ABVTphotography

Photo blog of my experience photographing sports and other things at Virginia Tech. www.abphotography.co

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End of July/Beginning of August

Y’all- I cannot believe it is already August! It’s always so bittersweet during this month. The plus side it’s my birthday month (8/12) but I know after my birthday ends, it’s time to start getting into the swing of things for school. While I DREADED this time during high school, I’m so excited to be back in Blacksburg for good. I’ve basically been up there every weekend moving my stuff into my new house and being with my friends. I’m seriously so in love with that place!

Another *great* thing that’s happened this month has been my loss of my trusty mac book pro. I was editing and knocked my glass of water all over the keys and basically fried it on the spot. THANKFULLY I had my dell still around that I used previously, but that thing cannot handle all the photos I go through and certainly not photoshop. Editing has been a slow and tedious process, but i made it work. But what I learned from that situation was always have a little rainy day money! Thankfully, a few years ago my parents demanded a sum of money each month that they saved for me so when something horrible like this happens, I have some money saved up to help! 

S/O to my parents thought you were crazy then but you’re actually pretty smart!

Anyways, here are some photos from the seniors I shot these past few weeks. Like always, they’re all so beautiful and sweet and I’ve been having a blast getting to hang out with them :) 

Senior Rep Alex Wolfe- James River High School 

Allison- Lord Botetourt High School

Brooke- Northside High School

Emily- Lord Botetourt High School

Emily- Lord Botetourt High School

Kiana- Lord Botetourt High School 

I also got to hold a goat so that’s cool. 

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July Catch-Up

WOAH has July been a whirlwind. This month I have finished my time as a photographer at Camp Highlander, began a summer math class, continued working at the pool, and most importantly- STARTED MY SENIOR PORTRAITS! Since I am not too familiar with the Class of 2016, I have been super blessed with awesome senior reps who have put my name out there to rising seniors and parents. This past week I've had so many awesome shoots and I am already in love with this class! We’ve gone everywhere from Virginia Western, Blacksburg, Hollins, Greenfield Park- you name it. It has been so fun getting to hear about these girls lives and be apart of a pretty big time in their high school careers. S/O to my new girls of 2016, thanks for setting the standard for the rest of the year :) 

Emily- Salem High School 

Carden Clark- Northside High School (one of my awesome senior reps!!!)

Courtney Altizer- Northside High School

Julia Carlton- Lord Botetourt High School

Mallory Wohlford- Lord Botetourt High School

Madi Simms- Lord Botetourt High School

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Smith to Aldy Part 3:  The Aldykiewicz Wedding

Finally, the last installment of the Aldykiewicz wedding! Following the ceremony and even more photos, I left Lauren with Mikey and Ari to get some couple portraits done and I went with the rest of the wedding party over to the reception at the Pete Dye River Course in Radford, VA. It was so beautiful over there! I could not believe the view, what a perfect location! 

All the decorations were so perfect and every detail was definitely paid attention to. They had an open beer and wine bar from Bull and Bones and the food was catered as well- a perfect BBQ and chicken palate with macaroni and cheese, coleslaw, salad and bread. Needless to say I was VERY happy the photographers got fed :) 

The dancing was incredible as well. During the first dance, mother/son, and father/daughter dance, there was not a dry eye in the room, even from me. It was so beautiful and obvious that the love these parents instilled in their children will certainly carry over in Mikey and Ari’s marriage. After those dances, the dancing playlist came on and everyone swarmed the floor and had a great time. 

Overall, what a wonderful wedding. I am so honored to have been apart of this special day and grateful Lauren asked me to shoot with her. Congratulations to Mikey and Ari Aldykiewicz! 

The first dance... Mikey sang every single word to Ari, it was so sweet. 

Husband and Wife after a long but awesome day! Thanks again y’all :) 

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Smith to Aldy Part 2: The Aldykiewicz Wedding

Following hanging with the groomsmen all morning, I got to meet up with Lauren and figure out what we were going to do in the ceremony. The ceremony was held in War Memorial Chapel at Virginia Tech and while I had never been in there before, I knew it was going to be beautiful (but then again, what ISN’T beautiful on our campus?)

