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We are so happy that you're a member of the Pensacola Runners Association. We hope that you find this newsletter both informative and motivating. As a PRA member, you can expect to receive our newsletters every month with all our event updates and special discounts to races and events because you are a member! The newsletters will also provide quarterly, training tools, advice from the pros, and other great food for thoughts! Don't see something? Shoot us a line at [email protected], and we will make sure it gets considered.
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StreetSafari Photo
Many of us have looked our smartest as we run pass one of these amazing photographers. Shortly after each race, pictures are posted and we all get to relive that day! Every emotion, every challenge, every victory all captured on camera. High quality sport photographs are free to download and cost the organizer and the athlete nothing. Who are these guys? Here is their story...
~*~
"Every shot's a winner because there is a winner in every shot."
~*~
StreetSafari Photo is the evolution of a company that began in the United Kingdom in 2003. StreetSafari Ltd was an events company that organized motoring events across Europe. After 38 successful events, founder Justin Clements closed the company and immigrated to Florida after marrying his business partner and co-founder, Karin. When the company was reborn as StreetSafari, Inc., the emphasis changed to photography. Then the adventure really began.
In 2017, Justin and Karin appeared with cameras on a 5K course in downtown Pensacola. They have rarely missed a race in the Pensacola area since. If an athlete has participated in a local event, chances are they can find their photo - for free - on the StreetSafariPhoto.com website.
How did sports photography interest you? Have you always been a race photographer?
Sports photography was an almost accidental progression from the business we have in Italy, FotoStelvio®. Stelvio is a world famous pass in the Italian Alps. We began in 2012 with a single photographer - Justin - taking photos of motorbikes, cyclists, and supercars from the roadside. The Europeans thought we really were quite mad because this is a very American concept. That business has currently grown to three full-time photographers who live on the mountain summit for four months of the year, taking photos seven days a week. The photos are available as downloads from a website that we rebuild from the ground up every year.
We got to the point where we wanted to expand our business. Stelvio Pass is only open in the summer months, so we had all the rest of the year to work with. Honestly, we weren't sure if we wanted our business to be photography, or something else. Photography is an oversaturated market and takes a lot of work for very little output, over and over again. We didn't want to compete with existing photographers. Ideally, we were looking for something that was fast-paced, high volume, and relatively consistent. In other words, we wanted to stay within our niche.
The first local running event we photographed, in October 2017, was essentially a test of how our systems adapted to handle race photography.
Tell us a little about yourself
Now is where the question "Tell us a little about yourself" really comes in.
First, the boring technical stuff.
One thing that really sets us apart is that we have a very unique combined skillset. We both have backgrounds in information technology, web development, and business. In fact, that's how we met. All our technical systems are custom built to process, publish, present, sell, and fulfill high volume digital photography. We saw building and modifying our systems as a fun challenge. It was also a necessity. We experimented with existing options. We tinkered with some of the services that other photographers use. None of them, however, could handle our volume or do what we wanted, which was take LOTS of photographs in a SHORT amount of time and get them published QUICKLY.
What started as a small souvenir photography business in the Italian Alps is now possibly the largest photography publisher of its type in the world. Our team of photographers delivers between 20-45,000 photos PER DAY that we publish in under 4 hours for an entire summer. This year we will publish over 2,000,000 images in 3.5 months. And it's all run quietly from Pensacola, Florida.
Now for the fun bit.
Race photography is incredibly fun. It is also incredibly misunderstood.
When we bounced the idea off other photographers, they pretty much thought we were nuts. But because the last time someone thought we were nuts, that turned out okay, so we were not dissuaded. We heard the same things from photographers over and over: everyone has a camera in their phone; runners won't buy photos; organizers don't want to pay photographers; there are a lot of photos to deal with; it's a lot of work for not a lot of money.
Then we talked to organizers. They, too, had their own set of comments, the same ones over and over: runners expect photos; photographers are inconsistent; athletes complain to organizers about the photographer; quality photographers aren't interested in small events.
Finally, we began to hear from the athletes. They had a third set of comments, always the same: the photos take too long; the photos cost too much; the photos aren't very good; I didn't get a photo taken at all.
Now we had a nice, round picture of multisport photography, its challenges, expectations and shortcomings.
We joke that we have come from the advantage of ignorance, because we know all about what makes a good action photo, how to process, present and sell said photo, but the specifics of 'how it's always been done' with regard to endurance events didn't prejudice our methods.
Please tell us a little about Street Safari Photo. Is this a non-profit organization? What is its mission?
This leads to the wonderful question "Please tell us a little about Street Safari Photo. Is this a non-profit organization? What is its mission?"
