May 2, 2013byJohn Woike Eric Shinseki, Sec. of Veterans Affairs, appeared at VA Regional Office in Newington Thursday afternoon to dicuss his Outline Plan to End Compensation Claims Backlog at Hartford VA Office. He also talked about the Veterans Benefits Management System, a cornerstone of VA’s transformation to an all-digital benefits claims system. VA is implementing a robust plan [...]
March 22, 2013byJohn Woike Ingalls Rink in New Haven on the Yale campus was the site for the Division II boy’s hockey state championship Wednesday night. I haven’t covered a game at the “Whale” in a few years but I remembered it was a great place for a championship game, lots of energy which was evident as the East [...]
November 30, 2012byJohn Woike When I arrived at the Manchester History Center to photograph Mary Dunne, President of the Manchester Historical Society, she gave me a tour of the historic mill that the society purchased in 1999. We strolled through the main level looking for a backdrop that best described the atmosphere of the building and the work that [...]
October 19, 2012byJohn Woike Last week while I was out hunting for enterprise in the great north territory known as Zone 3, I was surprised when I drove past a patch of Sunflowers on RT 190 in Somers. Sunflowers? October? I was on my way to First Night at Gampel Pavilion as the men’s and women’s basketball teams marked [...]
October 11, 2012byJohn Woike Yesterday I was out in search of an enterprise photo and with the fall foliage starting to take shape across the state I stopped at a couple places in Middlefield to see what was out their for leaf peeping. My first stop was at Black Pond just off Rt 66. I like popping in here [...]
September 12, 2012byJohn Woike Once upon a time I used to enjoy water skiing. Not competitive skiing, just first drag me behind my uncles’ 14 footer with a 40 hp Johnson outboard on a peaceful lake in New Hampshire. On a good day I could take off from the dock on two skis, drop one and then slalom around [...]
August 31, 2012byJohn Woike Where did the summer go? That question seems to always arise once Labor Day, the “unofficial – End of Summer”, arrives. The summer seems to go quicker each year as I get older, a week at the shore in the middle of it all is my greatest respite from the daily grind of life. As [...]
July 10, 2012byJohn Woike Today I was asked to create a portrait of Kieth Kwasnik and Ryan Leahey, two really good golfers. Something they have in common, besides winning numerous state titles, is Type 1 diabetes. Both also have insulin pumps that help maintain a desired blood glucose level. This was one of the first photos I took of [...]
July 5, 2012byJohn Woike Of all the photos I took over the week at the 2012 Travelers Championship golf tournament, this one struck a chord with a few readers who were kind enough to send along their gratitude. “I was blown away by your photo on the first page of section B in Saturday’s paper. Looks like a painting [...]
June 5, 2012byJohn Woike All photos and text by John Woike / The Hartford Courant I spent most of May on the Picture Desk at the Courant, a job we all share as our duties get spread among those that remain at the oldest continuously newspaper in the country. It sure feels good to be back in the field. [...]
April 23, 2012byJohn Woike When I was asked if I would be interested in taking a trip the NYC to photograph Michael Douglas for an upcoming ARTS cover I jumped at the opportunity. Douglas was being honored with the 12th Annual Monte Cristo Award from the Eugene O’Neill Theater, a place that he honed his craft growing up in Connecticut. [...]
April 4, 2012byJohn Woike When I heard I would be covering the UConn women’s basketball team during the post season I was excited at the prospect of them making it to the Final Four. For selfish reasons I was looking forward to hooking up with my brother Jeff who has lived in Denver for 22 years and I haven’t [...]
March 12, 2012byJohn Woike Patience. A word that I have come to better understand over the last year. One that I have always liked to say I had, but sometimes would lose with little notice. However, when searching for an interesting photo I could watch paint dry to get the image I was hoping for. Early last week [...]
March 1, 2012byJohn Woike One of the things I love about shooting sports is the ebb and flow of a game. This season the reigning national champion UConn men’s basketball team has seen more “ebbs” than “flows”. Even when you think they might have the flow going an ebb seems to find a way to step in a overtake [...]
February 8, 2012byJohn Woike I’ve had the pleasure of photographing dress rehearsal at the Playhouse on Park a few times and each time I’m amazed at the talent and performance of the actors and crew. The latest show was the production “The Mystery of Irma Vep” which required the two characters, Sean Harris and Rich Hollman, to play 8 [...]
