Last week I was at the McGlynn School in Medford for a very special event. One of the teachers at the school was receiving the annual Milken Award for teaching excellence. It was a big secret but i was able to find out what was going on when I got there and who the recipient was. This inside knowledge was critical in getting the shots I did. I was able to get shots that none of the other news media got because I placed myself in the perfect or near perfect spot to get the shot. As the ceremony began I moved over to the side where the teacher was located. As luck would have it he was sitting amongst his students. The kids were very excited and once they new that one of their teachers would be winning $25,000 they were hanging all over this one teacher. Anthony Petrelis is his name and when his name was announced his students were even more excited. I was in a great spot behind the seated guests. I was able to make some great shots with the 7D and the 70-200 but soon the folks in front of me stood and got in the way. As Petrelis moved up to the front I moved opposite of all the news media and placed myself in a great position to get a shot of the principal giving Petrelis a big hug - no one else had this angle. As I finished making my shots, my good friend Stan Forman (shooting video for Ch. 5 in Boston) came over and said "you must have some great shots from where you were. I was right next to you". So here are the shots made that day I was pretty happy with what I got. The ISO on the 7D was set at 1600 and the 5D at 2000. The shutter speeds ranged from 125 to 160 and the aperture was constant at 2.8. This was a great assignment and I had a great time getting these emotional images. Another perk of the job.

Canon 7D w/70-200 f2.8LMcGlynn Elementary School fifth grade teacher Anthony Petrelis, center, waits for the Milken Award announcement as second grade student Lara Madkhali with her hand on his shoulder and fifth grade student Jonathan Dias, right, wait as well Wednesday, Oct. 8, 2014.

Canon 7D w/70-200 f2.8LMcGlynn Elementary School teacher Anthony Petrelis reacts to winning the Milken Foundation Award during a ceremony at the school Wednesday, October 8, 2014.

Canon 7D w/70-200 f2.8LMcGlynn Elementary School teacher Anthony Petrelis reacts to winning the Milken Foundation Award as fifth grader Jonathan Dias congratulates him during a ceremony at the school Wednesday, October 8, 2014.

Canon 5D Mk3 w/24-70 f2.8LMcGlynn Elementary School principal Diane Guarino congratulates fifth grade teacher Anthony Petrelis after he won the prestigous Milken Award Wednesday, Oct. 8, 2014.

Canon 5D Mk3 w/24-70 f2.8LMcGlynn Elementary School fifth grade teacher Anthony Petrelis, right, looks at the giant check that represents his award as Elaine Swain and Lucille Feragamo former award winners from Massachusetts in the year 2000 hold it for him after he won the prestigious Milken Award Wednesday, Oct. 8, 2014. Dr. Jane Foley of the Milken Awards looks on.

Canon 5D Mk3 w/24-70 f2.8LMcGlynn Elementary School fifth grade teacher Anthony Petrelis is mobbed by students after he won the prestigous Milken Award Wednesday, Oct. 8, 2014.