Posts tagged DC

DC United was one of 10 clubs to kickoff the inaugural MLS season in 1996, when they opened their season at RFK Stadium. The league's early early featured a series of dominant performances by United, as they won the MLS Cup three of the league's first four seasons, taking home the Supporters' Shield (for best regular season record) in two of those seasons.

Over the ensuing 22 years, DC's success stalled as many new clubs were added to the league (there are now 23), new soccer-specific stadiums provided new revenue streams, an influx of European and South American talent raised the level of competition, and DC tussled again and again with the city government in hopes of getting a home of their own.

They finally have one: Audi Field. Its debut on July 14, 2018 against the Vancouver Whitecaps, just so happened to coincide with the debut of England and Manchester United legend Wayne Rooney, DC's new number nine, and its most expensive player expenditure to date.

DC United descends to the locker rooms after warm-ups for final preparations.

DC United's new number nine: Wayne Rooney.

The event played out as the team might've hoped: offering fantastic sight lines, a steep grandstand keeping fans close to the action, a packed house, and a victory by the United.

Mere minutes into his debut, Rooney was presented with a juicy free kick opportunity (he drilled it into the wall).

Rooney made his eagerly awaited debut in the 57th minute and made an immediate impact. Shortly after running onto the pitch, he launched a juicy free kick from 25 yards into the wall, linking up with his teammates during a tiki-taka-esque sequence leading to DC's second goal, almost scoring a goal of his own on a looping header, and eventually contributing an assist for DC's third and final goal.

The game eventually ended with a 3-1 victory for United, sending the standing room-only crowd of 20,504 home happy, and ensuring a successful debut for the two newest pieces of shiny for DC United.

Postgame fireworks to punctuate the victory.

VignettesMark TegethoffJuly 16, 2018Audi FieldSports, DC

Cherry Blossoms

Midway through March, Erica, Brandon, and I decided it was time to end our hiatus, and get together for an early morning of fun with cherry blossoms at the Tidal Basin. While I was able to find some good light and make some nice images, it wasn't the smoothly executed meetup that we might have otherwise expected...

An outing that was originally scheduled for late March shifted at least twice due to weather and bloom delays (turns out we hit "peak bloom" perfectly!). The morning itself was quite chilly, and despite being April, I found myself pulling my long johns out of the closet for (hopefully) one last time. I arrived first, and found Brandon without incident. Unfortunately though, we ended up in a bit of cell service dead zone, and Erica had trouble finding us. Once she found us, Erica quickly realized that she had forgotten to bring a fully-charged camera battery, and to add to that, her phone battery was almost dead (luckily she was able to get a few choice shots before the juice ran out).

All was not lost though, as the three of us enjoyed our first photographic get together in quite some time, and some memorable images were captured.

VignettesMark TegethoffApril 5, 2018Photography, DC, 202 Photo

At the Capitol

A crisp autumn evening. Winter is coming, but not quite here. Leaves are golden, and the National Mall is quiet. Looking out across the Reflecting Pool, the dome is lights up the night sky. Many windows still show signs of life and light. What are those legislators up to this Tuesday evening?

VignettesMark TegethoffNovember 15, 2017DC

Embassy Row

It's amazing how peaceful and serene DC can look and feel early on a Saturday morning. It's a fleeting feeling often difficult to find in other major US cities.

VignettesMark TegethoffOctober 28, 2017DC

Blue Hour from the Netherlands Carillon

Last night was one of this year's opportunities to shoot the Harvest Moon in DC. Unfortunately, our view of moonrise was obscured by clouds. Despite missing out the intended shot, I was instead able to take advantage of some really nice light post-sunset.

A long-ish exposure of the Lincoln Memorial, base of the Washington Monument, and U.S. Capitol Building.

VignettesMark TegethoffOctober 6, 2017DC, Urban

Sunset by the Tidal Basin

This past Sunday evening, Lauren and I spent some time walking around the Tidal Basin capturing photos for an upcoming project (shhhh). After living the DC area for so many years, it can be easy to take The Mall & surrounding monuments for granted. While it's not always fun fighting the tourists, getting down there once in awhile brings with it a certain apprecation for the city.

VignettesMark TegethoffSeptember 27, 2017DC, Images