Eric Rueb took thousands of photos this spring. These are the five he liked the most.
You may see me on the field looking like a professional photographer, but that’s only because I wear the disguise well.
This isn’t a modest plea begging for compliments. I’m comfortable in my own skin. Over a decade ago I was forced into learning how to shoot and it became a side quest for my journalistic journey. Now, here at The Journal, I’m an average talent blessed with exceptional equipment.
I'm in it for selfish reasons. I'm supposed to be documenting games, but the reality is I'm trying to chase good shots to prove I’m worthy of having my photo credit in the pages of The Journal. Compliments from parents, coaches and athletes helps fuel my fire, but when Kris Craig or David Delpoio shoot me a text to tell me they like a shot, that’s the high I’m after.
This spring I shot 74 games — not including my daughter’s youth lacrosse and soccer on the weekends — and that’s a lot of frames. While the bad shots were never published (thank you digital cameras), there were still some good, a bounty of average shots and a handful of good ones that I really enjoyed.
Narrowing down my favorites didn’t take long, but finding the five I enjoyed most was a little more challenging. These photos are my winners from the spring season and while they may seem ordinary to an accomplished photog, they were shots I was proud of for a variety of reasons.
"The Slide"
Angles are everything and with Prout’s fences running past the bases on the first- and third-base sides, I knew the angles I wanted were going to be limited unless I shot through a fence.
What I wasn’t prepared for was the freedom behind home plate. Spectators were all on the third-base side or in the outfield, so it allowed me to roam to try some different things.
Early in the game I knew what shot I wanted to try for — a low-to-high angle of a play at the plate. It couldn’t be right down the line because the catcher or umpire — officials are the enemy of photographers everywhere — could ruin the shot. When it looked like either team was going to score, I got in position, got down on my stomach and aimed my 70-200-mm lens through the fence as I waited for the moment to happen.
More: Siena Nardelli knows her strengths - and Wednesday she used them to help Cranston West win.
Problem is Cranston West pitcher Mia Crudale and Prout pitcher Lucy Kaiser didn’t let it. Through nine innings, the game was tied at 1.
In the 10th, softball uses the International Tiebreaker, with each team starting its half inning with a runner on second base. Cranston West was up first and had All-Stater Siena Nardelli on second. I knew she was a single away from scoring.
She advanced to third on a wild pitch and, after an out, came home on another. Nardelli paused for a moment before taking off and I started firing.
The second she slid I felt good about the shot I had. The screen on the back of the Canon I use is broken (an accident from the fall season) so I didn’t know what I had until after Cranston West’s 4-1 win.
When I saw it, I was thrilled. It’s not often the biggest play of the game also becomes the best shot, but with Nardelli’s face, the slide, the dirt kicking up and the visually pleasing backdrop, I knew I had a winner.
And all it cost me was a couple of grass stains on my shorts that came out in the wash.
"East"
Shooting tennis is equal parts easy and hard. A halfway decent camera and lens allows you to stop action and make a shot look good, but the challenge — for me at least — is not taking the same shot over and over and over again.
When I arrived at the Park View Middle School tennis courts for the match between then undefeateds North Smithfield and Cranston East, it didn’t take long to figure out the shot I wanted.
There isn’t a ton of dramatic scenery at Park View, but the massive green windscreen with “EAST” in white lettering was something I wanted to incorporate into a photo.
Eri Ogunde took care of the rest.
Ogunde is a sophomore for Cranston East with unlimited potential. His groundstrokes are hardly textbook and with his lanky arms and legs flying everywhere, looked strikingly similar to French pro Gael Monfils.
When I shoot tennis, my goal is to get one publishable shot of every player so I don’t spend a ton of time on any one court. Getting this photo didn’t take long. I framed the “East” and just fired whenever Ogunde came into frame to hit a shot. Took photos for three or four points, knew I had at least one, then moved on.
After the match, the hard part was picking which shot to use. I chose two — one cropped a little tighter, and the above one, which I prefer. The ball is there, "East" is prominently featured and Ogunde’s follow-through on the forehand, limbs going in four different directions, made this my favorite tennis shot of the spring.
"The Goalie"
Getting goalie shots is the bane of my existence and my galleries are filled with goalkeeper photos that are there simply because I want the kids to have something to show for the work they do.
When Barrington took on Moses Brown earlier this spring, I was just trying to shake the rust off after the winter season. The Quakers were on the attack often, so I figured I would try my best to get a goalie shot.
