I have been graciously shooting for the Houston Rockets (and man, I’m about to go ham (drew 🙂 blogging about it (as long as they’re approved!) I recently found myself standing in front of Trevor Ariza (one of our Rocket’s players) with his beautiful family. Trevor’s stunning lady, Bree had reached out to me after Sarah, who is too legit to quit there at the Rockets recommended me. I was honored man, it’s not everyday I get to photograph a professional athlete in my favor sport of all time, ever, no really, I mean, ever. Basketball. The coolest part was that it was with his family, in an everyday environment. We met downtown at Discovery Green and the minute we all warmed up, the kids got explosive. You could definitely tell that pops gets them the good shoes, you know the ones that make you run faster and jump higher. Had me missing my L.A Gear light-up shoes for sure! This shoot stuck with me, surprisingly less for the superman status of Trevor being an NBA player and more for the bond this family had. It was undeniable in Bree’s show-stopping smile, in Trevor’s relaxed nature and in the kid’s happiness, even when big brother was playing hard ball with the smiles. They had this headspace full of humor and inside jokes that had me awe-struck.
You know, I’ll be the first to say that too much of any one thing has a way of catching up with you quick, and I have been photographing a lot these past few months. Something in this shoot, in that day and how they interacted has me full of inspiration to be better at what I do. It has me feeling grateful that all the time I’ve spent (since shooting threes for a no-name college basketball team) learning that camera made this moment possible.
It’s a scary place to forget where you came from and I’m passionate to let myself hang in the moments that remind me to appreciate every moment of what I’m doing and what I have, especially when they appreciate me back. The experiences I’ve been having with the people at the Rockets has slowed my heart full of dreams down, kept me grounded and in a never-ending state of gratitude. I’m so lucky they like my photos and care enough to recommend me down the line. As much as I feel like getting emotional the way Ty Hilton did for the Colts in his recent Interview  about how beautiful life is, (Drew, ha!) I’ll try to keep my mind right here and end on a note of thanks to Bree and Trevor, Sarah and Jose, Chris and Larry because that’s where I came from to be at this shoot! You’re one hell of a great looking family and awesome to be around. Thank you guys for the opportunity and I hope you enjoy!
My music muse while editing these photos in case you all would like a new little “diddy” –>
