This is a photo of my digital team in action during a game. Usually the workflow is like this:
-1 person collates professional photos and uploads galleries
-1 person updates team website and other digital properties with custom code to make sure data feeds are firing
-1 person catalogs and cuts real-time video highlights and uploads them to social media channels
-1 person coordinates requests between the building's entertainment team and other internal stakeholders to make sure items such as advertisements and special requests are fulfilled
-1 person is creating custom graphics to embellish our properties - usually top plays or celebrity sightings
The NBA has led the way in professional sports when it comes to embracing out-of-the box methods for creative content. For example: The NBA sources artists to create their social media posts to keep the content varied and up to date with latest design trends. This tactic resulted in waterfall benefits for teams who sought to enhance their respective platforms. Each week, we held conference calls with all teams to discuss the latest tech trends. This was a huge benefit as I was able to test beta products and receive prompt assistance from the most well-known tech companies in the world.
I didn't forget about my photography. There was actually an increased need for behind-the-scenes photogalleries that only insiders could provide. I traveled with the team to cover the 2014 NBA Playoffs against the Golden State Warriors. This began a practice of sending talent with the team on road trips in order to augment our website and social media channels. Audiences wanted more than just game highlights, which any media outlet could provide.
Social media has been the largest growth area in my industry. When I first started, websites dominated. Fighting for share of someone's attention shifted to mobile devices, requiring us to adapt our content to be as agile as possible. Through many trials and errors, machine learning has become the weapon of choice when figuring out what keeps the audience's attention. This methodology allowed us to test and find the right content to post at the right time.
Every single game required a date/matchup post. This was routine so that anyone following us would know when to watch or buy a ticket. This is considered low-hanging fruit since we could produce these treated images well in advance of the schedule. The important takeaway is that each season, we would establish a style guide for all of our above-the-line and through-the-line marketing. The look on billboards or the website had to be unified, which made sense. Also had to make sure to properly position sponsored broadcast partners in our imagery.
Andrew Bernstein is the longest-tenured NBA photographer, having founded NBA Photos and currently serving as the principal photographer for the LA Lakers, LA Kings, LA Clippers, STAPLES Center and LA Live on behalf of the entertainment group AEG. I'm honored to share his professional circle, having worked almost every game with him. Our companies have partnered on many occasions, providing me an extended network of other photographers in the sports and entertainment space, including Noah Graham, the official photographer of the Golden State Warriors.
I took this image in the midst of the controversy from our former owner's racist comments, which resulted in his life-time ban from the NBA. The "fans" in the tunnel below were actually my LA Clippers coworkers, holding up signs in support of our players. This image was used in Bill Simmons' feature article on ESPN.com during the NBA Playoffs.
As a digital team employee, I had the unique hybrid position of being a member of the media for both the company and at-large. The inside access allowed my department to produce highly engaging content that earned numerous awards and partnerships with influencers and major entertainment, news and sports publications. I also was able to post my own event photos on our company platforms since I controlled the content that we deployed. You won't see my photo credit on the majority of galleries since the image rights are owned by the company. However, our platform became an appealing launch point for many artists who wanted to amplify their brand. It was a win-win: we got to post high-fidelity imagery on our channels while the talent grew his/her brand.
High-profile guests were a daily sighting at our games. The tell-tale sign was a higher number of credentials granted to photographers from outlets such as Getty Entertainment or Sports Illustrated. Pictured: James Goldstein. I've seen him at many of our games, though I was usually to busy setting up to linger. He just happened to walk in front of me.
I would often set up my equipment many hours prior to game tipoff. The STAPLES Center was constantly buzzing with workers preparing the building for the event. This image shows a technician from Turner Sports, preparing the robotic camera above the shot clock. He would hook up a remote to his television monitors in adjacent tunnels. So, if you're wondering how your over-the-top highlights get cut, this guy has been doing it for years.
One thing that the TV audience is almost always guaranteed to miss out on are the player routines during pregame warm-ups. Each player has their idiosyncrasies - almost to the point of superstition. I enjoyed watching them just to see if they'd deviate from routine.
