I am a soccer mom! I am also a football mom, a snowboarding mom, basketball mom, golf mom, tennis mom, baseball mom, t-ball mom among other mom things. I even drive a min-van. I have 5 kids, the oldest is 22 and I have been attending sporting events for 18 years. My oldest started t-ball when he was 4. Now I am going to brag on him a little. He went on to play college football for 3 seasons. He was the starting quarterback in his freshman year at Mendocino College where he went on to rank 4th in the state and 7th in the nation in his division. He also went on to a nice scholorship to be quarterback at IOWA Weslayan.

The Boys at HBO sports say, the hardest job for anyone in a football game is the mother of the Quarterback. It’s true. Shooting his games helped alleviate my fear and stress because it changed my focus from “Oh my god my baby!!” To “Oh my God!! Did you see that play? I got it!!” I learned to concentrate my timing, which created skill for me as a photographer, shooting on film cameras. Film is expensive and I felt like Annie Oakley. I had one shot, I better get it! Many times I did.

I am a soccer mom because that's what my kids chose for themselves. I was a city kid. My sport, public transportation, dodging weirdoes. I got good at it. Good enough to live and travel in New York, Paris and Rome on my own, at 18. Because I learned to navigate mass transit in San Francisco at 9, I was able to do the same in Manhattan, Paris and Rome at 18. Necessity IS the mother of invention.

I wasn't brought up on sports so I was determined to give my children more choices in that area. I have always let them choose there sport. No matter how good or bad they are/were at it. But once they chose, no quitting. Follow through unless injured. A natural consequences of choices. Learning to live with them.

I chose photography. Getting the shot is my sport and it is an endurance sport, shooting a football game, soccer game, rodeo or especially a wedding. Take any NFL photographer and put them on a wedding shoot and they’ll agree. It’s real tough work!

I prepare for a wedding like I would a marathon. I nutrify....I hydrate 3 days before, vitamins, sleep. and the day of, a calculated breakfast and lunch, with water being cut off (just sipping) at 11 am for a wedding starting at 2pm. God forbid I have to go to the bathroom in the middle of something important. I carry Luna bars, a handful of nuts , a small apple and water. I don't usually eat at weddings, I don't want to miss anything. I'll have a piece of cake later if conditions provide. There are many other things I do to prepare as well, to make sure I can run a 9 hour endurance course carrying a 12 lb camera and 25lb waste pack. The adrenaline helps very much. I can go 6 hours and not feel it. But, I know that is because of the way I prepare.

Shooting sporting events, especially football games, provided the timing I needed as a wedding photojournalist to get the shot.

If I haven't shot a wedding in month or so I am going to get my warm up at a sporting event. I’ll choose this before a celebration. Weddings are under pressure adrenaline rushes just like ball games, except A LOT prettier.

The ultimate rush is Rodeos. If someones not flying through the air then boots, belts, sun weathered faces, clowns, costumes there is always something to shoot at a rodeo.

If none of those are available to me.I go out onto the meadow and try to shooting hummingbirds or dragonflys or any fast moving living thing. That's real skill building stuff!!!

Scroll down to September and check out the shots in the B and B gallery show. You'll see what I am talking about.