John Boal Photography

I haven't had much work in the past couple weeks beyond shooting sportraits... Some have published, and some (like the players of the year for certain sports) have not. Something I've definitely grown accustomed to is shooting with absolutely nothing to work with but your own imagination. Generally the assignments come in with little direction, beyond, "shoot cross-country runner xxx, they'll be practicing on the track at 3pm". And if you know anything about what a high school track looks like, it ain't much. So you have to find something else. And for a couple years, now, I've been wanting to shoot a portrait in the cornfield behind Brentsville HS. But the last couple times I had the opportunity (Spring, Summer), there is no corn. Now only if they played baseball into September/October, I could do my "Field of Dreams" idea... But I think, ultimately it's one of my favorite recent portraits. I don't find basketball to be so easy for ...

On Tuesday, November 10, John Allen Muhammad, strapped to a table, silently accepted a cocktail of chemicals through his veins, and he died. I went to cover the “event”, driving 2.5 hours to the sleepy town of Jarratt, VA, with two reporters. We each recalled our own experiences of seven years ago. For three weeks, Muhammad and his 17 year-old cohort, Lee Boyd Malvo, terrorized the DC area, through random lethal attacks, striking out from the shadows of hillsides and parking lots. The road to the parking lot in front of the correctional facility was guarded tightly... We drifted down to the correctional facility unsure what to expect. The skies darkened and the night turned misty and foggy, creating an eerie mood. I walked toward the media crush, hours before the appointed execution time. Dozens of satellite trucks stationed themselves across from the prison entrance, while a makeshift podium, lonely, covered in bag-wrapped audio equipment, stood quietly, addressing the dozens ...

Local elections can be a little hectic. Generally, the paper wants to cover as much ground as possible (a bad idea in my opinion), so the two photogs at the paper must travel from voting location to voting location, party to party, all in the hopes that we can catch 1) voters (of course!); 2) a candidate greeting voters, themselves; 3) a candidate hearing the good/bad news (hopefully before 9pm—fat chance). campaign managers are always texting, or checking emails. always. On the other hand we are also simultaneously trying to avoid: 1) grief from local “poll police” for taking pictures at a polling locale. These laws depend on the county. In some places they are adamant you can not take pictures inside. In Prince William County, you are absolutely allowed, and a sign outside the polling place usually tells as much. 2) grief from local party volunteers about how your paper didn’t endorse their candidate. Such a remark is usually followed up with a quip, “we won’t hold it against you, th...