The Summer...

After what seems like a really long school year, I've finally wrapped up my college shooting for the year. Greek Yearbook, the company out of Baltimore I shoot for, has kept me pretty busy these past several months. I've been hopping between Daytona, Jacksonville, Tallahassee and even up into Georgia to Valdosta and Tifton (it's cool; they pay mileage). I knew I was shooting a lot for them, but I was surprised to learn that, of approximately 200 photographers around the country, I'm in their top 20 when it comes to production.

So, yeah, I can use a rest.

I also have only one more concert to shoot; well, at least that's what scheduled. I'll be shooting Styx, The Outlaws and .38 Special on May 14. If the schedule sticks, that'll be it for concerts for a while.

So, where do I go from there?

Well, Myrtle Beach sounds pretty good, doesn't it?

One of the companies I shoot for, Glossy Finish, specializes in youth sports. And, they just happen to own the concession at the Cal Ripken Baseball Experience in Myrtle Beach, SC. For eight weeks they'll provide photo coverage for tournaments and baseball camps. They're bringing three photographers up from Florida, and I was asked to be one of them.

 

 

Shooting a football tournament for Glossy Finish in Kissimmee, Florida...

 

Shooting for Glossy Finish is always a good time. The guys I'm shooting with (the ones I know, anyway) are total pros. Glossy Finish will be renting us a condo about five minutes from the beach and about ten minutes from the Ripken complex. As fun as that sounds, though, we're going up there to work. Despite being youth baseball, this is high level stuff with regards to product and output.

 

A typical table at the Glossy Finish trailer...

I'm expecting to be done with the gig in Myrtle Beach in time to get back to St. Augustine to start ramping up the college shooting again. If my luck holds out, this will be a recurring summer gig, so my shooting schedule will essentially be Greek Yearbook and Glossy Finish. Don't get me wrong, I won't be pickin' up a new Benz anytime soon, but those two companies represent the bulk of a not-too-shabby revenue stream.

Aside from baseball, Myrtle Beach will offer me the opportunity to see family and friends, as it's less than four hours from Greensboro, NC and just over three hours from Raleigh, NC. I have family in each, and it'll be good to see them.

So, the summer's planned out and it's not even the end of May.

I'm diggin' that...