March 2008 Archives

The Photo of the Day today comes from Sarah Reingewirtz at a Vietnam Veteran's Day ceremony in La Puente. The caption reads: Tom Garcia, 62, of La Puente, shows his 1938 Studebaker Sheriff Car during the Welcome Home Vietnam Veterans Day ceremony and car show at California High School's football field. Jose Ramos, who has long wanted a National Welcome Home Vietnam Veterans Day, headed a committee that decided to hold the local event.

Three staff photos are the Photo of the Day today.

The first photo is by Sarah Reingewertz from the San Dimas Parks and Rec's annual City Olympics, Caption: Boys compete in a 100 meter heat during San Dimas Parks and Recreation's annual City Olympics track and field meet at Bonita High School in La Verne.

The second photo is also from a track meet from the Pasadena Invitational. Sarah also shot this photo. Caption reads: Muir's Marcus Thompson competes in the 110 meter hurdles during the Pasadena Invitational at Pasadena City College.

The third Photo of the Day comes from Keith Birmingham from the Dodgers v. Red Sox game at the L.A. Coliseum. The caption reads: A beautiful night as Dodger's Esteban Loaiza, 21, pitches to Red Sox's Julio Lugo, 23, in the first inning as the Dodgers celebrate the 50th season in Los Angeles by playing an exhibition game in front of 115,300 people against the Boston Red Sox at the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum. The Los Angeles Dodgers first game at the Coliseum was April 18, 1958 and was there last on September 20, 1961. The Dodgers hosted an All-Star game and three World Series games in 1959 and the attendance of 92,706 for game five is a MLB record. In only their second year in Los Angeles, the Dodgers won the 1959 World Series.

Two very nice photos from the same baseball game, and a portrait honor our Photo of the Day today.

The first photo is by staff photographer Keith Birmingham at the Temple City v. Monrovia baseball game. The caption reads: Monrovia's shortstop Vince Vega, 24, makes a nice play, but Temple City's Ruben Jara, 22, beats out the throw in the third inning during a baseball game between Monrovia and Temple City at Temple City High School.

The second photo, also from the Temple City v. Monrovia baseball game, Birmingham gets another great one. Caption: Temple City shortstop Dusty Sanderson can't reach a base hit by Monrovia's Curtis Cowell in the first inning during a baseball game between Monrovia and Temple City at Temple City High School.

The third Photo of the Day is by staff photographer Sarah Reingewirtz of two water polo players in the pool for a portrait. The caption reads: La Canada's Goalie Kristine Cato and La Salle's Utility Kara-Leigh Huse, both 17, are both team captains on their water polo teams and are headed to USC next year. The two pose at La Canada High School.

Wildart is a necessity at newspapers when no other photo is available. Sometimes it is assigned as it was in this case. The only instruction is, "Need wildart. Only one. By 2:00 please." Some photographers cringe when they hear this. Others rise to the challenge as staff photographer Raul Roa did with this photo. The caption reads: Mt. SAC student Cyla Hopcus, 20, of Rowland Heights, runs some hills at Mt. San Antonio College in Walnut as she keeps in shape during the soccer off-season. Hopcus, a member of the Mt. SAC Women's soccer team, was running up and down the hill on off of Temple Ave. east of Grand Ave.

Comments are welcome.

Remember the day when you could sit on the ground and look a penguin in the eye. This photo by staff photographer Walt Mancini captures such a moment. The caption reads: Kobe Greiner, a 3rd grade student at Grace Sutherland Elementary School in Glendora, is looking at Magellanic Penguins from South America during a visit from Shamu's Worlds of Discovery Tour. The tour highlighted the park's education and conservation programs. Paricipants experienced an incredible array of wildlife and students learned lessons about the importance of wildlife conservation, animal care, education and research.

Feel free to comment, or send me an e-mail. We alway accept reader photos as Photo of the Day entries.

