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It’s crazy! CRAZY! To play football outside during winter in Finland. It was only -2°C, but still. Some players didn’t even have long pants, they played with bare knees. I get that they move a lot so they won’t feel too cold, but still, knees bare in that weather? I’m pretty certain that playing in an outfit like that during winter won’t help with knee issues football players have so often.

I was totally freezed just standing in there watching and shooting. Luckily I couldn’t stay too long :D Sometimes having too little time can be a good thing! I have stood outside shooting bandy games in about -20°C this winter a couple of times, but I was prepared for the merciless weather those days. This time -2° felt colder than -20°. It’s all about being prepared. -20° makes one prepare really well!

Anyway, the wintry scenery gives an unusually nice background for a football game. Last summer when I shot a young guy testing this new fake grass football field I couldn’t even imagine to shoot a game in there next winter! I don’t even want to know how much it costs to keep it warm enough for the snow and ice to melt. But hey, playing ball OUTSIDE during winter is more important than all other stuff money is needed for, right?! Ok, I shut up now :D

One more thing.. remember to check out the gallery for 2010! I’m updating it after every workday! And work gallery for 2009 is now ready.

I had a nice day today. Even though I had to wake up really really early in the morning. Or it was more like in the middle of the night.. I had to go to work. I don’t like working on weekends much, but since my bosses let me have days off when I need them I’m willing to co-operate too and do some gigs when they can’t find anyone else to do them and ask nicely :P

The only thing really bad about working on Saturday is pretty obvious: only one free day in the whole week. I’m going to use my precious day of freedom for relaxation. First I’ll go to yoga, because it really helps to ease the tension and aches on my back, shoulders and neck. After that I can do whatever I want. Or do nothing. Sweet!

When I came home sun was already pretty low in the sky. The weather was still so nice that I felt like being outside for a while so I went for a short walk in the park that’s behind this house. It really nice. Fresh air and sun. No rain, yay! Not that I don’t like rain but we’ve had it so much that I’m sick and tired with it. And the darkness. Now there’s tiny layer of snow or ice on the ground so it’s not so dark as it was a few days ago. Felt almost like spring. I love spring but still I wish that we’d have some good real winters in the future. Like when I was a kid. Snow and fresh cold days, and wintersun and some more snow. Not these dark and rainy warm ones.

I’ve been wondering if I should start posting my school images too. The ones that I made for the assignments that are part of my finals. I don’t have much stuff like that up on my site since I haven’t done much images that have a journalistic agenda, meaning or feeling (or whatever) in them. And maybe some other school stuff too. We’ve had some pretty interesting assignments. I haven’t learned much in terms of technique or lightning or stuff like that at school, but photographing strangers has become much much easier. More natural. I still have some butterflies in my stomach sometimes, but I’m not terrified anymore if I have to go ask strangers if I could shoot them. At school I even had to go and ring some strangers doorbell and get myself in their home and shoot a series of shots of them. It was horrible and exhilarating at the same time :)

It was so much fun! Good company and sunshine and fun stuff to do is a good way to get rid of angsty feelings :) I’m gonna post more pictures later. Or at least a link to a gallery with more shots from the day :)