Getting Called Up: My First Time Shooting the Everett AquaSox vs Eugene Emeralds
Sometimes getting an opportunity in photography isn't about having the biggest portfolio, knowing the right person, or sending the perfect email.
Sometimes it's about randomly running into a guy in an AquaSox polo in Peoria, Arizona.
Seriously.
It Started in Spring Training
Earlier this year, I was in Peoria, Arizona, photographing spring training baseball.
For someone from the Seattle area, seeing an AquaSox logo isn't exactly unusual. The Everett AquaSox are part of the Seattle Mariners organization, and there are plenty of Mariners fans throughout the Pacific Northwest.
But Peoria?
It caught my attention.
I spotted a man wearing an Everett AquaSox polo and, naturally, had to say something.
Because while Mariners fans come from everywhere to watch spring training, it's not every day you run into someone specifically repping Everett, Washington, several states away.
Turns out, the guy wearing the AquaSox shirt wasn't just a fan.
It was Danny Tetzlaff, the General Manager of the Everett AquaSox.
We chatted briefly, and he gave me a contact for the team's media team.
And that's where the story could have ended.
But it didn't.
The Part Where I Kept Emailing
Getting a contact doesn't automatically mean you get a credential.
I reached out to the media team several times over the following months.
And then... nothing.
My emails were either lost in the shuffle, buried under a hundred other messages, or simply never made it to the top of someone's inbox.
And that's okay.
I'm not telling this part of the story as a complaint.
This is photography.
This is sports.
This is working in an industry where media teams are busy, schedules change constantly, and there are a lot of photographers who would love the same opportunity.
Sometimes your email gets answered.
Sometimes it doesn't.
You follow up.
You keep working.
And you keep putting yourself in places where opportunities can happen.
So I moved on and kept shooting.
Then Came the Cats & Dogs Kirkland Classic
Fast-forward a few months.
I was photographing the Cats & Dogs Kirkland Classic, a Little League event in Kirkland.
And there, walking around the field, was Wembley; the Everett AquaSox mascot.
Which meant, naturally, that the AquaSox were suddenly on my radar again.
But then I recognized someone else.
Wembley's handler was the person I'd been trying to reach.
The head of the AquaSox media team.
And I figured:
Well...
Shoot your shot, Tayler.
So I introduced myself.
I reminded them we'd connected previously and that I'd been hoping to photograph the AquaSox.
No elaborate pitch.
No dramatic speech.
Just a simple, Hey, I'm still interested if you ever need someone.
Sometimes that's all you can do.
Put yourself out there.
Again.
A Couple Weeks Later...
A couple of weeks later, I got the message.
My name had made the list of fill-in photographers for the Everett AquaSox.
I wasn't suddenly the team's full-time photographer.
I didn't get handed a season-long credential.
There wasn't some magical moment where all of my emails finally paid off at once.
I was a fill-in.
But I was on the list.
And that was enough.
Because a few months earlier, I had been standing in Peoria, Arizona, wondering why someone was wearing an AquaSox polo.
Now I was being asked to photograph the team.
Getting Called Up
And that's why I keep coming back to the phrase getting called up.
Because that's what it felt like.
Not because I had suddenly become some elite baseball photographer.
Not because I had checked every box.
But because I had kept showing up.
I sent the emails.
I followed up.
I kept photographing sports.
I kept photographing events.
I kept putting my work out there.
And when another opportunity came up, I took another shot.
Eventually, someone said yes.
I Wasn't There Just to Photograph Baseball
For my first AquaSox assignment, I wasn't primarily focused on getting traditional baseball action photos.
I was much more interested in the fan experience.
That's one of the things I love most about event photography.
The event isn't just the thing happening on stage or on the field.
It's everything happening around it.
The kids watching the game.
The families in the stands.
The reactions after a big play.
The food.
The music.
The promotions.
The people laughing with their friends.
The little moments that make a night at the ballpark memorable.
I wanted to photograph what it actually felt like to spend an evening at Funko Field watching the Everett AquaSox.
Because years from now, nobody is going to remember every pitch.
But they might remember taking their kid to their first baseball game.
They might remember the person they sat next to.
They might remember catching a foul ball.
They might remember the way the entire stadium reacted to a big play.
That's the stuff I want to photograph.
I Wasn't There Just to Photograph Baseball
For my first AquaSox assignment, I wasn't primarily focused on getting traditional baseball action photos.
I was much more interested in the fan experience.
That's one of the things I love most about event photography.
The event isn't just the thing happening on stage or on the field.
It's everything happening around it.
The kids watching the game.
The families in the stands.
The reactions after a big play.
The food.
The music.
The promotions.
The people laughing with their friends.
The little moments that make a night at the ballpark memorable.
I wanted to photograph what it actually felt like to spend an evening at Funko Field watching the Everett AquaSox.
Because years from now, nobody is going to remember every pitch.
But they might remember taking their kid to their first baseball game.
They might remember the person they sat next to.
They might remember catching a foul ball.
They might remember the way the entire stadium reacted to a big play.
That's the stuff I want to photograph.
The Story Behind the Opportunity
Looking back, the funniest part is how completely random the whole thing was.
An AquaSox polo in Arizona.
A conversation with a general manager.
A contact.
Several unanswered emails.
A Little League tournament in Kirkland.
A mascot.
Recognizing a familiar face.
And one more attempt to make the connection.
Then, a couple weeks later:
You're on the list.
That's how photography works sometimes.
You can't always control when someone says yes.
You can control whether you keep showing up.
Everett, I Guess We're Doing This
Photographing my first Everett AquaSox game felt like a pretty significant career milestone.
I'm a photographer based in the greater Seattle area, and I've been intentionally expanding my work in sports, live entertainment and event photography throughout Snohomish County and the Pacific Northwest.
I've photographed high school sports.
Youth sports.
Tournaments.
Comedy shows.
Weddings.
Community events.
And now, finally, Minor League Baseball.
Right here in Everett.
That's pretty damn cool.
Especially because I didn't start this process with some grand plan to become an AquaSox photographer.
I just saw a guy wearing a polo in Arizona and started a conversation.
Sometimes that's all it takes to start the story.
What Getting Called Up Taught Me
If there's one thing I'm taking away from this experience, it's that the opportunities you don't get immediately aren't necessarily opportunities you won't get eventually.
The AquaSox didn't respond to my first email.
Or my second.
Or maybe even my third.
And that's okay.
I wasn't entitled to the opportunity.
I just wanted the chance.
So I kept working.
Then I happened to be in the right place at the right time.
And when the opportunity presented itself again, I took another shot.
That time, it worked.
I got called up.
And for one night at Funko Field, I got to photograph the Everett AquaSox—not just as a fan of baseball, but as a photographer documenting the people and experience surrounding the game.
Not a bad way to end the season.
And definitely not a bad reminder to keep shooting your shot.
Everett Sports & Event Photography
I'm a sports and event photographer serving Everett, Snohomish County and the greater Seattle area, specializing in candid storytelling, live entertainment, sports and fan experiences.
My sports photography goes beyond the action on the field. I look for the reactions, personalities, atmosphere and moments that show what it actually felt like to be there.
If you're looking for a sports photographer in Everett or Snohomish County for a team, tournament, school, league or sporting event, I'd love to hear about it.
