There’s this weird alternate reality I think about sometimes where when I put my dad’s SLR down after high school I never picked a camera up again.
Where I never decided two years ago I wanted to give sports photography a shot.
Where I never showed up to places and events I hadn’t been before, asked if it was okay if I took pictures, and tried to be my bravest, share my pictures and say “I hope you like them.”
Two years ago when I dreamed of “doing photography,” and especially sports photography, I imagined epic moments and cool photos. I feel lucky that I’ve had a lot of those experiences and pictures. But what I never imagined was the people and relationships I’d get out of it.
I would’ve missed out on the fellow photographers who cheer you on, give you feedback, commiserate over the silliest things and become your favorite people. The fellow female photographers who share the excitement to see another woman behind a lens. The athletes who become friends. Everyone in the communities who become family. I would’ve missed out on so many of the relationships I hold so closely now.
What a terrible alternate reality that could’ve been.
(Oh and here’s a few of my favorite late night BYM shots, more coming later.)
I’ve romanticized things my entire life.
Moments, people, events, situations. This has worked both to my benefit and detriment 🤣
There’s what I physically see in the moment as it happens and then there’s what I visualize mentally while it’s happening. In my mind things happen a little slower. The lighting sparkles a little more, the contrast between lights and darks is more drastic and the moments have palpable feeling.
It’s almost like the difference between when you’re breathing normally during your day to day and never notice your breathing compared to when you’re nervous or excited and all of a sudden all you can focus on is the beat of your own heart and the sensation of your exhales. The act of breathing and your heart beating has been there all along… but now they have a feeling you are aware of, they may have a sound, and they have an actual impact on the way you feel.
Practicing shooting differently in the same exact scenarios week after week in the same exact location has helped me bring the romanticized view of the world I have into the pictures I’m trying to create in all scenarios, on and off the track.
Your current experience might be that you’re feeling like dying while you run seemingly endless laps around a dark red track. My point of view of that experience is that your sweat sparkles when the sun hits on the northeast corner of the track. Your strides open up when you run past a speaker or a cheering pace group. The shadows and the contrast in the south curve feel moody and intense while the haziness and streaming of the sun make everything on the north bend a little happier and warmer.
Every repetitive, seemingly mundane step acts differently in different circumstances… how romantic is that?! ✨
Running is simple. Being a runner can be complicated.
Relationships with running can be complicated and our relationships can be complicated, because of running.
I fell in love with running. I fell in love, while running.
I’ve been heartbroken by running. I’ve been brokenhearted and kept running.
I’ve hated my body and ran because of it. I’ve ran and because of it, loved my body.
I’ve run too much and hurt myself. I’ve been hurt and ran so much it helped the hurt.
I’ve gone on runs to sort out my thoughts. I’ve listened to music on runs to drown them out.
I’ve thought I needed to run to find answers to my questions. I’ve figured out the answers and kept running from them.
My life wouldn’t be what it is without running. But without running, I’d still have life.
Running can be simple. Running can be complicated. And it’s all okay.
Happy (belated) global running day 🫶🏼
A moment in time. 4/5 of a second, to be precise.
Low key this is wild to me. You check your phone, pause, take a break for four fifths of a second and look how much movement happens around you.
The more exhausted everyone gets the more acute the angles of hands on knees become.
Accidental lost files on the overflow memory card. Forever Bob Rossing it out here 👩🏼🎨 #happyaccidents
Representation matters. Often when we hear this it’s in reference to the presence and participation of people in spaces where we often may not see them - whether because of their gender, race, ethnicity, sexual orientation, age, body size, ability status and more. Representation also matters in the way people are represented by others - visually and linguistically.
In 2018 the IOC put out portrayal guidelines for media outlets when covering the Olympics (and then updated them in 2021). They focused on five main categories of portrayal: content and editorial, imagery, language and terminology, coverage and airtime, and interviews and commentary. The guidelines (though missing many opportunities for emphasis on intersectionality) provide helpful context and action steps for media personnel to consider when covering sports.
I have a lot of room to grow across all five areas of portrayal and I’m sure I will forever. Here’s a few of my favorite practices I use in an attempt to constantly improve:
- Audit yourself on the basics. Look at your albums, socials, and raws often. Actually run and calculate your own stats. How many men vs. women do I shoot, do I edit and do I share? Do racial groups have equal representation across my content? Am I sharing diverse body sizes and shapes?
- Audit yourself on your tone and tendencies. Am I capturing certain groups of people with smiles and joy vs. certain groups with grit and intensity? Am I capturing looks (jewelry, makeup, hair) of only some groups vs. others?
- Before shooting, remind yourself of what you’ve learned from doing the audits. If still trying to break some shooting habits, set an alarm on your phone mid event to recalibrate yourself.
- Evaluate language used when captioning. Is my tone consistent across groups? Is my language biased? Audit the words used in captions written about men vs. women, about subjects who belong to different racial and ethnic groups, about athletes who are at different paces or levels of performance. Keep a list of words you don’t want to use. Keep a list of adjectives without undertone or additional meaning.
Here’s to forward movement - both in sport and sport portrayal ✌🏼
Started giving myself themes to @ne_trackclub track nights. It forces me to get creative and stop taking the same shots.
Tonight’s theme was “over, under, around and behind” and at one point I wound up shooting practically from inside the bathroom under the bleachers… so I’d say we got creative 😅
Cardozo, your red/orange track with purple bleachers and bright green grass will probably not be missed when it comes time to edit. But the memories and fun had on those wild colors will last forever!
