A few years ago, I found myself at Magic City Casino Fronton, ready to photograph the electrifying world of Jai Alai for an ESPN story. I was very excited as it was a very Miami story that dealt with a sport deeply intertwined with the city's cultural fabric. Jai Alai, with its roots traced back to Spain's Basque region, was a vibrant part of Miami's history from the 1920s to the early 90s when the public's interest in the sport started to wane. At the time of the story in 2021, we covered the resurgence of the sport in Miami after it received a boost in 2018 with new branding, recruitment of players that could connect with a U.S. audience, and a new playing format.
That story was special because it was my first assignment for ESPN, and it was a local story with a national impact. The images captured players passionate about reviving Jai Alai's legacy in Miami, infusing it with fresh energy and ambition.
Recently, I had a full-circle moment that brought me back to Magic City Fronton, but this time in a different capacity. As a TV producer at ReachTV, I had the opportunity to craft a show segment on Jai Alai. It was a continuation of the same narrative but now told through a different medium, leveraging a new set of skills and experiences I've acquired over the years.
A Look Back: The Photography Assignment
A Jai Alai ball, known as a pelota, can travel at incredibly high speeds, often exceeding 150 miles per hour. On the technical side, this meant I had to have fast lenses (usually f/2.8 when talking about zoom lenses) that would allow me to stop the action. However, it was very dark inside the Magic City Fronton for photographic purposes, so I also had to increase my ISO to increase my shutter speeds. Finding a balance between trying to stop the action and maintaining a relatively clean image without too much grain (which happens when ISO levels are too high) was a challenge. Ultimately, I compromised around f/2.8, 1/640, ISO 5000 for most of the images.
For the frames that happened before and after the games (the pre-game preparation, player interactions, and portraits), I used prime lenses that allowed me to open up my aperture a bit more as those settings outside of the fronton (a Jai-Alai court). My kit included: two Sony camera bodies, a 24-70, a 70-200, a 35mm, and an 85mm.
On the narrative side, my goal was to show the uniqueness of this sport. I wanted to capture the behind-the-scenes of how players prepared, the different actions of the game, and the overall energy at the fronton.
Coming Full Circle: The TV Segment
Returning to Magic City Casino, this time as a producer, I was there to capture moments and weave them into a dynamic visual story that would engage and inform our viewers. It was great to see that in three years, the league had made substantial progress in revamping the sport in South Florida. As you'll see in the segment, there are now well-known owners of various teams (including Ray Lewis and Udonis Haslem), it's a complete experience during game nights, and it's still the fast-paced, entertaining game it has been for the past 100 years.
Since this was for The Business Traveler Show, the segment focused on the business side of the operation. We sat down with Scott Savin, COO of the World Jai Alai League, to discuss this revamp and his hopes for the league's future.
The first Jai-Alai fronton to open in Miami was in 1924. Since then, Jai-Alai has had its ups and downs in the magic city but now, 100 years later, a change in format and new ownership groups have revitalized the sport locally.
We visited them on opening night, where World Jai-Alai League COO Scott Savin, and several owners, talked about this revamp and what they hope for the future.
Credits: Johanna Gomez, Host. Bryan Cereijo, Series Producer. Georgi Hernandez, Director of Photography. Yecid Benavides, Audio. Carlos Fuentes, Head of Post. Johanan Benavides, Segment Editor.
Producing a TV segment is different from photographing for an assignment. It involves coordinating interviews, directing camera crews, and ensuring the story flows seamlessly from start to finish in the post-production process. Instead of focusing solely on capturing the story through frames, as a producer, I booked interviews, crafted questions, prepped the host, and collaborated closely with the film crew to ensure a smooth filming process. Despite the shift in skill sets, the ultimate goal remains to produce a compelling visual narrative that engages and captivates audiences.
Sharing these experiences through this blog is more than just a retrospective; it's a celebration of the journey and the growth it brings. Here's to many more full-circle moments and the limitless potential that lies ahead.