Class of the NFL

Earlier this year, New York Jets quarterback Mark Sanchez helped me make a portrait of his teammate Tony Richardson for Sports Illustrated.

Richardson is one of the classiest guys in the league. At 38, he’s considered one of the game’s “elder statesmen” and is widely respected by his peers. As a fullback, he’s blocked for some great NFL running backs over the years including Marcus Allen, Adrian Peterson, and LaDainian Tomlinson. He also gives much of his time off the field to local charities.

Since we were outdoors at Jets camp in Cortland, NY, I used my 1000 w/s Dynalites to overpower the sun. The main light was in a large softbox on camera right. I set my camera to tungsten white balance to force the background into a darker shade of blue. A warming gel over the strobe brought Tony back to a normal, slightly warm color.

I added two more bare strobes in the back to create the rim lights around his face and body. I didn’t gel those, so the tungsten white balance turned them a cool shade of blue.

I was doing the shoot as the other Jets players were coming off the practice field. A few guys were giving him some good natured ribbing about his age, but when quarterback Mark Sanchez walked by (Richardson could almost be his father!), he made a comment that this shoot should be for AARP, the magazine for retired people.

That got a big smile out of Tony and I got my photo.

(Nikon D3, 24-70, ISO 100, 1/250, f/14)

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