity.
A shy and quiet man of simple tastes is he. A recluse by nature, he is an infrequent attendee of social occasions involving more than three guests. A notoriously poor traveling companion, who has been reported to spend hours on long car rides without uttering a single word to help pass the time. A person who prefers simple meat and potatoes fare, to the utter despair of his wife, legendary in her own right as a gourmet cook. A shunner of malt beverages, he will allow only an occasional hard lemonade or wine cooler to pass his lips. (The one fault that this humble admirer has been unable to forgive.)
Nor will insight be gleaned from an investigation of our idol's camera bag. A history of Nikon's successes and failures from bygone eras, there is not an auto focus lens to be found. On more than one occasion he has declared for all to hear that, "The Nikon F4 is the BEST camera ever made!"
No saga of megabit, gigahertz, servo, or workflow be this. No, no, no...
How then are we to make sense of this enigma my comrades in visual anthropology? It is only with a full understanding of the man and his circumstances that we can gain true understanding and complete our lesson for today. This all to typical member of the human race, mindful of his responsibilities to wife and son, steeped in the culture of his community, aware of the limitations of his medium, has chosen to press against the envelope in which he has found himself. To venture into an area tread only by poets, artists and those who have quit taking their medications. Time and time again, he has reached out into the ether of the visual world to put a frame around something as simple and profound as it is rare.
(Drum roll)
Photo by Sol Neelman, The Oregonian
Brian Davies
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An image that FORCES its busy, visually over stimulated, and distracted viewer to PAUSE!
(Murmurs of recognition)
An image that requires us to linger. To ponder its shades. To relish the relationship of its elements. And, after a moment of reflection and understanding, to appreciate AND be thankful for, its creation and its CREATOR.
Our champion did not embark on this journey in search of glory or reward. Though, be assured, he will accept both. No, indeed, he has put forth the effort, seekers of truth, for the sheer joy of the pursuit ITSELF!
This is no mean feat my friends. It is the supreme challenge that faces all who wish success in the visual arts. There are few road signs along this path that we all long to follow. Many will be lost. But our newly crowned Dot.com Monarch has shown a light for us. And behold the nugget of our lesson for today. THE PATH WAS ALWAYS THERE!
Go forth then fellow (insert cliché photographer synonym here) be inspired by the achievement of our newly crowned "SportsShooter.com Photographer of the Year 2003." Through his example may we each find renewed strength in our quest to document the drama and scope of human endeavor.
Special thanks to colleagues Thomas Boyd, Tanyia Johnson, Sol Neelman, Susan Palmer, Therese Brubaker and Kimber Williams for help in the chronicling of this tale.
Related Links:
See the winning images
Brian Davies' member gallery
Chris Pietsch's member gallery
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