That’s right, folks. Friday Favorites. I’m starting this new little feature to showcase work I’ve seen around the Internet that is wonderful, as well as any other things I might like (this week), find amusing, beautiful, sad, encouraging, etc.

Because what better way is there to end the week than spotlighting some things that inspire me and make me smile?

Let’s hit this thing off right:

Canon announced the 1D Mark IV. Que drooling and crooning over a camera body that is ENTIRELY too expensive for a newspaper shooter. (A girl can dream, though, right?) Here’s to hoping the AF isn’t wonky like the Mark IIIs were/are.

Tear alert: TIME showcases an amazing photo essay called “Strays to the Rescue” on their Web site, featuring images and clips from a new book (To the Rescue: Found Dogs with a Mission, by Elise Lufkin and photos by Diana Walker.) Check it out here.

To my AP Style-loving friends: @FakeAPStylebook has made me chuckle for the past day.

My friend, Crystal, has a featured intern diary up at Sportsshooter. While you’re at it, mosey on over to her SS page and Web site. You’ll be thankful you did.

AP shooter Brennan Linsley was quoted on the NYT Lens blog yesterday on the Pictures of the Day post. Not only are the images strong, but his words ring true about the impact of photography.

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To my shooter friends, have fun at high school football tonight. (I know I will!) And to everyone else, enjoy your evening off, whatever you may end up doing!

Happy Friday, everyone!

I spent a few hours Saturday afternoon on the sidelines of the Southern Miss-UVA game.

Despite me sweating profusely and then needing to CHUG three bottles of water at halftime, the game went really well. On the field and off. While I wasn’t around for the Southern Miss victory, I’m still VERY pleased with the images I made of the first half. And this set of images kicked my gallery from last week’s tail. Seriously.

To celebrate a good game of shooting, I updated my Sportsshooter page with some of my favorites.

And for more images from the game, check out my game day photo gallery on the Hattiesburg American Web site.

Enjoy!

Southern Miss outfielder Kameron Brunty signs a baseball and hands it back to Katharine Dobson as her son Trip, 4, stares up at Brunty in awe Wednesday afternoon at Pete Taylor Park. Southern Miss lost Tuesday afternoon to North Carolina, knocking them out of the College World Series. Despite the disappointing game, fans turned out to support the Eagles as they arrived back in Hattiesburg. (Photo by Erin Parker / The Hattiesburg American)

More photos of the Southern Miss homecoming can be found at the Hattiesburg American Web site.

(Also, isn’t the look on that kid’s face PRICELESS?)

I haven’t meant to, but I have neglected my SS page for a little while.

I fixed that tonight.

Check out the new update, complete with plenty of sporting events from the past month, here!

I’ve decided that I want to try to do something like a week in review after every week of work so I can show off some links and images. But since I’ve been so incredibly busy, this is going to be a lengthy update.

So you want to know what I’ve been doing?

Yesterday, I photographed some track and field action at a local high school. You can see the photo gallery here.

West Jones High School's Taneeya Naylor competes in the high jump Tuesday afternoon during the track meet at Hattiesburg High School's D.I. Patrick Stadium. (Erin Parker / The Hattiesburg American)

I also went to a technical center to check out what was going on there. The photo gallery can be found here, and if you’re feeling ambitious, check out the story. It’s really interesting.

Purvis High School student Tyler Graham, 17, measures the battery voltage of Sparky the robot Tuesday morning during his electronics class at the Lamar County Technical Center in Purvis, Miss. The number of students taking technical training in the county schools has almost double during the past year. (Erin Parker / The Hattiesburg American)

Monday, I went to a local library to photograph an assignment pertaining to Dr. Seuss’s birthday. It was incredibly visual, and I had a great time. The photo gallery is named Oak Grove Celebrates Dr. Seuss’s Birthday, and here is one of my favorite images from the event:

Abby Hammons, 4, steps closer as she and other children listen to Lee Richards, not pictured, read a Dr. Seuss book Monday morning during the Dr. Seuss Birthday Celebration at the Oak Grove Public Library. Stories were read aloud and children played games and ate cake with ice cream during the party. (Erin Parker / The Hattiesburg American)

Being one of three staff photographers (and being the photographer on the switch shift from weekends to weekdays), I have worked a lot recently. There are quite a few photo galleries up on the HA’s Web site to show for what I’ve been up to. Some of these are old, but I haven’t posted them here, so feel free to browse around and check them all out.

Southern Miss vs. Memphis men’s basketball (02/14)
PCS vs. East Rankin girls’ basketball (02/14)
Southern Miss Coca-Cola Classic Rodeo (02/14)
Southern Miss vs. Florida A&M men’s tennis (02/15)
Oak Grove students plant tulips (02/19)
OGMS Mardi Gras Parade (02/20)
Southern Miss vs. Lehigh baseball (02/20, 02/21 and 02/22)
Mystic Krewe of Zeus Coronation (02/21)
Miss University of Southern Mississippi (02/21)
Mardi Gras Blowout Drag Racing (02/22)
PRCC vs. JCJC men’s basketball (02/25)
Continental Drive fire (02/25)
Southern Miss vs. UAB women’s basketball (02/26)
Oak Grove vs. Petal baseball (02/27)
Black Heritage Parade (02/28)
Day of Dance at Southern Miss (02/28)
Forrest County Junior Miss (02/28)
Southern Miss vs. Memphis women’s basketball (02/28)
City of Hattiesburg 125th Anniversary Prayer Service (03/01)
Southern Miss vs. ULL baseball (03/01)
William Carey vs. Bellevue baseball (03/02)

Happy Wednesday, folks! Expect to see some changes/additions to the regular Web site in the coming days, as I am on furlough and will be going home to Memphis for the time.

Last week was ridiculously busy.

Check it out!

Photo Galleries.
USM vs. Houston women’s basketball
Petal HS band returns home from Inauguration
Historic Hattiesburg Downtown Association’s annual meeting
Local inauguration events

And you can see my S.E. Moore video here. (He was a really interesting interview.)