Wednesday, March 14, 2007

Photo Hold'em | The Biggest Leuzer DEATHMATCH



Time to play your last card, gentlemen. Let's see what you got.


MR. EVAN ROSS' HAND




Closer look at Young Evan's hand:









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MR. EVAN STAFFORD'S HAND





Up close & personal:








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So, the audience was sleepin' on the last post .. time to wake up! This hand is being played for the prestige associated with taking home some booty from the First (possibly) Annual TRL Photo Hold'em Showdown. Let's hear some thoughts from the peanut gallery!

11 comments:

Anonymous said...

Well, F$*k, both these boys seemed to have played there aces early on. No offense to the shots they played here, but I personally am having a hard time determining a winner. let's examine in more detail

E. Ross-
previous shot. I love as stated in earlier posts., the second shot he played had potential for greatness, but unfortunately he shot this shot "too textbook" and not artisticly enough. As for his third and final shot, I was disappointed.I think it's a great and interesting shot, but I wanted some action. nonetheless it was a good shot.

Dotcom
I too love his first previously played shot. His second shot shows a really fun looking creek but thats about it. The tree in the lower right corner just looks like it was in the way and he was too lazy to move the branches. he may have purposefully framed the shot with the branch, but it didn't work out. and as for his final shot the only word I can find to describe it is "plain." unfortunately for him there was no light to accentuate any of the colors or textures of the canyon.
Now that i've said all that I have to say I find this to be a close close call that I'm gonna give to E.Ross. He showed some artistic characteristics in his third card that just put his hand over the top. Let's say if this was a real poker hand Dotcom played a pair of kings and Evan just happened to have that pair of Aces. Good job by both contestants.
Austin R.

p.s.- E. Ross and Dotcom, just because I didnt love all your pics doesn't mean I don't still love you guys:)

Anonymous said...

E-Ross throws a change-up on the last pitch...but Dotcom smacks it deep! I feel the soul in Mr. Ross' final card, but Mr. Stafford trumps it with a shot that really captures the character of a spectacular run. Overall I have to give it to Evan S. for the strongest set.

Awesome work by both.

Matt C.

Anonymous said...

I think I have to give this one to Mr. Ross. IMO, kayaking is as about the campfire at night as it is the kayaking itself. The stories told, the bonds formed, the talk and anticipation of the next day. The fire in the foreground has amazing clarity and definition. I can almost feel the poker stick in my hand and can almost hear the laughs as the thrashing of the day is revisited by all. Great shot!

Unknown said...

I so love to camp out as much as I do love to kayak. Sit around the fire chat, and maybe someone will play a song on a guitar! I cant wait tell spring.
Evan Ross takes the hand for getting me into the relaxing side of kayaking.

Unknown said...

I've gotta hand it to the campfire. Way to pull out that wild card for the finish.

-Yotes

E.G. said...

got to give it to ross as well. love the 2nd ace you played in this round. Bull Lake is da bomb!! I like the desert shot that staford threw in but the fire beats the big south shot so Ross gots it all. Arounious on all charges.
EG

Anonymous said...

I would give this to round to Dotcom. His last shot really shows what kayaking is all about. Contrary to Karl, I think that kayaking is about being out in the middle of nowhere and getting your breath taken away by the awesome views. He is able to capture that feeling even without perfect light. I disagree that, "kayaking is as much about the campfire at night as it is the kayaking itself". So, although the campfire is a cool shot, in my opinion Dotcom takes the consolation round.

Bryn T.

slickhorn said...

Damn gina! It's on!

card 1 for both players is an ace -- great shots, love em both.

card 2, e-ross rocks this one, his king overtaking dotcoms jack. Both shots suffer from a centered boater, bot e-ross makes me want to pack up and get in there.

card 3 as a creeker, I like dotcoms shot, and I think it turned out great given the tough lighting with the whole drop and wall in shadow. Well exposed given that, and we get a taste of the canyon while still giving the boater some lead room. nice king played by dotcom here.

e-ross's fire card though, is also a kind, and his rockets take the round. This is a great shot -- the fire isn't overexposed, we have some motion, but we can still the boats and river. Ain't no boatin' better than self support multiday boatin, and IMHO, this comp has been a little too heavy on the "huck yer meat" shot and real light on the lifestyle shot.

Maybe that's cause it's been a long winter, but, time to shake it off and get out there!

e-ross takes it.
--Brian

Anonymous said...

I think the round goes to Ross. I gotta add that he took the round mostly with his previous ace. The other two didn't do much for me. Then again, neither of Dotcom's new cards really gets me either.

Breaking from the flock, I do prefer Dotcom's desert shot to the campfire. I like the campfire sentiment, but it's just not that great a photo for me.

Anonymous said...

I'd give it to dotcom. bottom line is this: his shots make me want to be there. Ross' replay loses texture of the canyon, and ya'll keep talkin about how the campfire is half the reason you paddle. Doesn't the character of the canyon you're in play a big part too? Dotcom's last shot really captures that. He managed to show what an incredible place that is without ideal lighting. It's too bad for him they got to that drop at the wrong time, otherwise he'd win everyone over in this round. I still will give Ross credit for good composition in the campfire shot, but if anything, those final cards are even.
Dotcom's first two outplay Ross's in my opinion. In the second shot, Ross's angle makes it look like that's the final drop as the river dumps into a lake, and you don't get any kind of view upstream to see if the run has any other goods. The creek in Dotcom's second shot makes me really want to run that. It just looks fun!!!! Thanks to both Evans, but one question for Stafford: where are those last shots taken?!?!?!?
-DT

Anonymous said...

DT - the last coupla shots were taken at the Big South Fork Poudre and Arizona's Christopher Creek respectively. Bull Lake is definitely in the RMSP (Rocky Mountain Six Pack), along with the likes of the Clarks Fork Box and Rio Brazos. RE: Ross's second card. That is by no means the last drop but it does pour into one of the most beautiful lakes I have ever bare witness to, in the middle of the grizzly filled wilderness of the northern Wind River Range. The goods are upstream and downstream of this beastly rapid and the lead-in to the falls pictured is one of the burliest runnable moves on the creek and truly in the Rockies. The paddler shown (me) is doing a pattened Wyoming Otter Slide into the drop after witnessing the probe get jacked and run the left side for the most part backwards and upside down. RE: My take on the finals. After new card one Darin has a 80%... no make that 0% chance of winning. Gotta hand it to McQuid for capturing the super stomp but I just have a feeling about the young women from Norway.
Oh ya, that is TG in the Arizona desert so... just hand over me prizes so I can taunt young Ross with them.
DC