Author: Chris Smith

What can I say…10 hours a day…10 days straight…10,000 images! I just get such an adrenaline rush out of covering the Family Circle Cup each year. I don’t know if it would be as exciting if I wasn’t a tennis player. But I relish the opportunity to challenge myself and stretch my photographic capabilities. As the final Tier 1 event played on clay before the French Open, all the top players are there. In like fashion, all the top sports photographers are drawn like bees to a beehive. The media tent is a constant buzz of activity. Photographers and writers are rushing from one match to the next, trying to stay on the edge of the latest developments…an upset of a big star, a rising new talent, an emotional meltdown, a fist-pumping moment of triumph. As the Official Photographer of the tournament, it’s my job to provide the most comprehensive coverage possible. On top of all the court action, I get to cover exclusive, behind-the-scenes events that most of the media doesn’t even know about…the player’s ice-cream social…the baby shower for Jennifer Russell (one of the players who just found out she’s pregnant and will be retiring after this tournament)…the Meredith Inspiration Award with Mary Pierce…the Lacoste fashion show with Natalie Dechy and Luke Jensen…the Player’s Party at Saks Fifth Avenue where the players trade in their sports clothes for fashion outfits and their competitive spirits for camaraderie and friendship. All in all, it’s a CRAZY hectic week, but I love it! You can see more of my photos and purchase your tickets for next year’s tournament at www.familycirclecup.com.

I got a call early this month from my friends at Charleston Magazine (http://www.charlestonmag.com/), asking me to photograph the spring color at Middleton Place for an up-coming article about Sidney Frazier, the head gardner. Well, as you know, peak season is almost over by then! And with a full spring schedule already on the books, I was a little worried that we’d miss it. But when I finally got out there about a week later, my worries went away. It was absolutely BEAUTIFUL. Sidney was fantastic to work with. He’s from Africa. So we had that in common and were able to discuss some African history and politics. He’s also been at Middleton Place (http://www.middletonplace.org/) a very long time and was able to share all kinds of neat information with me about the plantation. If you haven’t been, go visit there next spring!

I recently had the privaledge of photographing Channing Proctor, champion of The Charleston Miracle League (www.charlestonmiracleleague.org) for a supplemental issue of the Charleston Regional Business Journal. The Charleston Miracle League is an organization whose mission is to offer accessible recreational opportunities for all children with physical and mental challenges so they can participate firsthand, as team members, in an organized baseball league. Their spring season had just kicked off and Channing was very excited about how well things were going. In the article, he was being honored as one of the “40 Under 40”, which is a pretty big deal hear in town. It honors the 40 top business men & women under 40 years of age. Each of them was asked to bring to their portrait session something that was representative of an activity, value, or past-time that was important to them. Of course Channing brought an old baseball bat. I also photographed the other 39 winners and really got a kick out of all the props they brought in. I saw everything from rock-climbing shoes to german shephards!

Corporate Events are always a lot of fun! These are usually Awards Presentations or Banquets to honor employees for a job well done. So, naturally everybody’s in a good mood! And as long as their photographer is fast, friendly, and professional…they STAY in that good mood. This event was no different. The Daimler Crysler Corporation had flown all these over-acheivers into town for a huge banquet at the prestigious Charleston Place Hotel. We had been asked to take portraits of each of the decked-out couples, print the photo on site, put them in nice waterford crystal frames, and have them on display for them to take home that evening. No problem, right? Well…come to find out there were 120 couples and Chrysler had given us less than an hour to do it in! Needless to say, I have never photographed so fast. But the portraits came out great….we had them on display in time…the guests loved them, and everybody was AMAZED that we had them finished so quickly!!! You gotta love it when a plan comes together…

I’ve been photographing the Family Circle Cup woman’s professional tennis tournament for the last five years in a row for various publications. In 2005 I was asked to be on that esteemed crew of “Official Photographers” for the tournament. That was an honor in itself! So imagine how elated I was when Robin Reynolds, the Tournament Director, called to tell me that one of my images had been selected for this year’s BANNER!!! The Banner is a 4-story tall display of the previous year’s champion that hangs from the top of the stands outside Center Court Stadium. It’s literally 40-feet tall x 47-feet wide! As we gear up for this year’s tournament, April 8th-15th, I am humbled by this great honor. And I feel privileged to be a part of this incredible sporting event and the amazingly talented photographers who literally work around the clock during that week to capture all the excitement and bring it to the fans!

The Southern Conference (www.SoConSports.com) has been providing academic and athletic excellence since 1921. This year, the SoCon Basketball Championships were held at the Charleston Coliseum! One of the sponsors for the event was the Charleston Metro Sports Council. I’ve known and worked with their wonderful Executive Director, Kathleen Cartland, for several years. So it was a pleasure to photograph these championships for her! The Sports Insider is fantastic high-gloss magazine published by the Charleston Metro Sports Council. If you enjoy sports in the lowcountry, I highly recommend picking up a copy! The tournament was full of energy…the Wildcats won it for the first time since 2002…and this shot of a gaggle of cheerleaders really captured the exuberant emotion of the moment!

Over the years I’ve had the good fortune of being able to photograph a few celebrities. But NONE as funny as Steve Harvey! In addition to being a movie star, having his own clothing line, and appearing in his sit-com, Steve still does stand up comedy. Early this month I was asked to photography the Annual Awards Banquet for Prudential Carolina Real Estate. This is a HUGE black-tie affair, held at the Charleston Performing Arts Center, with something like 1,000 real-estate agents and their guests all being wined and dined in the most extravagant fashion possible! This is one party where there was no holding back!!! But I had no idea the extent of it until I was let in on a little “secret”. Un-announced to everyone attending, Steve Harvey had been secured as the entertainer for the evening! Can you imagine the utter surprise and disbelief on 1000 faces in the crowd when he walked out on stage!?!

“Forty Weddings in One Day…are you Crazy?!?” That was my initial response when I was asked to photograph the seventh annual “Day Of Love”. Touted as the largest mass wedding and vow-renewal ceremony in the lowcountry, this event, which is sponsored by Z-93Jamz, took place…you guessed it…on Valentines Day. It was pretty hectic getting everything set up and ready to go in time. The ceremony was a lot of fun and included live musicians and an officiate with a great sense of humor. Immediately afterwards, there was a mad rush of couples lining up to get their wedding portraits taken. I guess they all had plans to go out for dinner and celebrate afterwards. 😉 With the camera wirelessly sending images to a pair of LIVE preview stations, the couples were able to view their photos and place their orders IMMEDIATELY after they were taken! While they were doing that, I was already photographing the next couple. By working efficiently, we were able to help provide everyone with the quality portraits they deserve for such a memorable occasion!!!

Another publication I work a great deal with is the Charleston Regional Business Journal. One of their most heralded supplements each year is the Profiles In Business. This advertorial piece highlights a number of the most prestigious businesses and organizations in the Charleston area. I’ve worked on this project for the past three years. It’s always a privilege to meet these business owners and create the photograph that will accompany their article. One such gentleman is Jerry Bacon, a motivational speaker. As we began discussing ideas, I suggested the historic American Theater downtown. I had done some photography for Randall Goldman, the property owner, in the past. So a phone call later we had permission and private access to the theater. When I met Jerry the morning of the shoot, he had a very relaxed but confident personality. He exhibited a genuine interest in others. And his charismatic personality made it obvious why he’s become such a successful speaker! With a pertinent setting, creative use of lighting, a long telephoto lens, shallow depth of field, and a few minutes of time…we created this winning photo for his article!