Journalist or fan?

As the Dan Patrick Show kicked off its second day of live broadcast from Victory Field, I found myself surrounded by fans cheering loudly and waiting (rather impatiently) for the slim chance to get an autograph from Dan, the Danettes, any of the show's guests or maybe even from me if I took up a position on the other side of the fence and acted like I was important enough.

While I certainly enjoy the show (and especially the antics of the Danettes during commercial breaks -- you should have seen the go-kart wreck today), I found myself feeling somewhat flustered by the crowd as I stood there with a credential around my neck and a camera in my hands.

As I touched on yesterday, my main job this week is to watch the show (giving me fan-status) and to take pictures (forcing me into journalist-mode). Sure, sometimes I'm excited about the guests like the rest of the attendees, but my main job is to document the spectacle that's happening in The Vic's center-field concourse. That's why I roll my eyes when my photo of Dan Patrick hugging Jay Glazer turns out a little blurry:

Awwwwww.

Or when the guy in the Steelers hat decides to pick his nose:

Two photos, zero acceptable faces from the Steelers fan.

Thankfully, the huddled mass of autograph-seekers didn't ruin the entire day of shooting. In fact, they helped create the best shot I've captured in my two days as an on-the-job, getting-paid-to-do-this photographer.

When Tony Dungy came to Victory Field to appear on the Dan Patrick Show, he didn't sneak in the back way like Cris Collinsworth, Bob Costas and the aforementioned Glazer. Instead, he walked right into the crowd via the center-field gate, shaking hands as he made his way to the show's temporary (and utterly impressive) studio. Thank you, Tony:

Indianapolis LOVES this man.

Tony Dungy has always been a favorite of mine, so I'm fortunate that journalist-mode took over and I snapped the photo instead of standing there slack-jawed like some of the fans. In a moment when my role as a journalist and my calling as a fan collided, my journalism instincts thankfully took over.

Dungy's entrance and the reaction of the fans set up a great shot that I happened to catch mostly out of luck. Photography is hard. People make it harder. But every once in a while, your biggest annoyance also becomes your best subject.

Michael Raines writes (and shoots) for the Indianapolis Indians and can be reached at therainesdelay@gmail.com.