Seahawks: OTA’s with the O-Line.

O.T.B. — Off Track Betting.

But O.T.A.?

Here's a hint — it's a football term.

Off-Tackle…Attack?

Try this:  Organized Team Activity.

Otherwise known as "football practice". But unlike the other forms of practice in the NFL (regular practice, training camp, and mini-camp), OTA's are voluntary — players are not required to attend, and there is no contact allowed.

New Seahawks head coach Jim Mora has his team fired up to improve on last season's poor 4-12 showing, so all of the off-season workouts have been well-attended.

I was shooting stuff of only certain players like third-round draft choice Deon Butler, who changed his number to 11, after wearing 85 for the first minicamp.

As I worked my way around the field, I noticed the offensive lineman working on a drill involving a blocking pad and some mats. They were pretty close to the edge of the field, so I wandered over. Any chance to use a wide-angle lens at football is cool — mostly because it is a different angle than we get most of the time.

One thing about football practice is that except for the football staff, no one really knows how long each drill lasts. Seems like just when I get settled for a shot, the horn blows and every one runs away to a different part of the field.

So hustling over, I started shooting quickly. Wanted to get something "in the can" before the drill ended. My best hope was that I had at least a couple of minutes to shoot before they changed drills.

The first shot is, well, back-focused (focused on the players in the background, not the foreground). I shouldn't have to tell you that this is unintentional, just a result of moving too fast. Yuck.

(Nikon D3, Nikkor 24-70mm/f2.8 lens @ 38mm, ISO 400, 1/1000th sec.,f4.0)

After that, I find a low angle so that I can make the players loom larger as they dive into the block. Only problem is that the coach holding the blocking pad has moved to my side and so now I'm a bit blocked.

(Nikon D3, Nikkor 24-70mm/f2.8 lens @ 48mm, ISO 400, 1/1000th sec.,f4.0)

Luckily, the coach changes side and the angle opens up. One challenge here was the exposure. Bright sun in the background, players in dark jerseys jumping into a dark mat. If only fill flash were allowed. Actually, not. Fill flash would make the exposure better, but would introduce an artificialness to the photo that would suck. And no, I don't know if artificialness is even a word.

With the frame below (rookie Andre Ramsey), I feel I'm getting somewhere. But other photographers and television cameras have wandered over, and they're right over my head. I prefer the low angle, but I'm kind of contorted on the ground and having a tough time keeping the horizon level and the camera as low to the ground as possible.

(Nikon D3, Nikkor 24-70mm/f2.8 lens @ 66mm, ISO 400, 1/1000th sec.,f4.0)

When Rob Sims goes through, I think I have a usable frame. I can see his face, his body position is good, and the pad is in midair. Now I can experiment a bit more.

(Nikon D3, Nikkor 24-70mm/f2.8 lens @ 48mm, ISO 400, 1/1250th sec.,f4.0)

The more the players hit the mat, the more it slides, and soon I have a nearly perfect horizontal composition. Good for the position of the bodies, not so good for the faces, but hey, I'm shooting wide-angle, no one has hit me, and the coach doesn't seem to mind that I'm close to the action. Remember that with the wide-angle lens, I'm about 10 feet from the players. In the realm of pro football practices, that's much closer than one usually gets. This one is of Mansfield Wrotto taking his turn.

(Nikon D3, Nikkor 24-70mm/f2.8 lens @ 45mm, ISO 400, 1/1250th sec.,f4.0)

Coach didn't like that first try (and I didn't either, but for not the same reasons), and on Wrotto's second try I made a frame that has better body angle,but he's not high enough off the ground to create any separation.

(Nikon D3, Nikkor 24-70mm/f2.8 lens @ 36mm, ISO 400, 1/1250th sec.,f2.8)

Satisfied that I made the photo I was looking for, I just went looser on the last turn before the end of the drill. The result is a more classic looking football picture.

(Nikon D3, Nikkor 24-70mm/f2.8 lens @ 26mm, ISO 400, 1/1250th sec.,f2.8)

It's always fun finding a new angle and new opportunity. I feel completely geeky when I break down a simple picture like this, but I figure I have to push myself on every frame or I won't get better.