Veteran staff photographer Walt Mancini does an excellent job with portraits. It's quite possible he's shot most of the population of Pasadena over his years. This photo of a very young girl being recognized for saving her grandfather's life was another in a long line of excellent portraits shot by Walt. The caption reads: Sole' Witt, 4, with her grandfather William Atmore, 75, at their home in Pasadena. Sole' Witt, when she 3, found Atmore shaking on a couch and notified Atmore's wife who immediatley called 911. Atmore was rushed to the Huntington Hospital emergency with complications from diabetes. Fire paramedics said that the call probably saved his life.

Not intended to advertise Ford or anything, but this photo that David Pardo, one of our correspondent photographers, shot was pretty good. The caption reads: Tom Iannone, left, president of Ed Butts Ford along with his son Anthony, have tried to bid for the past five years to negotiate plans to expand the largest dealership in the city on a adjacent parcel of city owned land but environmental issues have stalled the process. Tuesday, The City Council is considering negotiating an agreement with another development company.

Comments are welcome.

I'm sure you've noticed the number of times staff photographer Keith Birmingham has had the Photo of the Day. Turns out he got a bit more recognition than what I can do with this blog. The Press Photographers Association for Greater Los Angeles, PPAGLA, annual photo contest's sports category was swept by Keith over the weekend. He placed 1st, 2nd and 3rd, and he won the Andy Castle Award for the best Dodgers photo, an honorable mention for a UCLA photo, and 2nd place for spot news which was something he shot at a basketball game.

First Place, Sports
Caption: Los Angeles Dodgers catcher Mike Lieberthal, 14, is run over at the plate as Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim's Nick Gorneault, 25, scores on a Juan Rivera double in the 8th inning at Dodger Stadium in Los Angeles.

Second Place, Sports
Caption: Sacred Heart beat Santa Barbara in three games including the final 25-11 to advance to the finals. Sacred Heart's Katie Condon, 10, celebrates with her teammates during a volleyball match against Santa Barbara in the semifinal CIF Division 1A volleyball match at Sacred Heart Academy in La Canada-Flintridge.

Third Place, Sports
Caption: Dodgers right fielder Matt Kemp, 27, leaps into the outfield padded wall off of Astros Carlos Lee, 45, double in the second inning.

Best Dodgers Photo
Caption: Dodgers Olmendo Saenz, 8, celebrates after a hitting a two run walk off home run off Blue Jay's Jermy Accardo, 49, as Tony Abreu, 6, scored in the 10th inning to beat the Blue Jays 4-3.

Honorable Mention, Best UCLA photo
Caption: UCLA's Matthew Slater ,18, is all smiles as UCLA beat Oregon 16-0.

Second Place, Spot News
Caption: Fans fight during a prep volleyball match at San Dimas High School as Bonita beat San Dimas 15-5 in the fifth and final set in San Dimas.

Feel free to congratulate Keith by sending him an e-mail.

This photo may appear a bit dark, but it is a beautiful photo shot by staff photographer Sarah Reingewirtz who was assigned to photograph a sunrise service on Easter. I'm sure the Nikon D3 or D300 would have performed a bit better, but she made due with the Canon's she's carrying. The caption reads: Candles line the way to Easter Sunrise Service at Rose Hills Memorial Park in Whittier.

It wasn't a strong day in the world of local photos, but this photo stood out, albeit a little bit. The group looks a bit like a heard as they are taken from house to house, repo shopping. Staff photographer Keith Birmingham took time away from his sports beat to shoot this. The caption reads: Perspective buyers tour a home on Montana Avenue in Pasadena during a repo home tour where people can tour homes that are 40-60 percent below market value in Pasadena.

Multiple winning entries today.

In the first photo, a desperate reach to first base in a pick-off attempt caught by multiple award winning photographer Keith Birmingham. The caption reads: Northview's Kevin Jones, 1, gets back to first base safely on a pick off play in the fourth inning during a baseball game between Northview and Covina at Covina High School.

Keith Birmingham also shot this photo at a boys volleyball game. The caption reads: Arcadia's James Alexander, 4, dives for a shot in the second game during a volleyball match between Claremont and Arcadia at Arcadia high School.

