I like creating photos that athletes just won't get anywhere else. When is the last time you saw a photographer creating images that look like fire behind the athlete, while on location? The reason that I do this, is that so every photo doesn't look exactly the same. If you see images from photographers who add flames later in Photoshop, then the background will look the same on every image.

I worked with the athletes at James Kenan High School to create their senior banners. I thought it would be unique and different to have a fire look in the background. I knew that I couldn't set anything on fire, while working with athletes, so I used the next best thing. Light! I have a set of tools that allow me to create streaks of light behind the athletes while they stood still. The light looks very much like real fire!

The athletes had to stand still for several seconds while I waved the "fire" behind them. Originally I had a real looking red, orange and yellow light that looked like real fire, however the coach requested that I change the color to "James Kenan yellow", as they didn't want  the flame color to resemble any colors from their rival schools.

I used a blend of flash and light tools to get the desired look of light flames. I had to make sure that the poses that the athletes chose, weren't too wide or tall since they were going to be on a 2 foot wide banner. 

I look forward to working with all the athletes at James Kenan High School later in the year!