What's Happening in Cougar Country

First-year art teacher Carolina Kane keeps quite busy with her day job. But if that’s not enough, she also has her own photography business – Carolina Kane Photography.

A quick glance at her business’ website, you see senior and family portraits, weddings, fine art, editorial work, and much more. What you don’t see much of is sports.

That all changed this past weekend when she worked freelance for Cleveland Magazine and shot more than 2,000 pictures at the NCAA Women’s Division I Final Four at Rocket Mortgage Fieldhouse. Her photos can be found on the Cleveland Magazine website.

“It was so intense and filled with anxiety,” Carolina said. “There were so many people there and so much media. But it was such a cool experience.”

She was there for all three games – the national semifinals on Friday night and the championship game on Sunday – and moved all over the fieldhouse getting as many shots as possible. She said she was there at 5p on Friday (the first game started at 7p) and didn’t leave until about 1a on Saturday.

“It was a long day,” she said. “Two games to shoot, and then I was in the media room editing until early Saturday morning. But then all day Saturday editing some more.”

She worked with the writer from Cleveland Magazine, getting shots to accompany his news stories. Not only were her photos used in his articles, but she would work between games and at halftimes to send images to her art director for more formal social media posts.

She had a floor pass for Saturday night’s second semifinal between Connecticut and Iowa, headlined by two of the sport’s biggest stars, Paige Bueckers and Caitlin Clark, and was positioned right on the baseline.

“It was intense,” she said. “There I was in between ESPN’s still photographer and the Associated Press. And, on top of that, it was a great game.

“My dad kept letting me know every time he saw me on TV.”

After that late-night Friday and all-day editing Saturday, it was time to go back on Sunday for the championship game between Iowa and South Carolina. South Carolina won the national championship, 87-75.

She moved around the fieldhouse until it was time for the Gamecocks' trophy presentation when she joined the rest of the media on the floor right in front of the quickly constructed stage.

“It was such a great experience,” Carolina said. “I sent (Cleveland Magazine) 634 edited photos. It was a long weekend, but so worth it.

“I was so proud to be photographing such a high-profile women’s game. It was incredible that so many people were there to support women in sports. The energy in the room was electric and every basket was met with a roar from the crowd. I felt proud to be a woman photographer, supporting other great women, and showcasing our great city.

“And it gave me some ‘street-cred’ with the kids. A lot of them have come in today already telling me how cool it was that I got to be there for it.”
 

photo courtesy of Cleveland Magazine