Tournament Photography

The first priority is to capture the drama of a high-stakes billfish tournament. Pepper not only “snipes” pics that capture candid and emotional moments, but he isn’t timid either when it comes to staging photos of teams, friends, and groups. Capturing all the details of an event is key: the boats, fishing action, tournament apparel, trophies, sponsor booths, and staff.

But learning the culture of a specific tournament is how Pepper sets himself apart. He represents the tournament well by learning as much as he can about the participants, and he is gracious when those participants allow him to ride along during a tournament day.

Turnaround Time

In today’s age, in which everyone has a camera in their pocket and instantly posts to social media, it’s important to make professional-grade photos available as soon as possible. Whereas other photographers take weeks to return photos, Pepper prides himself on a fast-paced workflow. He can quickly upload photos to his own site or send images through Dropbox, or other file-sharing methods, so the tournament organizers can share their spectacular photos promptly.

Availability of the Product

Overthrowing the traditional model, in which the photographer earns a livelihood through selling photos, Pepper is hired directly through the tournament and asks for the allowance to make his photos available to everyone. After riding along on a fishing day, he sends the owner, captain, and crew of the boat a photo gallery from that day as soon as it’s available (usually that night). He’s established relationships with Marlin Magazine and InTheBite Magazine and gives them access to promote your tournament easily. Posting photos on different social media outlets creates great buzz for the tournament.