My stock goalie photo features their face and players in the foreground. It’s a cheap layering trick, but it gets me what I want.
This picture of Barrington goalie Grant Isdale was luck. The action in the foreground crossed in front of the shot and the camera didn’t have time to change focus. The end result was this: Isdale, perfectly framed by a Moses Brown player with the ball and his teammate trying to defend, prepared and ready to make a play.
My favorite part of this photo happened the next day. We were in Barrington for my daughter’s youth lacrosse game when a woman came up to me and asked about the pic. It was Isdale’s mother, who was at the field because our kids happened to be playing against one another.
"More to this Story"
My plan of attack on golf is simple — find an aesthetic or unusual backdrop. Wait for golfer to show up. Take photo.
I was standing behind the 14th green at Cranston Country Club during the second round of the RIIL Golf State Championship Tournament when La Salle freshman Drew MacLeod went long right, his ball trickling toward the woods. It allowed me to get in position to frame his escape.
He did more than that. Battling Prout’s Rocco Capalbo for the lead, MacLeod hit an unbelievable punch shot that came out clean, hit the upslope, landed on the green and rolled maybe four feet to the hole.
More: What happened at the RIIL Golf Championships? Just one of the most dramatic finishes ever
MacLeod, filled with adrenaline after the shot, looked over at me and said something to the effect of “I saw you with the camera on me so I HAD to hit a good one.” MacLeod drained the birdie and while he didn’t catch Capalbo, he left little doubt about his impressive talent level.
What makes the photo fun is showing it to someone who’s played Cranston. Speaking with colleague Bill Koch, he asked about the photo and said he knew exactly where it was the second he saw it. When I told him what happened, he was even more impressed with MacLeod than I was witnessing a shot I was lucky enough to capture.
"#GirlDad"
When I started my journalism career, I didn’t have time for sentimentality. Since having kids, I’ve noticed a trend of myself crying along with athletes who’ve just lost a big game. I’m soft and very much aware of it.
The first time I saw Dave Silva he was standing behind the fence behind home plate at La Salle Academy and I instantly assumed A, he was going to be the loudmouth dad; and B, telling him that would end poorly.
This is why you can’t judge a book by its cover. When Phoenyx Silva — then a freshman — hit the field, it wasn’t difficult to discern who her father was because of their like physical traits. That was it, because for all seven innings I don’t think he said five words loud enough to be heard by anyone more than three feet away.
When he joined La Salle’s staff as an assistant last year, it was more of the same. He remained a quiet presence in the dugout, there for support as he watched his daughter become the best player in the state without saying anything to anyone about how good she is.
After the Rams beat Cranston West in the state title game, my goal as a photog is to record as much emotion as I can. I’m looking for hugging, high fives and happy or sad faces as I'm doing a lot of shooting and praying.
More: La Salle's plan comes to fruition so how it won the softball state title wasn't a surprise
I didn’t know what I had until after the game but when I saw the photo, it made me choke up a little bit.
Here’s one of the toughest-looking humans around, with his tattoos and Popeye-sized forearms, giving his hug to his little girl who’s not so little anymore, and as most fathers can tell you by looking at his face, he's lost in a moment he wants to last forever.
I’m glad it can.
BONUS PHOTO
"The Tools of Ignorance"
Much like goalies, I try to get images of catchers whenever possible. It’s nice to have them on file, but it’s also a tip of the cap to athletes who play a position that can sometimes be miserable.
I don’t know why I like this photo of West Warwick’s Madison Walsh, who was behind home plate for the Wizards’ playoff win against Johnston at Wood Lake Park. The sun was setting on this game — which started at 6 p.m. — and I think I was just messing around taking photos with little idea to what I actually had.
There’s so much about the picture I enjoy. Walsh’s face is so serious, as she looks back to get signals from the dugout. The colors of her uniform stand out and her blue eyes pop from the golden-hour sun. The shot is made more fun when you notice her wearing the "tools of ignorance" with freshly manicured nails, painted yellow to undoubtedly match her prom or graduation attire.
Someone much smarter than me can probably explain why this photo is or isn't good, which goes back to my point of maybe not being the greatest photog The Journal’s ever had.
But with a shot like this, I know sometimes I’m at least worthy of the byline.
This article originally appeared on The Providence Journal: Providence Journal reporter Eric Rueb breaks down his five favorite photos