The ceremony was wonderful. The Deacon, whose name was Mike, really did a great job speaking at the wedding. He referred to many passages not only from the bible, but a book that he felt had lots of advice for life and marriage. It was such a beautiful moment watching Ari and Mikey become husband and wife and sharing their first kiss together as well. 

After the ceremony, we all filtered out of the chapel to take some more photos with the bridal party, families, and a big group shot of the guests. Lauren had some pretty cute ideas for most of this and it was fun getting some behind the scenes shots during this time. Here are some photos from Part 2!

The first look!

Me bossing people around which was fun. 

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Smith to Aldy Part : The Aldykiewicz Wedding

A few weeks ago, thanks to my sweet friend Lauren Rakes, I got to second shoot a wedding with her! Not only was this my first wedding, I had never met ANY of these people and only knew their faces from searching them on Facebook. But I do not think I could have had a better day with a bunch of strangers! 

Lauren had me follow the groomsmen around all day while she stayed with the ladies and my meeting location was Waffle House, which is where they all would eat before Hokie game days. I learned that all of them have graduated from the Corps of Cadets at Virginia Tech literally a week before and all of them plan on commissioning sometime in the future. 

I also got to hear the sweet love story of Ari and Mikey (the bride and groom). They began dating in high school in Georgia and Mikey’s family moved to Virginia, putting an obvious strain on their hearts. However, when Mikey went to Virginia Tech and Ari to Georgia Tech, they STILL made it work for nearly six years. What an INCREDIBLE test of faith! 

Anyways, I am so thankful I was thrown in with this group of men. They were so friendly, polite, and DID NOT COMPLAIN ONCE about all the photos I made them take. Seriously, it was awesome. They all were also super handsome, which made my job a lot better! Here is part one of the Aldykiewicz wedding :) 

Breakfast at Waffle House then Smash Bros. at the apartment. The perfect pre wedding mix. 

All of the guys posed in front of the pylons but this one was definitely my favorite (and most accurate). 

Thanks guys for letting me pal around with y’all! What a fun morning. Stay tuned for Part 2 :) 

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Class of 2015- Michelle Kembel

Last Friday afternoon my friend Michelle came up from Botetourt to Virginia Tech to get her senior pictures done! Michelle will be attending Virginia Tech in the fall, along with many other of my clients this year, and I can’t wait to have all their pretty faces on campus next year :) 

Kelly joined us for most of the shoot and Michelle’s boyfriend tagged along in the end. We started out at Hahn Gardens where the flowers and trees were all beautiful and bloomed and one of my favorites from the shoot was in the water right before the waterfall. A lot of people do not know about this little spot on campus and I must say it is a good spot to know about! 

Next, we headed over to duck pond where everyone was out enjoying the pretty weather after a few days of rain. This is where we ran into a very nice (kinda) man who was giving me some suggestions on how to take photos of Michelle. He didn’t speak very good english so we all just kind of nodded and said “okay”. He followed us around for about 45 minutes when we departed for another location. I added a few photos of him and Tyler and his suggestions. 

Finally, we went to the Drillfield and got some pretty Virginia Tech-esque photos since this will be where she’s going next year! We got so lucky with the beautiful weather and light breeze on Friday and for my first senior session of 2015 I’d say I’m pretty pleased with the result. Here are some of my favorites from the shoot :)  

One of the man’s poses for her... cute but not functional. We were lovin it though. 

The man and Tyler becoming fast friends. 

Thanks Kelly for all your help!!!! 

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Virginia Tech Men's Basketball v. Duke- February 25th, 2015

Cassel Colesium- Last night I had the chance to photography my favorite team EVER Duke! I have been looking forward to this game for so long, not only because I got to sit 4 feet away from Coach K but also because after this whirlwind of a season for the Hokies, I was hoping for an upset (sorry Duke). 

The game turned out to be almost everything I had expected. We were losing to Duke, then tied with Duke, and then we were leading the game. Jalen Hudson who played only 1 minute in last week's game against NC State dropped a career high of 23 points, but unfortunately, we fell short. Close to the end of regulation Duke's Jahlil Okafor lined up for two crucial foul shots that would have lifted the Blue Devils above the Hokies for a win. Unbelievably, the #1 NBA prospect for 2015, missed both. This put the Hokies on a run for 6 seconds and Hudson ended up with the ball for a layup guarded by Justise Winslow. An obvious defensive foul was overlooked by the ref, followed by an empty bucket, and the game went into OT. 

