Media Day is an exciting day for sports fans and athletes. It’s when teams come together ahead of the start of the season for press conferences, as well as to take photos that are used throughout the season during games and for marketing. It’s an event, a bit like the first day of school.
A sports fan himself, Los Angeles-based photographer Erik Isakson loves Media Day and was delighted when hired to take portraits of the LA Clippers in their new City Edition uniforms ahead of last year’s basketball season.
Sports teams typically keep everything in-house, from marketing to photography, but will reach out to freelancers for special projects. Back in 2019, Erik was introduced to the Clippers marketing team through their chief global partnerships officer, Scott Sonnenberg, and they all had a meeting to brainstorm ways they could work together in the future. It wasn’t until two years later, with just a few days’ notice, that the marketing team hired Erik for Media Day.
The pre-production happened fast and furious. I got a call on a Wednesday from [Creative Director] Tarek Awad asking if I was available the following Sunday and Monday to shoot this for their media day event…I immediately got to work fine tuning the details.
The photoshoot took place at the Clippers’ training facility in West Los Angeles. During the day, there were many portrait stations with multiple photographers that the athletes rotated through, such as the traditional portrait station, where they were photographed in their normal dark blue uniforms. Erik’s station was a little more special. The athletes were surprised on set with brand new City Edition uniforms, inspired by when the team was the Buffalo Braves in the 1970s and then the San Diego Clippers until the mid-’80s.
There were three aspects to this shoot. The first exciting part is that these new uniforms were literally revealed to the athletes on set for the first time. So I had one camera going to document their reactions as they walked on set to see them.
The athletes then changed into the new uniforms and Erik took portraits of them on two different sets — one against a white 9-foot seamless backdrop and one in front of a smaller 4.5-foot backdrop that revealed the Los Angeles cityscape behind them. The goal for the images was to look like bright, sunny California.
The only room available for Erik to shoot at the Clippers’ training facility was a rooftop patio, which was tricky given that there were two different sets and the lighting had to be consistent throughout the day.
We needed complete control of the light. We did have two 12X12 duvateens set up above each set so no stray light would enter in case the sun came out, but we lucked out with a cloudy day.
The day before, Erik and the crew — which consisted of his photo assistant Rob Stephen and several people from the Clippers’ creative and marketing teams — had a pre-light day to fine-tune the various light scenarios and plans for the workflow.
Unfortunately since we were set up outside, we had to remove the gear overnight and set up again early the next morning. The outdoor aspect also required extra safety measures, tying off stands and extra sandbags so that the breeze wouldn’t affect us.
Once on set with the players, Erik knows how to cultivate a relaxed atmosphere. He starts by introducing himself to the athletes and letting them know exactly what they are there to accomplish. Erik has huge sample images printed out so they immediately know what poses he wants from them.
I try to keep the set fun and loose while being respectful of their time and gaining their trust that this is a worthwhile moment for all involved. We had music playing and each athlete came in one by one as they rotated through the different stations.
Erik had just ten minutes with each athlete to cycle through the uniform reveal and two sets, not to mention the video crew that jumped in at the end to capture a few moments.
It was very fast-paced, but with all the proper planning it flowed smoothly. To be honest, these sorts of shoots are why I love my job so much. I genuinely have so much fun and love the adrenaline rush along the way.
I can read an athlete pretty quickly by their body language just how excited they are to be there or not. Obviously, they’re pros and can do anything I want them to do athletically. The really fun athletes add their own flair to it and improvise.
Reggie Jackson was apparently a crackup. He came on set and had a big, excited reaction when he saw the new uniforms for the first time.
He was all smiles throughout. He was joking with another player when I captured that big laugh. Those are the best moments, the unplanned, natural ones in-between shots. I’m always looking for those authentic reactions.
I’ve been photographing athletes a long time and there’s a pretty clear divide between the athletes who are just on a shoot out of obligation versus the athletes who show up with an understanding of personal branding and give it their all, even if just for a few minutes.
No matter the energy that each athlete is bringing to set, Erik tries to establish any connection he can.
I always try to do my homework and mention something about a game or their life that’s interesting, so it breaks the ice.
Erik also received a surprise on set when the star of the team Kawhi Leonard turned up.
The marketing team had warned me that Kawhi might not show up at our station for photos, and if he did, he may not change into the new uniform out of time constraints. He did show up and was a baller all 10 minutes.
Erik himself is a big sports fan and has a sincere love for sports lifestyle photography and capturing these talented athletes in dynamic moments.
I love telling their story or capturing their personality in some small way. If they can forget I’m there for a moment and they can be themselves then I’ve done my job.
See more of Erik’s work on his website.
Credits
Creative Director: Tarek Awad
Graphic Designer: Lisa Kay
Content Strategy: Tommy Zweibel
Director of Marketing & Brand Strategy: Tricia Teschke
Chief Global Partnerships Officer: Scott Sonnenberg
Photo Assistant: Rob Stephen
Further Reading
To read more about Erik’s projects visit our Published blog.
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