I have not been writing on Substack for a while because I’ve been spending my time focused on photography and videography. Specifically, I’ve been playing the role of Proud Dad as I watch my two sons play competitive sports and capture it through photo and video. It is a true joy to watch them compete, grow and develop as athletes and young men. I absolutely love the lessons they get to learn through sports, and I love that the avenue of sports comes in a language simple enough to understand deeper concepts - like dedication, grit, perseverance, sacrifice, and resilience.
The video above are photos I took this fall of my son, who is a small high school freshman trying to compete against kids much bigger, stronger, and faster than he is. So for him to compete, he really has to WANT it. And that WANT is something I can capture in photo and have Deon Sanders narrate (in the audio of the above reel- I had fun putting that together)! He ended up making his High Scool JV team and fought hard all season to earn a starting spot and become a key contributor to the team. And I got a front row seat to that whole development process and got to document it.
What I really love about capturing their sports footage, is that I can snap the moments where I see them at their best and have an actual picture of it, like the shot below of my younger son the lacrosse goalie.
Both of my sons have been undervalued as athletes because of their size; so being able to document their grit and their resilience and show it as a way of letting them know that I see their value and I SEE them is a precious gift. I see their heart and their effort, and I get to create something meaningful out of that process - that is a pure blessing that I am extremely grateful for.
My younger son is a serious middle school lacrosse goalie. He’s pretty tiny compared to all of his teammates and opposing teams (and lacrosse has some big ‘uns!). One of the things I’ve discovered by being immersed in youth sports for a number of years, is that “Elite” athletes, especially in middle school, are overwhelmingly big bullies. Particularly in lacrosse, but also in soccer, there’s a certain competetive advantage to being a bully and beating on smaller and weaker kids. So the fact that my 98 pound seventh grader stands tall when a 6 foot goliath fires a hard rubber ball at his head, it’s hard not to get dramatic about it. In fact this winter, that exact thing happened and a very large eigth grader fired a ball so hard at my son’s head that the ball got wedged into his face-guard and bent its frame.
So I try to capture that intensity and that grit and fight. In the video below I made a highlight reel of him to a song that I think perfectly describes his mentality as a goalie:
I publish these reels on Instagram, and it’s given me a new appreciation for social media as a way to stay connected and engaged with my boys. In the end, I clearly chreish this time that I get to spend with my sons and cheer them on. It is a great gift, and I’ll stay fully immersed in it as long as it lasts! Go Blue!
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