This is a photo of my digital team in action during a game. Usually the workflow is like this:
-1 person collates professional photos and uploads galleries
-1 person updates team website and other digital properties with custom code to make sure data feeds are firing
-1 person catalogs and cuts real-time video highlights and uploads them to social media channels
-1 person coordinates requests between the building's entertainment team and other internal stakeholders to make sure items such as advertisements and special requests are fulfilled
-1 person is creating custom graphics to embellish our properties - usually top plays or celebrity sightings
The NBA has led the way in professional sports when it comes to embracing out-of-the box methods for creative content. For example: The NBA sources artists to create their social media posts to keep the content varied and up to date with latest design trends. This tactic resulted in waterfall benefits for teams who sought to enhance their respective platforms. Each week, we held conference calls with all teams to discuss the latest tech trends. This was a huge benefit as I was able to test beta products and receive prompt assistance from the most well-known tech companies in the world.
I didn't forget about my photography. There was actually an increased need for behind-the-scenes photogalleries that only insiders could provide. I traveled with the team to cover the 2014 NBA Playoffs against the Golden State Warriors. This began a practice of sending talent with the team on road trips in order to augment our website and social media channels. Audiences wanted more than just game highlights, which any media outlet could provide.
Social media has been the largest growth area in my industry. When I first started, websites dominated. Fighting for share of someone's attention shifted to mobile devices, requiring us to adapt our content to be as agile as possible. Through many trials and errors, machine learning has become the weapon of choice when figuring out what keeps the audience's attention. This methodology allowed us to test and find the right content to post at the right time.
Every single game required a date/matchup post. This was routine so that anyone following us would know when to watch or buy a ticket. This is considered low-hanging fruit since we could produce these treated images well in advance of the schedule. The important takeaway is that each season, we would establish a style guide for all of our above-the-line and through-the-line marketing. The look on billboards or the website had to be unified, which made sense. Also had to make sure to properly position sponsored broadcast partners in our imagery.
Andrew Bernstein is the longest-tenured NBA photographer, having founded NBA Photos and currently serving as the principal photographer for the LA Lakers, LA Kings, LA Clippers, STAPLES Center and LA Live on behalf of the entertainment group AEG. I'm honored to share his professional circle, having worked almost every game with him. Our companies have partnered on many occasions, providing me an extended network of other photographers in the sports and entertainment space, including Noah Graham, the official photographer of the Golden State Warriors.
I took this image in the midst of the controversy from our former owner's racist comments, which resulted in his life-time ban from the NBA. The "fans" in the tunnel below were actually my LA Clippers coworkers, holding up signs in support of our players. This image was used in Bill Simmons' feature article on ESPN.com during the NBA Playoffs.
As a digital team employee, I had the unique hybrid position of being a member of the media for both the company and at-large. The inside access allowed my department to produce highly engaging content that earned numerous awards and partnerships with influencers and major entertainment, news and sports publications. I also was able to post my own event photos on our company platforms since I controlled the content that we deployed. You won't see my photo credit on the majority of galleries since the image rights are owned by the company. However, our platform became an appealing launch point for many artists who wanted to amplify their brand. It was a win-win: we got to post high-fidelity imagery on our channels while the talent grew his/her brand.
High-profile guests were a daily sighting at our games. The tell-tale sign was a higher number of credentials granted to photographers from outlets such as Getty Entertainment or Sports Illustrated. Pictured: James Goldstein. I've seen him at many of our games, though I was usually to busy setting up to linger. He just happened to walk in front of me.
I would often set up my equipment many hours prior to game tipoff. The STAPLES Center was constantly buzzing with workers preparing the building for the event. This image shows a technician from Turner Sports, preparing the robotic camera above the shot clock. He would hook up a remote to his television monitors in adjacent tunnels. So, if you're wondering how your over-the-top highlights get cut, this guy has been doing it for years.
One thing that the TV audience is almost always guaranteed to miss out on are the player routines during pregame warm-ups. Each player has their idiosyncrasies - almost to the point of superstition. I enjoyed watching them just to see if they'd deviate from routine.