Photo of the Week #132
Looks like I have an exotic animal theme going for my Photo of the Week, this time Crystal the Monkey perched on the shoulder of actor Justin Kirk on the red carpet at the NBC Upfront at Radio City Music Hall. You might recognize Justin Kirk from his role as the lovable Andy Botwin on Showtime’s Weeds. He’ll be starring as Dr. George Coleman alongside Crystal in a new sitcom, Animal Practice, this fall on NBC. This won’t be Crystal’s first time on screen though. The journeyman capuchin monkey has appeared in over 20 films since 1997, perhaps most famously as the drug dealing monkey in The Hangover Part II.
Photo tech specs: Canon 7D camera, 70-200mm f2.8 IS II lens @ 70mm, f3.2, 1/320th, ISO 1250.

May 14, 2012: Actor Justin Kirk and Crystal the Monkey on the red carpet at the NBC Upfront at Radio City Music Hall. — ©MSG
To view a full-screen version of this photo, visit the Photo of the Week section of AviGerver.com.
New York Rangers, Lundqvist, shut out New Jersey Devils in Game 1 of the Eastern Conference Finals
On Monday night, the New York Rangers, behind excellent goaltending by Henrik Lundqvist, defeated the New Jersey Devils 3-0 in Game 1 of the Stanley Cup Eastern Conference Finals. The game scoreless through two periods, All-Star defenseman Dan Girardi and rookie phenom Chris Kreider both scored in the third period, and Artem Anisimov added an empty-net goal in the final minutes. Henrik Lundqvist has been a force for the Rangers in these 2012 playoffs, posting a .940 save percentage, 1.57 goals-against-average and two shutouts. The series continues tonight at 8pm at Madison Square Garden. Photos ©Madison Square Garden, L.P.
The Rangers project an opening sequence on the ice before the start of the game:


Rangers fans:


Rangers captain Ryan Callahan sets up in front of Devils defenseman Bryce Salvador and goalie Martin Brodeur:


New York’s Dan Girardi and New Jersey’s David Clarkson:


The Rangers’ Brad Richards and Devils’ Andy Greene:


Rangers goalie Henrik Lundqvist makes a save with support from defenseman Anton Stralman:


New York’s Dan Girardi checks New Jersey captain Zach Parise:


New York’s Carl Hagelin, Marc Staal, and New Jersey’s Zach Parise:


New York’s Marc Staal gets physical along the boards with New Jersey’s Dainius Zubrus:


Dan Girardi (#5) celebrates his goal with teammates Marian Gaborik, Derek Stepan and Chris Kreider:


Henrik Lundqvist makes one of his 21 saves:


Rangers head coach John Tortorella (left) and assistant coach Mike Sullivan address their team in the game’s final minutes:


The Rangers salute the crowd from center ice:

Photo of the Week #131
Week #131 is what I can safely say in hindsight was bad vacation timing on my part. The week was a memorable one for the New York Rangers in their Stanley Cup playoff series against the Washington Capitals at Madison Square Garden. On Monday, the Rangers came from behind to tie Game 5 with 7.6 seconds remaining, then won it in overtime. On Saturday, the team won Game 7 (and the series) with a tense 2-1 victory to advance to the Eastern Conference Finals.
But instead of my usual gig shooting Rangers home games, where was I this past week? Vacationing in the Dominican Republic, a getaway I had planned back in January. Not all was lost though because I got this killer shot of a Spotted Oleander Moth caterpillar. I didn’t even use any high-end photography equipment to do it, just the lightweight Panasonic LX5 point and shoot camera I always travel with. If you’ve never used the macro mode on your camera (usually indicated by a flower symbol) to take close-up photos, go exploring indoors and out and see what kinds of interesting critters you can find. The detail in the photos you come back with might surprise you.
Well, I’ll be back at Madison Square Garden tonight for the Rangers’ Eastern Conference Finals Game 1 matchup against the New Jersey Devils. Let’s hope it’s a good one!
Photo tech specs: Panasonic LX5 camera, 5.1-19.2mm lens (24mm-90mm equivalent) lens @ 24mm, f2.0, 1/40th, ISO 80.

May 12, 2012: A Spotted Oleander Moth caterpillar in Puerto Plata, Dominican Republic.
To view a full-screen version of this photo, visit the Photo of the Week section of AviGerver.com.
Photo of the Week #130
Here’s a shot of a big hit by Chris Kreider, the promising young draft pick who joined the New York Rangers for the start of the playoffs last month only days after winning the NCAA Championship with Boston College. Kreider became the first player in NHL history whose first two goals were playoff game winners (Game 6 of the first round vs. Ottawa and Game 1 of this second round vs. Washington). Kreider, a triple threat with his speed, puck handling and physicality, will surely continue to help the Rangers in their quest for the 2012 Stanley Cup, and for years to come.
Photo tech specs: Canon 1D Mark IV camera, 300mm f2.8 lens with 1.4x extender, f8, 1/400th, ISO 320.

April 30, 2012: New York Rangers rookie sensation Chris Kreider sends Washington Capitals defenseman Mike Green into the boards in Game 2 of the Stanley Cup Eastern Conference Semifinals at Madison Square Garden. — ©MSG
To view a full-screen version of this photo, visit the Photo of the Week section of AviGerver.com.
Highbridge Voices rehearsal
This past winter I spent an afternoon in the South Bronx visually capturing the tireless effort and talented voices on display at a Highbridge Voices rehearsal. Highbridge Voices is a non-profit organization that provides voice and music theory training, academic tutoring and recreation after school for local students in grades 4 through 12. The group, established in 1998, has performed throughout North America, including the White House in Washington DC. Their 2012 Benefit Concert will take place on May 31st at Kaufman Center’s Merkin Concert Hall on the Upper West Side of Manhattan. I photographed last year’s performance, and it was truly moving, so if you’re in New York, I hope to see you at this year’s show!
Enjoy the photos below, and for more, check out the images I took of Highbridge Voices academic and one-on-one voice training elements in 2010.


