It takes a lot of skill and power to hold off the number 4 team in the country. Duke had been in the same position just a week before at home against UNC and won. They were prepared and frankly so were we, but Duke hit their shots, their free throws, and were simply on fire. BUT you cannot overlook that a 2-13 ACC conference record team gave Duke a run for their money. The Hokies have something special coming and if it doesn't show up in Greensboro in a few weeks, it is going to shine through to next year. 

I always like to joke whenever there is a Duke/VT matchup that I'm a Blue Devil until we lose and a Hokie when we win but after last night, I didn't care one bit that Duke won. I wanted Virginia Tech to pull it out but sometimes you just can't. However, it was an incredible experience that and the most fun I never want to have again. I was in a starstruck wonderland surrounded by Duke and here's why: 

-My favorite writer was in attendance, Laura Keeley, and I got enough nerve to introduce myself while simultaneously keeping a foot in my mouth.

-I was seated nearly 4 feet from Coach K, the winningest active coach in basketball. CRAZY!!!!

-Marshall Plumlee was there and if you know anything about me you would know that I love him more than life probably. 

-I was taking pictures of Jahlil Okafor, the number one NBA prospect in the country. 

But most importantly, I got to take pictures of 20 guys who I love to pieces on Duke and Virginia Tech, watch a show in front of a sold out crowd, and see the hearts and integrity that our guys had as they held their heads high after the loss. I love these teams but I'm loving my Hokies today!! 

The man himself. 

I love you, but loving you is so easy. 

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Virginia Tech Men's Basketball v. Syracuse- January 3rd, 2015

How is it already 2015?! 2014 flew by so fast but was filled with so many blessings I can't even keep up. One of them, a huge one, has been not only my admission into Virginia Tech, but also the opportunity to work for such an awesome media publication such as HokieSports. I hope that 2015 is just as wonderful as 2014 was to me. 

Now, onto the fun part. Yesterday, I photographed VT (8-6, 0-1) men's basketball v. Syracuse (10-4, 1-0) for HokieSports.com. I saw Syracuse play last year at Duke after the overtime win at home a few weeks before. This was the game where Coach Boeheim ripped off his jacket and got ejected, resulting in memes and mockery for weeks after. Naturally, I was kind of hoping for the same kind of emotion, but saw it from our very own Buzz Williams. 

Coming into Blacksburg, Syracuse was favored to win and proved why in the first half. With Virginia Tech lacking two inside men, Joey Van Zegeren and Jalen Hudson, Syracuse excelled in the paint with ease. At one point, Tech was down by 21 and closed the half 42-23. 

However, that deficit was quickly made up and the Hokies got the score down to two twice in the second half. Let me tell you- between the emotion of the players, excitement of the crowd, and the dancing of Buzz Williams, Cassell Coliseum was a sight with under five minutes to go. When we were so close to tying, maybe even beating, an excellent team in the ACC, I knew exactly why I came to this school. The talent in the ACC is something else and to literally be right in the action is amazing. Unfortunately, we fell short of the win by two points but outscored Syracuse 43-26 in the second half, showing obvious improvement and most importantly, hope for games to come. 

****All photos property of HokieSports.

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The Military Bowl: Virginia Tech v. Cincinnati

Yesterday I had the awesome opportunity to shoot Virginia Tech in the Military Bowl in Annapolis, MD. I photographed the game for HokieSports along with my boss Dave and "friend" Grant. 

I drove down Friday and met up with my friends from school and we stayed the night in D.C. It was really fun just exploring and being with each other and hanging out. The next morning I woke up and drove the 45 minutes to the stadium that then turned into about a 2 and a half drive because I didn't account for traffic. I barely made it there about thirty minutes before kickoff so as if I wasn't worried enough about shooting my first bowl game, that was just icing on the cake. 

