A SENSE OF SKATING

These pictures were taken at Dick Shinaut Park in east El Paso. There were probably about 20 or so different skaters and BMX bikers at the skate park between the hours that I was there. They ranged from toddlers still learning how to keep their feet on the board to grown adults helping the next generation perfect their tricks. Most of them, however, were teens and young adults just wanting to skate.

A close-up shot of a skater doing an ollie over one of many cones littered across the skate park. The wide angle enabled his whole body to be in frame and showed a bit of the park in the background.

This is my favorite photo from the shoot. I had set up my shot and focused on this platform for a few minutes waiting to get the right moment of someone jumping over it. I thought that the composition didn’t need the upper half of the body, so I focused squarely on the legs. I think it was a good decision because you can still feel the slight frustration of the skater messing up the trick just by the way his legs are positioned with his board behind him.

I think this shot very well showcases the community of regulars at the park. Two young kids are skating, someone in the back is taking a break on his board, and an older biker is driving by and sharing the space.

Another action shot that I was lucky enough to freeze at the right moment.

Two skaters taking a break on their boards right by the light post and trashcan near the skate park.

This shot is another one of my favorites. It captures a moment that happens maybe more often than the cool tricks – falling after failing to perform a cool trick. I like the symmetry of the shot and how the skater is near the middle on his back with his board nowhere to be seen.

Here’s an accidental portrait I got of one of the skaters. He wasn’t the best from the bunch, but he never stopped trying his tricks and wasn’t at all timid about my camera. It was really easy to get pictures of him sense he kept trying the same trick over and over until he got it. I managed to get this close-up of him skating, but without the skateboard.