All over social media, you’ll find content from Lake Forest Scouts Athletics. Whether it’s lacrosse, basketball, football, or baseball, almost every game seems to be photographed these days. But many people don’t realize who’s behind the lens and why.
Photos can not only capture images, but also moments. The athletes and parents of athletes love these images so they can have memories from the games.
“My mom loves pictures of games. She is always scrolling through the folders, finding pictures of me playing so she can show them off to her friends,” senior Ryan Valentincic said.
These images also serve as a marketing tool for the sports teams. These student photographers tend to post their work on social media and tag the athletes. The athletes often choose to repost these images which really helps the photographers gain a larger audience.
“When athletes repost my images, I always get a couple more followers, which really helps,” senior Arjan Jawanda said. “A simple repost can go a long way.”
Junior Preston Lui agrees with Jawanda’s statement.
“I got into photography around the sophomore year of winter break. I just came across my dad’s old camera and I asked him if I could start taking photos with his camera for hockey games,” Lui said.
Jawanda recounts first getting into photography at a basketball game when he saw Precoo.
“I decided to ask him for his camera during halftime to mess around with it and see how taking pictures was. I ended up falling in love with it the minute I did. Since then, all I wanted to do was get the perfect shot of the perfect moment. It’s like an obsession, you could say,” Jawanda said.
Jawanda needed something to do after the football season ended, but didn’t know what it was initially.
“I knew I wanted to stay around sports, but couldn’t pinpoint what. I tried shooting at a game on someone else’s setup and loved it. I knew it was what I wanted to fill my time with. I locked in with Joel, and he taught me everything I know. Ever since then, it’s been locked in,” Jawanda said.
Through the lens, these student photographers are capturing pictures as well as the spirit of Lake Forest athletics. Their impact is truly seen and appreciated by the whole community.