Fashion takes a break. Photographer Raul Roa spent time with art student models at Santa Fe High School as they put on a fashion show. The caption reads: Student models take a break and have some lunch between shows during the Santa Fe High School Couture, Kitch and Koi Fashion Show at the Santa Fe Springs school. The show was put on by the Commercial Art 1 and 2 classes and the Fashion Club.

A really sad day captured with this image by staff photographer Watchara Phomicinda. The caption reads: Los Angeles Sheriff's personals comfort a man, possible victim's family, at the 19700 block Cameron Avenue in West Covina where a woman was found dead after a possible home invasion burglary.

Correspondent Mike Mullen is on a roll producing really nice photos. He bought a new camera recently which has gotten members of the photo staff jealous. It's a Nikon D300, one of Nikons newest cameras and one that has proven to be worth the money. The caption reads: Temple City's CF, Alex Aguirre, slams into the center field wall while chasing after a fly ball that gave Temple City's Shelby Gogreve a stand-up double. This was during game action between South Pasadena and Temple City High at Temple City.

I used to own a VW Bug and seeing the carcasses of these as part of the hillside brought back many memories of the days when I was having to push mine to get it started on a hot day. Great days to remember, but at the time, this hillside would have been a good place to dump the vapor-locked beast. Staff photographer Raul Roa shot the photos. The caption reads: Haddick's Tow employee Jesse Placencia keeps an eye on old Volkswagen beetles being pulled out from a canyon in Turnbull Canyon Road in Whittier. About nine cars were found in this area after an August 2007 fire burned all the brush. It was estimated that the cars have been down there for some ten years.

Photo of the Day returns with two nice photos. Baseball is the rage these days and there will be no shortage of photos from the games. This photo from one of our correspondents Mike Mullen gets this outfielder during a play. The caption reads: South Pasadena's left fielder, Kelsey Hertel, rushes in to make the catch on a short fly ball by an El Segundo High batter during play at El Segundo's picturesque Girl's Softball Field.

Tis the season for Easter egg hunts. Framing this tot in the handle of the Easter basket, shot by staffer Sarah Reingewirtz, moved this photo ahead of the fray. The caption reads: Serena Castillo collects eggs and other treasures during the West Covina egg hunt at West Covina City Hall. The West Covina Community Services Department hosted the annual celebration.

Staff photographer Raul Roa happened across this family disturbance. Finding the family members out on the curb, Roa got this photo of the couple as they were being held. The caption reads: These two people were briefly detained after they were reportedly involved in a "family dispute" at Broadway & Canobie Aves. in Whittier. The two, occupants of a vehicle that was pulled over by police, were detained for a short time and then released.

A reader has yet to submit a photo for the Photo of the Day. I look at about 120 photos each day, and believe it or not, your photo(s) could be part of it too. Give it a shot by sending me a photo at tim.berger@sgvn.com. The only way to be the Photo of the Day is to send a photo in. Be creative and have fun.

Today the photos weren't the strongest, but this photo stood out from the crowd of the average. Walt Mancini, a veteran photographer who has shot thousands of assignments, always keeps his eye active and looks for moments of honest experience. The photo caption is: Erick Ortiz, 4 1/2, has his face painted to look like a butterfly during The Kidspace Caterillar Adoption program, where kids or parents could purchase caterpiller kits. The kids would care for and watch the caterpillar turn into butterflies. The Kidspace Children's Museum had special exhibits about butterflies Wednesday, March 12, 2008, for preview night for museum members and the exhibits open to the public on Thursday.

A new season is upon us with softball and baseball making a return. Staff photographer Keith Durflinger caught this moment as it seems the students, who were leaving school, need to adjust their route's home. This is the caption provided by the photographer: Santa Fe left fielder Alyssa Martinez (#14) has to run past students getting out of school walking in the outfield in the first game of a double header of their pre-season softball games at Santa Fe High School in Santa Fe Springs.

