Featured Archives

When I think of the perfect spring day, I think of the day I covered the Missouri Whitewater Championships back when I was a staff photojournalist with the St. Louis Globe-Democrat in the 1970‘s and 80‘s. That particular race day was a glorious, warm t-shirt kind of a day with all the trappings of spring in abundance.

This past weekend, I revisited the races, held on the St. Francis River near Fredericktown Missouri in the Missouri Department of Conservation’s Millstream Gardens Conservation Area. While the weather didn’t top my previous trip, the scenery was just as beautiful, and the race action intense.

Part of what makes the area so beautiful are the “shut-ins” on the river — ancient exposed Precambrian granite over 600 million years old that is worn down by the river. It is this granite that gives this part of the state its unique geological character and why many people, including myself, consider the area one of the most beautiful parts of Missouri.

The three-quarter mile Tiemann Shut-In section of the St. Francis River is Missouri’s premier whitewater location and offers up the most challenging whitewater in Missouri, if not the Midwest. It is understandable then why the Missouri Whitewater Association have held the Missouri Whitewater Championships here since 1967. The slalom race held for 42 years is the oldest regional slalom race in the US, several times being an Olympic Festival event, and often included in the Buttercup series of slalom.

LIKE MUCH OF MY SPORTS PHOTOGRAPHY, I like to shoot paddling sports like kayaking with an in-your-face attitude. While sense of place is important, and needed, what I look for are images that put the viewer in the kayak and convey the emotion and thrill that whitewater kayaking is all about. In this case, that meant having to pack my 600mm lens and tripod to the river using my Kinesis large lens pack and pack frame. The one-mile hike to the river is easy. The Missouri of Department of Conservation has developed the Tiemann Shut-ins Trail (asphalt paved, disabled-accessible) that leisurely meanders through the forest. The main asphalt trail ends at the viewing platform overlooking the “Cat’s Paw” rapids on the river.

The one bad thing about shooting with the 600mm lens mounted on the tripod is that you tend to stay put, instead of moving about. In this particular case, that’s due to the large crowd of people around you. You need the lens and tripod to stake your shooting position. It is also due to the fact that unnecessary scampering about on the slippery granite can be dangerous for the lens. It is for these reasons I like to scope out the situation a day or so ahead of time so I can thoroughly evaluate potential shooting locations and angles. Photography is often about luck. I haven’t won the lottery yet, so I don’t like to leaving it to luck. I’m a believer of making your own luck and scoping things out in advance does just that. For this weekend of shooting, a little advance work had a big payoff.

The competition is normally held on the third weekend of March. Check with the Missouri Whitewater website before heading to the river as low water could postpone the race. Dress appropriately, and make sure you have what you need for the afternoon as it is a long way back to your car. Overnight camping is available at the U.S. Forest Service Silver Mines Recreation Area campground. Be prepared for a party atmosphere if you camp here race weekend as most of the paddlers stay here.

ABOVE: Michael Dee of St. Louis, Missouri races in the K1 men’s expert class during the slalom course. Dee placed placed eighth place in the class. Photographed using a Nikon D3, 600mm f4 VR lens, on a Gitzo GT5541LS carbon fiber tripod with a Wimberley WH200 head. Image capture: 1/1250 at f4.5, ISO 800

To license image, click image. To see our collection of fine art prints, click here.

Today was my last day at the Springfield News-Leader. Like many in the newspaper industry, I decided to take the opportunity of a voluntary “buyout” to start a new career. Major cuts to staff were being called for and I figured it was a good opportunity to move on. After 13 years as a staff photographer at the St. Louis Globe-Democrat, and 21 years at the News-Leader as a graphics editor, design editor, and magazine art director I will start a new life adventure. The focus of my new adventure will be devoting myself full-time to marry my passion for photography with the outdoors.

I’ve had a great time at the News-Leader getting to work with some real pros. I’ve always been amazed that I was responsible for leading a team of artists when I couldn’t even come in last place in a stick-figure drawing competition. I guess it is testament to my belief that visuals, no matter what the medium, can be used to tell a story, whether it is an infographic, illustration, or a photo story. The same principles for good story telling hold true for all these mediums and that was my test in what we accomplished — tell a story and make me smarter.

John’s Rules:

Let the people doing the actual creating of the work be involved in the idea process
Outline a box and stand back and be amazed what others will build in the box
You’re a journalist first, artist second, report what you need yourself
Reward good work with the right tools for the job
Read the manual!
A wack from a bowling pin is a good motivator (inside joke)
It’s all about your staff, not you
Treat people with the same respect you would want from others
Never settle for “good enough”

I never would have been able to accomplish what I did without the help of my colleagues who at some point in their careers made their home in the graphics playpen AKA “the cave.” To them I owe a big thanks, no make that a gigantic thanks!

Finally, to the countless newsroom staff whom I said “Oh my god!” (as if it was something incredibly bad, when in reality was just the opposite). I’m not really sorry. It was too much fun to pull.

ABOVE: The St. Louis Globe-Democrat city room in 1938 — no, I’m not that old! But I did work with quite a few of the folks pictured. The man to the right of the door in the background is Howard Vogt. Howard was the manager for the photo department for many of the years I worked at the Globe. The chief photographer at that time is Pete Hangge (man with hat in the center of the photo). The man in the hat to the left of the calendar is rumored (but not confirmed) to be George A. Killenberg. George was managing editor of the paper when I worked at the Globe and was the person who took a chance on hiring me when I was only 19 years old.

This photo comes by way of former Globe-Democrat reporter Margaret Sheppard who passed the image on to other Globe staffers via her email list. Former Globe-Democrat feature writer Susan Fadem obtained the actual photo from Herb Waeckerle.

Missouri Whitewater Championships – 2009

My new life adventure

Contact

Copyright Information

Newsletter signup