Out this week in ESPN The Magazine is some portrait work I did with Jimmy Howard, the starting goaltender for the Detroit Red Wings. We shot on location at the historic Joe Louis Arena, in downtown Detroit, the home ice arena of the Red Wings. It’s a real throw back arena, with tons of character. If you’re a hockey fan, it’s worth the trip to see a Red Wings game at the Joe:

My assistant Jeff and I arrived early to scout the arena for a few locations, as we were going to try for three location shots in the hour that we were to have with Jimmy. The arena is full of age and heritage, so the three locations come to fruition quite quickly. Here are some location shots taken as we scoured the arena:

The visitors bench.

Visiting team's tunnel to the ice.

The Red Wing locker room entrance way.

Jimmy arrived and we got right to work. He was in a good mood, following a great performance the night before against the Phoenix Coyotes. Here’s a selection of portraits from the various locations we settled on:

It was a lot of work getting those three set-ups complete, but in the end, I’m glad we got all of them in. By the time we were finishing the last shot, the Zamboni driver was anxious to get on the ice, as he needed to get the ice cleaned and ready for an immediate Red Wings practice.
The article is out this week in the magazine, with my photos on the Table of Contents, and the NHL PLAY page.