You don't see a lot of field hockey covered by our paper. A shame when you look at the photos. Leo Jarzomb shot this game and did an excellent job showing the speed, agility, and aggressiveness of the players. This photo of the goaltender was a standout. You can see the gallery here.

No entry today. This would have been the day for any reader to have gotten their photo to the top of the list. Send me your photos for consideration. E-mail them to me at tim.berger@sgvn.com.

A big game, hard fought by the girls at Muir High School, at the Southern California Championship. Staff photographer Keith Birmingham shot 50 photos from this game which can be found at this photo gallery or take a look at this slideshow. Muir lost the game 40-39. The caption reads: Muir's Eliza Pierre ,4, drives to the basket in the first half during a State basketball Southern California Championship basketball game between Magnolia and Muir March 8. 2008 at the Sports Arena in Los Angeles. Magnolia beat Muir 40-39.

Staff photographer Keith Durflinger caught this Montebello baseball player diving for the catch. The caption reads: Montebello right fielder Anthony Millan (#30) dives unsuccessfuly for a ball over his head in the Championship game against Santa Fe in the Montebello Tournament at East Los Angeles College in Monterey Park on Friday March 7, 2008. Santa Fe beat Montebello 13-0.

Feel free to post comments or send me photos. I'll have a way to rate photos when to see which photo will be the photo of the week soon. In the meantime, let me know if you like this feature. I haven't heard anything yet.

Leo Jarzomb was assigned to shoot this police sting operation in Whittier. The caption reads: Whittier police officer Rich Jensen tickets and impounds the vehicle of Maria Garcia Lopez of Bell near Whittier Superior Court as part of a sting operation after she appeared in court March 5, 2008. Garcia Lopez had her driver's license suspended after she was involved in an accident while driving under the influence of alcohol and without insurance last year.

C'mon readers. I know you're wanting to see your photo published as part of this feature. Send your photos to me. I'll look at them and give them a great amount of consideration. Send to tim.berger@sgvn.com.

Watchara Phomicinda was asked to shoot this game for us. Nice photo to boot. The caption reads: South El Monte's Reina Gaber, 44, pitches in the third inning during Charter Oak vs South El Monte softball at Charter Oak High School on Tuesday, March 4, 2008, in Covina.

Readers are encouraged to submit photos for the Photo of the Day. If you have a photo that you like or know of a photographer who shot a photo that you though was great, send it to me at tim.berger@sgvn.com to be entered into consideration for the SGVN Photo of the Day

2-29-08 Photo of the day
Staff photographer Sarah Reingewirtz saw families as the pressed as close to the yellow tape as they could to get information about their kids at Blair High School where a student was seen with a gun.

Parents and relatives of high school students at Blair IB Magnet are held back from the school as Pasadena Police search for a person with a gun at the Pasadena high school Friday, February 29, 2008.

3-1-08 Photo of the Day
Staff photographer Leo Jarzombs quick eye caught these cheerleaders in action.

Whittier Christian High cheerleaders during the CIF Girls Basketball Championship at the Walter Pyramid in Long Beach March 1, 2008.

3-2-08 Photo of the Day
Staff photographer Sarah Reingewirtz got out into the sun and on the trails to find this beautiful photo of hikers at Sterdevan Falls in the Angeles National Forest.

Matthew Penalora, 8, of Pasadena, leads children across a pool at Sturtevant Falls along the Gabrielino Trail in Angeles National Forest Sunday, March 2, 2008. The Gabrielino Trail begins north of Chantry Flat and can be taken to Mt. WIlson and the Arroyo Seco.

3-3-08
Staff photographer Walt Mancini was watching the game capturing the tension on the players faces.

Jessica Capra of Alverno High School covers her face while watching a close tense game in the early innings against Pasadena Poly High School Monday, March 3, 2008.

I haven't received any photos yet from any readers. This is a good chance for your work to be seen. If you have a fabulous photo that you would like to send to me as the Photo of the Day, send it to tim.berger@sgvn.com. Remember, photos from our coverage area and please send it to me only one time.