However, the rest of the game went smoothly and it was a lot of fun. The weather was a perfect, mild, sunny day and the win made it so much  better. There are few things I enjoy more than seeing rewards for work put into something and these guys really deserved to take home the trophy for that reason. Special thanks to Northrop Grumman for putting on such an awesome bowl game. I really loved this bowl and what it stands for.

The Hokies finished this season out with a 7-6 record with big wins against 2 nationally ranked teams (Ohio State, Duke) and a bowl decision game against UVa last month. Some would argue this season wasn't ideal, but my first year photographing the Hokies could not have been more memorable. I love this game, I love this school, and I love my job! Until next year Hokie Football! 

Dadi Nicolas (90) runs a flag through the tunnel during the entrance of the team at The Military Bowl. 

Fans roar after the first touchdown to tie the game 7-7 in the first quarter. 

DT Nigel Williams (95) heads toward the end zone after picking up the ball after a Bearcat fumble. 

CB Greg Stroman (3) celebrates with the defensive line after scoring off two fumble recoveries to hoist Virginia Tech over Cincinnati. 

Asst. Head Coach Shane Beamer took over the role as Head Coach in place of his father for Saturday's game. Frank Beamer, who recently underwent minor throat surgery, coached from the press box. 

QB Michael Brewer (12) hands off to TB J.C. Coleman (4) in the third quarter. Coleman, the game's MVP, racked up 157 yards in rushing and a touchdown. 

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WR Willie Byrd (82) rushes into Bearcat CB Leviticus Payne (9). 

TB Trey Edmunds (14) finds a hole in the line to gain yardage. Edmunds recently missed 5 games after breaking his clavicle during the game against UNC. 

My wonderful friends who came with me to the game! 

TE Bucky Hodges (7) jumps to catch a long pass in the end zone. 

CJ Reavis grins while holding the Military Bowl trophy after the 33-17 win against the Cincinnati Bearcats. 

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Virginia Tech Men's and Women's Basketball (Nov. 29th- Dec. 7th)

I have shot lots of basketball since Thanksgiving break and since finals is right on my heels, I haven't had much time to update the blog with all the cool shots I have gotten. 

The games I've shot this past week have been Women's vs. ETSU and Northwestern and Men's vs. Morgan State and Redford. 

Here are a few photos that I especially like. 

Tara Nadohill (35) prepares her jump shot in the game against ETSU on Nov. 29. 

Khadedra Croker (45) lines up for a foul shot in the game against  Northwestern as part of the ACC/Big10 challenge on Dec. 4th. 

Adam Smith (3) jumps in the air to sink his hook shot in the game against Morgan State on Nov. 30th. 

Ahmed Hill (13) dribbles around a guard in the game against Redford on Dec. 7th. 

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Virginia Tech Football v. University of Virginia- Friday November 28th, 2014

Last Friday at 1:30 AM, I finished editing my last batch of football photos for the 2014 season. 6 hours earlier, I had began shooting in a mild 28 degrees, but by kickoff, it had dipped to 23, then lower, then lower. Despite the weather, the Hokies pulled off a VERY important win against Uva. Both teams came into the game 5-5 and were looking for a sixth win, along with the Commonwealth Cup, and most importantly, a bowl bid. Hokie football was in severe jeopardy for obtaining what would be their 22nd consecutive bowl streak, the second longest in the nation, after a 6-3 double overtime loss to Wake Forest the weekend before. 

But the streak stayed alive. Members of the team hoisted each other up on their shoulders, screaming in excitement and joy as they raised the cup up in the air. I can't imagine a better game to end on- seeing how happy the team and fans were made sitting in the cold worth it. Here are some photos from the awesome night, enjoy! 

TE Bucky Hodges (7) high fives a fan after running out of the tunnel at the start of Virginia Tech v. UVa. 

DE Dadi Nicolas (90) stretches to tackle a UVa receiver in the second quarter. 

TB J.C. Coleman (4) sprints down the field after receiving a hand-off by QB Michael Brewer. 

Bucky Hodges (7), Michael Brewer (12), and David Wang (76) celebrate after a big play in the third quarter. 

TE Bucky Hodges (7) tips the ball over the end zone to push the Hokies ahead of UVa.

Just a few of us photographers trying to stay warm!  

