Behind the Camera: 2015 Football Season

Britney Howard works at UK Athletics as a staff photographer. From time to time, she puts her camera down to reflect on some of her favorite photos and the moments they capture. Today Howard reflects on her favorite photos from the 2015 football season.

Football season always starts with a roar, ushering in the excitement for a fresh academic year and a new season of sports in the Bluegrass state. This year was no exception, with the added anticipation of the grand opening of The New CWS. There is nothing quite like a perfect Kentucky fall football game day and, for me, the photo opportunities that it gives. So now that football season has come to a close, I’d like to share some of my favorite moments from the past few months. 

Shooting each football game is by far the hardest and longest a sports photographer will work all year; so getting good photos makes it become the most rewarding. We arrive at the stadium hours before kick-off to set up our workstation and then begin scouring the area for fun feature photos. 

By the time that the game even starts, most of us have already walked at least two to three miles. Standing for the duration of the game, and chasing the ball up and down the sidelines usually adds at least three to four more. This year we had a photographer track up to 11 miles in one game day! Add to that the fickleness of Kentucky weather — from perfect sun, to heavy wind, rain, and even snow — and by the end of the night you’ve got yourself one exhausted photographer dragging her haggard body out to the car. But it’s the exciting moments and the solid photos that make it all worth it!