This week’s top photo comes from Assistant Photo Editor Pat Nabong. Follow her on Instagram.
What makes this photo important?
The photos show three of 16 Chicago Sky players who attended media day, which is a kickoff to the new season. During media day, players and coaches answer questions from journalists and pose for photos at different stations that were set up by other media organizations. The images, which feature the 2026 roster of players and coaches the team, showcase the team that will represent Chicago in the Women’s National Basketball Association games.
How did you get the photo?
It was my first time photographing Sky media day and also my first time using the Paul C. Buff Einstein flash units, so I asked fellow photojournalist Anthony Vazquez to demonstrate how to use the lights. We experimented with light set-ups in our office’s photo room the day before. We used two pink and blue gels, which are like colored cellophane that can be placed on top of lights, changing the intensity and placement of lights to see how harsh lighting, soft lighting and different color effects looked. With those lighting possibilities in mind, I arrived on media day with the plan to set up lights almost like it was a shoot for a glamour magazine. I wanted to bring out the feminine energy through soft lighting while depicting each player’s strength through their emotions and body language. I had two flash units: one had an orange gel on it to align with the WNBA’s official color, while the other had a blue gel on it to match the Sky’s team color and to balance out the orange hue. The orange light was directed at the white cloth backdrop, while the blue light was placed at an angle on the right side of each player.
Technical details:
- Equipment: Sony A7IV with a 50 mm F/1.2 lens and two Paul C. Buff Einstein flash units
- Focal length: 50 mm
- Shutter: 1/125-1/160
- Aperture: F/1.8-F/2.8
-
ISO: 100
Plus, 14 more powerful photos from Sun-Times photographers from the last two weeks in news:
|
Pat Nabong/Sun-Times
|
Pat Nabong/Sun-Times
|
Pat Nabong/Sun-Times
|
Pat Nabong/Sun-Times
|
Pat Nabong/Sun-Times
|
Pat Nabong/Sun-Times
|
Pat Nabong/Sun-Times
|
Pat Nabong/Sun-Times
|
Pat Nabong/Sun-Times
|
Pat Nabong/Sun-Times
|
Pat Nabong/Sun-Times
|
Pat Nabong/Sun-Times
|
Pat Nabong/Sun-Times
|
Pat Nabong/Sun-Times
|
Pat Nabong/Sun-Times
|
Pat Nabong/Sun-Times
A delivery robot navigates on North Clark Street in Lincoln Park on May 2. Engineering experts who were part of a University of Pennsylvania study suggest companies should improve the robots’ complex internal sensors and address the problem of clean glass being harder to see than a dirty surface.
Giacomo Cain/Sun-Times
Sasha Hirschberg, Chloe Harvey and Raymound Dinh, whose costume was inspired by the phrase “couch potato,” attend the fifth annual Chicago Does the Met Gala, thrown by the Chicago Fashion Coalition in a Streeterville venue. The event was timed to coincide with the Monday night gala in New York.
Tyler Pasciak LaRiviere/Sun-Times
People stand Thursday in the doorway of St. Mary of the Assumption Roman Catholic Church on the Far South Side, where Pope Leo XIV served as an altar boy when he was younger. One year since Cardinal Robert Prevost was named Pope Leo XIV, former parishioners and community members are looking to restore the now-closed Riverdale church.
Pat Nabong/Sun-Times
Volunteer Yolanda Perry paints a house that is being constructed Saturday near North Lockwood Avenue and North Laramie Avenue in Austin. Habitat for Humanity Chicago and the Cook County Land Bank Authority, in partnership with By The Hand Club, are building three single-family homes in Austin that will be owned by Austin residents.
Pat Nabong/Sun-Times