Friday Night Football

Before the Game

The Harding Academy football team in Memphis, Tennessee, runs through the Lion and the “spirit tunnel” of cheerleaders and fans before a Friday night football game.

I don’t usually go down on the field before the football games, but I was already out there for this game. And I already had my camera with me. So I figured I might as well stay around and get a few photos.

If you are looking for Jaylin, he is the slightly blurry number 7, the third player from the left. I wasn’t actually sure where he was when I took the photo. And I actually took several quick shots together, so I was happy to find him in one of them.

Earlier in the night, the inflatable Lion was actually turned upside down by a large gust of wind. Fortunately, it wasn’t damaged and they got it set back right. It was Lower School Night, and all of the elementary kids would have been disappointed if they hadn’t gotten to run through the Lion as promised!

Here we are before the game, and before most of the people were on the field. Just in case you forgot what we look like. Laura took a photo of us of her own, so I figured I might as well take one, too.

We also talked to the Jamersons for a bit just before the team ran out. We are all football parents, and Laura and Maggie are co-teachers. Plus, you might remember them from our 2017 Disney Cruise. It is always nice when we have a few moments to talk to them.

After the Game

Unfortunately, the game did not go so well for our team, as they did not come out on top. But at least this game was not a shutout. It reminds me of the days when Laura and I were students there and the football games ended up pretty much the same way. But those of us in the marching band still had a good time. And these days we still have a good time with the parents that we sit with, too.

It is always nice when friends come to the game, such as Baylee and Jacob here with Jaylin. Even better when they agree to have their photo taken after the game. We always appreciate it when people come, and I know Jaylin does, too.

Bible Verse

Do you not know that in a race all the runners run, but only one receives the prize? So run that you may obtain it. Every athlete exercises self-control in all things. They do it to receive a perishable wreath, but we an imperishable. - 1 Corinthians 9:24-25

About the Photos

The photo of Laura and me was taken with my phone instead of with my camera. And it is presented here straight out of the phone with no processing, unlike the camera photos.

For the first photo of the team running out, I had the camera set to burst mode so that it would keep rapidly taking photos while I had the shutter button pushed. I figured that I would get at least one or two good ones that way, and I did. The only problem with that mode is that when the camera is trying to save both JPG and Raw files, it slows down, mainly because of the large size of the Raw files. Once the camera’s memory buffer is full, it will not take any more photos until the buffer is cleared out. So I didn’t hold down the shutter for too long.

And if you follow me on social media, you may have seen a similar photo of Baylee, Jaylin, and Jacob. The social media version was taken with my phone. The one here was taken with my camera and is much better quality. Although those scrolling through on Facebook or Instagram probably did not think anything about it.

Photo: A single Raw exposure, processed in Luminar. Read more about photography tips, photo software, camera gear, and more at Steve’s Photography Tips.
Camera: Sony Alpha A7 II
Lens: Sony FE 28-70mm f/3.5-5.6 OSS Lens
Date: September 27, 2019
Location: Harding Academy, Memphis, Tennessee