Before Thanksgiving I shot the UIL volleyball state championship tournament for 1st Photo Texas and UIL.
Prior to this competition, I had shot about 2 volleyball games ever. I figured, what better way to get practice than signing up to shoot three days straight of volleyball? The tournament was held at Strahan Coliseum on the Texas State University campus, and I’m very familiar with that facility.
1st Photo Texas has shot all of the UIL state championship sports for almost 10 years now. I was on their staff during the tournament. I did have to take team photos, but for all of you photographers out there who groan at the thought of team photos, it was only about 10% of what I shot. The majority was spent shooting action and reaction.
Also, these weren’t your typical high school volleyball games. These were young athletes who represented the best Texas has to offer.
A perk to working for a place like 1st Photo Texas and UIL is that word gets around to places like ESPN. ESPNHS requested photos for their web site, so we were happy to oblige. One of my photos showed up here (click to view) … and one showed up here (click this one too).
Anyway, you’re probably ready to see the photos. First I’ll show you the action…
And now for the shots I enjoyed even more than the action – the celebration. At state championship tournaments, emotions are extremely high. A championship could mean college scholarships, funding for their high schools and, most of all, a really big trophy. I can see how they’d be excited.
I learned a lot about the game of volleyball and how to shoot it. Thanks 1st Photo Texas, and I’ll see you in a few weeks for state football!