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Virginia Tech Men's & Women's Basketball (Nov. 17-21)

Last week I got to shoot what I have been waiting for all year- basketball!! Basketball is hands down my favorite sport to shoot and watch mostly because I'm right there on the court and can actually keep up with the game whereas in football I am constantly moving around and not really focused on watching the game. Basketball is also very fast paced and while it's hard to get a super unique photo, every once in awhile I will come out with a good shot. 

Women's Basketball played Tuesday night against Norfolk State and pulled through with a 60-49 win. Vanessa Panousis (5) led scoring with 17 points followed by Rachel Camp (23) with 15 points. Men's Basketball played Wednesday night against Liberty and topped them 73-63. Leading scorers were Joey van Zegeren (2) with 17 and Devin Wilson (11) and Adam Smith (3) both with 13. It was a good week to be a Basketball Hokie fan! The following photos are are shots I got during both games. 

Forward Hannah Young (4) looks for a hole to drive to the basket. 

Forward Regan Majority (11) tips the ball out of Shayla Tanner's (32) fingers. 

Guard Vanessa Panousis (5) brings the ball into play. She led scoring with 17 points and six assists. 

Guard Justin Bibbs (10) drives the ball down the court. 

Guard Ahmed Hill (13) hangs from the rim in Cassel Colosseum after dunking on a Liberty defender.

Guard Devin Wilson (11) drives around a Liberty defender to the basket. He led scoring with 13 points under Van Zegeren with 17. 

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Class of 2015: Emily Keiser

A few weeks ago I made one more trip into Roanoke to photograph another beautiful senior! Emily Keiser will be graduating from William Byrd in the spring and plans on attending JMU next fall. I met Emily through my youth group at Bonsack Baptist Church and was so happy she chose me to photograph such a memorable time in her life! 

Emily's father works for Hotel Roanoke and she explained to me that is where she pretty much grew up. She thought it would be fitting to photograph there and I am so happy we did! I had been to Hotel Roanoke for prom and such but had never photographed anyone there. We got some beautiful shots all around outside. Some of my favorites were towards the end when the sun was casting a pretty glow on the Wells Fargo tower behind her. Here are some of my favorite shots! 

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Virginia Tech Football v. Boston College

A few weeks ago (11/1) I got to photograph VT Football v. Boston College for HokieSports. This was a pretty important game for the team and ultimately was supposed to result in a win. The Hokies bowl game dreams are on the road to be dashed after this loss- they needed to win at least 2 more games to have potential, and now only have Duke, Wake, and UVA remaining on their schedule. The chances look okay for Tech, hoping to slide by Wake and also win the Commonwealth Cup at Lane on Black Friday, so a big trip in December could be possible. 

Anyways, the BC game was pretty fun especially in the first quarter when VT led 7-0. The temperature fell in sync with the score and the more BC scored, the colder it felt. It was the coldest game I had ever photographed but it was worth it. One of my favorite parts of the game was when we got ahead 24-23 with 7 minutes left in the fourth quarter. Lane had cleared out a good bit by then but of the people who were there, it was so loud. Everyone was shouting and jumping and sometimes, there's moments like that you can't just take photos of, you have to absorb it yourself, and that was one of them. 

Tailback Marshawn Williams (42) looks for a whole in the line of scrimmage to gain yardage. He rushed for 32 yards and a touchdown. 

Cornerback Chuck Clark (19) attempts to strip the ball out of Boston College's wide receiver Shakim Phillip's (11) hand. 

Linebacker Andrew Motuapuaka (54) prevents a Boston College receiver from gaining a first down. 

Quarterback Michael Brewer (12) sends a pass downfield in the third quarter. Brewer passed for 345 yards, two touchdowns, and zero interceptions. 

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Class of 2015: Becca Thomas, Jessica Wiegandt, and Hal Bailey

Two weeks ago I had to come home for the second weekend in a row to complete a few sessions of senior pictures. I had been home the week before for fall break and had five shoots scheduled, four of which got rained out, so I had to come home once more. My hallmates, Kelly & Kaitlyn, drove me home and stayed the weekend with my family and I. Amongst giving a tour of Botetourt, I photographed three seniors as well. My first session was Becca Thomas, who will be graduating from Staunton River in June, and she brought along her boyfriend and one of her best friends. We had a such a good time talking and getting to know each other. We took photos at Greenfield park right off of US 220 and had some really pretty shots despite the sun being so high and bright in the sky! 

