How Lao Photography

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How Lao Photography

Howard Lao is a photographer based in the Pacific Northwest with an emphasis on sports photography

Howard Lao is a photographer based in the Pacific Northwest with an emphasis on sports
photography and the surrounding athletic lifestyle. Born and raised in Portland, Oregon, he ran track at Cleveland High School and continued his athletic career by running collegiately at the University of Washington. Howard discovered his passion for photography his senior year at the UW taking photos in between his own races, for teammates and friends. Howard combines his background as a Division 1 athlete with his photography, capturing the essence of athletes and the moments that bring fans closer to the competition. His clients include Sports Camp of America (Japan), athletic apparel & shoe companies, professional athletes, and his alma mater, the University of Washington athletic programs.

10/19/2026

I did a running photoshoot out in the Oregon woods & I wanted to test out this new device called PIXELMOB - It can tether, backup your images, cull, edit directly and share on set.

Exclusive link: https://dada.link/Dx-5Yt

🚀 PixelMob’s Kickstarter campaign is coming to an end! Get PixelMob at its lowest price on Kickstarter, with up to 31% off MSRP. 🎁 Back now and get a free Protective Storage Pouch with your order! The campaign ends on October 26, and prices will increase afterward. Don’t miss your chance to get the best deal before it’s gone! 🔥

Thanks to PixelMob for sponsoring

10/06/2026

Testing out the viral SmallRig monopod - Here’s 5 things that I love about it 👀

1️⃣: How easy it is to deploy and adjust the monopod with one simple squeeze of the handle. You can make micro adjustments as you see fit. No more fumbling for adjustments.
No more twisting and locking. By far the smoothest action on the market

2️⃣: The monopod comes with optional legs that you can flip out - making it one of the sturdiest base on the market. Which combining with 4️⃣ makes this into a multi use monopod not just for cameras.

3️⃣: With a simple twist you can change this monopod other configurations like into a low angle Hi-Hat tripod. Great for videographers. And yes, you can remove the feet, and just have a standard carbon fiber monopod.

4: With a built in ¼ threaded holes you can attach a magic arm directly into the monopod which then allows you to attach additional accessories like cell phones, monitors, and hotspots.
Personally the shotlist on the cellphone would be helpful, as well as just using it as a phone stand for content,

5: I’ve used countless monopods - The overall build of this is a perfect balance between weight & function. Is there “cheaper” & “lighter” monopods out there? Of course!! But you are missing out on a ton of features, hence why I think this is a good balance between it all.

Thank you SmallRig for sending this for me to review!

09/15/2026

Over the weekend I went up to Seattle & had the opportunity to photograph the NWSL match between the Reign & Bay FC for Getty Images x NWSL ‼️ What a great learning experience & fun.

09/11/2026

Added a little portable smoke machine to my bag - and I’m honestly very impressed with the results it gives to your images.

Some BTS of the test shoot I recently did with the PMI SmokeNINJAPro! 💨

Here’s 3 things I like about it;

-Portability: 162 x 61 x 36 mm / 180g net weight this thing is small enough to pack away in your bag and light enough for anyone to just hand hold. You can also tuck it away behind objects.

-Plug & Play: While it may look like there’s a lot of steps & it’s hard to pull off it’s actually very straight forward out of the box with countless combo mounts & smoke styles. Paired seamlessly with the included Bluetooth remote control & I love the USB C charging ability (one less charger to bring)

-Price: Well under $200 USD this is serious good value for the build and ODORLESS smoke. Hard to beat this price point for the quality you are getting.

I loved how the smoke really added to the light & setting. This shoot was done with 1 flash & the sun on a R5mkii & 24-105 F2.8

A big thank you to for PMI for sending me a unit to test.

09/07/2026

The new stadium set the bar extremely high for my images. There was an expectation to be deliver that vibe & capture creative images at a Major League level. So here are some of my favorite quiet moments in the dugout before the goosebumps of a walk off & getting soaked in the classic cooler dump.

As I wrap up my 4th season with the team I want to say
THANK YOU to the players, coaches, front office & the fans for making my time covering this team FUN.

GEAR:
Canon R5mkii & Canon R6mkiii + 16-35 F2.8 / 24-105 F2.8 / 85 F1.4 / 100-300 F2.8

09/03/2026

I recently had some questions from students about football photography / sports photography - I think this clip is the perfect example to help answer two of the most common questions from this NFL Week 1 49ers vs Seahawks rivalry game.

✨ How fast is the action & what gear do I use?✨

Oh the ACTION is fast as you can see, but that’s just almost all sports photography. It’s why I love doing it! Things happen in a blink of an eye, so you have to stay locked in on the action….. Which means knowing your gear & ready for the action! No fumbling on the sidelines!!

Which brings me to GEAR… Gear is always “tricky”, and the beautiful thing is there’s really not one correct answer. It depends on what YOU want? Same with the monopod or no monopod? What kind of shot do you want to get? I made the decision long before the game what my setup was [I was using a 100-300 F2.8 & 16-35 F2.8] Especially since I like the “drop” and switch on a different look. If you want a wide shot, then get ready for a wide shot (which means 100mm in focal length.

Hopefully you like this little Throwback Thursday educational post. Have fun & keep up the reps!

08/29/2026

Photogs; Don’t be afraid to raise your ISO/bring up the noise & grain if the shot calls for it - The shot I was going for was framing the moon as the baseball. I wanted to get it either being thrown, tossing up in the air, and the glove touching it. This was already in the last two innings & not only was the moon literally moving but we had a game to close out (so no, I can’t tell players to pose or be still).

1/1250 F22 and the ISO on this was 64000; on a Canon R5mkii and a 100-300 F2.8

Always be creative & try fun shots - even if they don’t work out it’s important to try.

08/17/2026

The Rockstar Open event at the Portland Waterfront brings together amateurs to Olympians 🛹 - It’s such a fun event to capture, and I had a good time challenging myself getting unique shots from the media moat.

Photos for Sport Oregon

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1580 E 15th Ave
Eugene, OR
97403

Website

http://www.howlaophotography.com/

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