My first job as a sports photographer was working for my home-town newspaper, the Santa Paula Daily Chronicle, when I was 19. I was hired as the Chief Sports Photographer. This was largely due to the work I did as a photographer on my college newspaper. A year later, after earning an Associate of Arts degree in journalism and winning several awards in statewide competition, I was hired by the Oxnard Press-Courier as a general photojournalist on the night shift. I also covered all the night sports. About two years later, I was hired by the Thousand Oaks News Chronicle, also as a general photojournalist on the night shift and again I covered a lot of basketball and football games, sometimes two a night.
A few years later, I became interested in law enforcement so I went back to school and earned a degree in Criminal Justice. I was hired as a Deputy Sheriff for the Ventura County Sheriff's Department. After 3 years, my wife at the time, who was a computer programmer, got a high-paying job in Los Angeles so I eventually quit my job to be with the family. When it came to work, the doors that always seemed to open for me were law enforcement related. A few years later, I moved back to Ventura County and was told by a friend that the Ventura Co. Community College District Police Department was hiring. My Peace-Officer-Standards-and-Training certificate was still valid, so I applied figuring I'd stick around for a couple of years until something better came along. 28 years and two promotions later, I retired at the rank of Lieutenant.
From the time I was 16 to the present, I have always been involved with photography. Even when I worked in law enforcement, I freelanced as a writer/ photographer for various publications. I also had a photography business on the side in addition to working for an on-line magazine called The Ventura Times. Besides news, we also covered sports. Sports action has always been one of my favorite subjects to shoot. I have the tools and I believe I have the talent; and now that I'm retired, I have plenty of time to indulge my passion.
I would like to try my hand at shooting some NFL games. En route to that goal, I'd like to shoot some Division 1 college games in order to hone my skills and improve my portfolio. I have lenses that range from 14mm to 1120mm. Also, as an ex-law enforcement officer, I understand the importance of adhering to policies and procedures. I'm familiar with the do's and don'ts when it comes to shooting NFL games.
Even though I'm of retirement age, I'm in pretty good shape. My doctor says I'm "fit as heck." I run 4 miles every other day and work out at the gym 3 times a week. I compete in 5K runs and almost always win my age bracket. My blood pressure is 105/65 with a 58 bpm resting heart rate. I also play golf and recently won the annual Club Championship at the club I belong to.
I have a passion and a talent for shooting football as evidenced by my portfolio and I believe I'll be able to contribute greatly to the photo department of any NFL team--or any media outlet that covers the NFL--by producing outstanding images. Half of the job is shooting; the other half is selecting and editing the right images. My talents lie in both of these areas from years of experience in shooting college football. I can be reached via my contact page, or via my email address: escobedo.sportsphotog@gmail.com, or at (805) 766-0449.
Last season, I volunteered about 15 hours a week as the lead team photographer for the Ventura College football team. My photos appeared, on a regular basis, in the on-line version of the Ventura County Star newspaper. Some of my work can also be viewed on my Facebook page.