Immediately after, I drove the short ten minute drive to Camp Bethel, off of Route 11, to photograph a fellow Lord Botetourt grad, Jessica Wiegandt. I had never been to Camp bethel but I was so excited she had brought me to such unique location. Not only would no one else have photos like her, they were absolutely beautiful! We shot around five o clock in the evening just as the sun was about to set. We shot in the woods, in a creek, in a field.... It was all so beautiful! 

The next morning, I dragged Kaitlyn and Kelly out of bed and took them to my last shoot with another Lord Botetourt grad, Hal Bailey. Kelly, from Pittsburgh, and Kaitlyn, from Arizona, were in awe of the mountains and the wide span of country I've become so familiar with. Hal's photos were taken first at Botetourt Country Club, a beautiful golf course, and then at his land. One interesting aspect of Hal's session was the wanted to take a few photos with his bow and arrow. I had never done anything like that before so it was very cool getting some unique shots of that! 

Overall, it was a very productive two days of being home and I enjoyed getting to talk to people and catch up without having to worry about going back to school. Here are a few shots of Becca, Jessica, and Hal, including a photos of Kaitlyn and Kelly in front of mountains at Botetourt Country Club. 

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Virginia Tech Football v. Miami- October 23rd, 2014

Last Thursday, I experienced one of the best nights in Lane Stadium I have ever seen. Well, aside from the 30-6 knockout by Miami, the atmosphere was amazing for the first hour or two. I was photographing for www.hokiesports.com , which is who I have been working for since I got to VT. 

Before the game I hopped around to different tailgates around campus to get some shots of students and families preparing for the game. Mark Warner happened to be wandering around one tailgate I shot in the beginning, so that was cool. The last tailgate I made it to was on Green Street where there was a live band and lots of dancing and happy Hokies. 

One of my favorite parts of shooting in Lane is the pregame. Nothing gives me chills quicker than hearing "Enter Sandman" begin to echo through the stadium and watching everyone jump. Thursday’s pregame was especially unique because the Marching Virginian’s performed pregame rather than the Highty Tighties and the Student Athletes at VT got to run out of the tunnel before the team. There were also fireworks during “Enter Sandman” so who doesn’t like that? 

Finally, as if the bad game vibes had any effect on my shooting, I had a horrible night. I just couldn’t find a good setting to shoot on and sometimes its hard to be enthusiastic about photograping in the cold when your team is losing, but I managed and still had a lot of fun. Even though we lost, the Thursday night experience was remarkable and something I will remember, and hope to photograph again in the future. Here are some of the shots I got! 

Fireworks light up the sky during "Enter Sandman" at the start of the game in Lane Stadium. 

Cornerback CJ Reavis (21) shows his excitement during the coin toss. 

Quarterback Michael Brewer (12) awaits the snap in Virginia Tech's red zone during the first half. Brewer passed for a season low of 80 yards. 

Cornerback Donovan Riley (2) pulls down Miami's wide receiver Malcolm Lewis (9) on Tech's 20. 

Miami Hurricanes head coach Al Golden shouts at a ref for a bad call during the third quarter. 

Cornerback Chuck Clark (19) holds onto Miami's Phillip Dorsett (4) to keep him from a first down in the third quarter. 

Punter A.J. Hughes (27) propels the ball down the field in the second half. 

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Class of 2015: Skylar Dull

Earlier last month I got the opportunity to photograph one of my many seniors, Skylar Dull! Skylar and I have been friends since high school and it was a lot of fun just to catch up and get some pretty pictures made. She drove to Blacksburg and we started shooting around 6:30 so we were limited for light but we made it work. We shot at the duck pond (typical) and then went and checked out this pretty field off of Research Drive. Turns out it was part of the airport landing sight but luckily there were no planes. I think what made Skylar’s pictures super unique was the bokeh the lights behind her made. The lights were actually from the soccer and baseball fields just over the hill. Here are a few favorites from my shoot :)