I had a great gig this past week. I was hired to shoot P.R. photos and stock for a new street basketball team called 94 Inc., 94 being how many feet between the baselines of a basketball court. We had a couple of tiring 12 hour days but I wished the shoot would never end.
The players I met were the greatest group of guys on the planet and incredibly talented athletes. It is cool watching a company start from the ground up, the team went to a boys & girls club and talked with the kids, performed for them and even played a little 1 on 1 with some of them. They will perform for charities, create a clothing line and have episodes on MTV, showing them play and what goes on behind the scenes, documentary style.
We shot portraits on the Mississippi riverfront, in a studio, at a cool older YMCA gym, on a basketball court in a park, at a shopping mall, working out, and a t a club for a launch party for the company. You can probably tell how much fun I had, but I will let my assistant Jeff Curry give you his take on the shoot: Unforgettable is the only word that can describe the 94 Inc. photo shoots. I have been working with Scott for almost two years now and have been on plenty of photo shoots with him. Usually we set up lights, shoot the subjects for maybe 30 minutes if we are lucky, then break it all down and leave. Working with the 94 Inc. guys was like being in a bizarro world of sports photo shoots. The guys were as nice as could be and willing to do anything we asked of them, and they would have let us shoot for four or five hours if we asked. When Scott showed them photos, these guys’ eyes lit up like it was Christmas morning and they were 6 years old, and this reminded me of why we do what we do.
The photo shoots were amazing, but the public appearance the group did was the most satisfying part of the two days. These guys talked with kids from the boys and girls club, and watching them interact with these kids was unforgettable. They are the type of role models that kids need. These two epic days reminded me of why I love photography. Support 94 Inc. because they are the type of company that this country needs.
Well, that about says it all, this shoot was definitely a 3 pointer at the buzzer to win the big game!
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