In its simplest terms, we want to look at sport photography in a different way and provide a solution to the combined issues people have with photography for amateur sporting events. Every event is someone's "First", every event is someone's biggest success, every event is full of effort and accomplishment. Photography is how we celebrate those accomplishments. We want to put the celebration back into amateur sporting event photography while making quality photography accessible.
This is the philosophy in every photo we take, and in the way we train our photographers. That athlete is the hero of their story. That photo must make them look like that hero.
There is a chant that you'll hear from us on the course: "Every shot's a winner because there is a winner in every shot."
StreetSafari, Inc. is a Florida For Profit Corporation, but we believe strongly that the path to success should include a plan for giving back to the community that helped you get there.
What other types of events/sports have you photographed? Do you travel much for your job?
In the beginning, a lot of people thought we were just hobbyists on the side of the road and event organizers had no idea that this is our profession and we do strictly sport, sport tourism, and sport brand. We just happen to make our money somewhere else and never put ourselves on offer here at home. That will change with the 2020 season.
In addition to having a team that works the summer in Italy, we are also forming a regional travel team. So far our 2020 calendar has 11 out-of-area events as official photographers. More are expected. They include triathlons, marathons, half-marathons, water sport, and obstacle challenges. We truly are limited only by the number of photographers we have available. As we always say "StreetSafari Photo is Hiring."
So currently, we are sort of everywhere. We have become sponsors and marketing photographers for local events and organizations. We donate services and funds to local youth sport groups including Golden Elite Track and Field Club and Seastars Aquatics. We are also excited to be founding sponsors for a new youth sport program, Junior Stars of Florida, which provides training for pro watercross competition. We've also begun doing a bit of sport brand photography as promotional material for these groups and fitness and sport related people and events. We're starting to be stretched pretty thin!
So do you really give away all those photos for free?
Yes. Really.
The whole free photo thing really throws people for a loop. StreetSafari, Inc. is a very much for profit business. Our photographers are paid, even if the event is totally voluntary on our part. We volunteer our own time, but our photographers are paid every time they show up. Not only are they paid, but we provide all the specialized equipment and training that they need to do the job.
Our first step was to build out our systems, we needed true data, so off we went to start photographing local races. Once we had the photos, we just gave them away for free. To this day, we still give a ton of photos away for free, even though we pay our photographers. Some events, like Tallahassee Marathon, and other events outside the local area, are sold photos.
Organizers never pay a fee to StreetSafari, Inc. Read that again. Organizers never pay a fee to StreetSafari, Inc.
As a result, we have become "official photographers" to more and more local events because, quite frankly, it's a quid pro quo. We give something back to the local amateur sport community and they give us a testing ground to develop a software service that we CAN sell.
Over time, we believe we have found the niche service that will monetize events for us in a way that still costs the organizer nothing - which has been the main problem for this vicious cycle between photographers and organizers, and why so few events have photographers to begin with. That phase of our service is scheduled to roll out in the 2020 season.
The question we get asked the most is "How can you give away photos for free?" Organizers get that whole too-good-to-be-true mental block. Once we explain it the way we have - in abbreviated form, of course - it makes more sense to them.
Do you participate in any of the local athletic events (races, triathlons)?
The question that is easiest to answer: "Do you participate in any of the local athletic events (races, triathlons?"
Just watching from the course or the finish line is exhausting enough. We know our limits! Hoisting 7+ pounds of camera gear to your eye for hours on end can be a workout all its own. The question does come up occasionally. Someone even made the comment that they were surprised that neither of us are runners, because we took such a nice runner shot. That was very sweet. We're not runners, we're photographers. Some of our team members, however, have backgrounds in multisport, cross-country, and personal training.
What can we expect to see in the future from StreetSafari?
The end of 2019 into 2020 onwards will be a very exciting time. This year we are moving the game forward. There are some big things that we've spent the last year developing and hope to show our local running community very soon. Our increased investment in the company and the community will become more visible. The things we have been quietly testing are coming together in a big way and our beloved locals will benefit first. Race photography has a very forlorn existence, and we want to make it exciting again. Every shot must be a winner, because there's a winner in every shot!
T
his Article was contributed by
Karin Clements,
Thank you Karin and StreetSafari Photo for sharing your story and every athletes story at each of races!
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Get Involved in PRA's Upcoming Events
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Second Tuesday Of Each Month
5:30PM
PRA Board Meeting
PRA Members are invited to come attend our monthly board meetings currently meeting at the Pensacola Library at 5:30PM every second Tuesday on each month. Come see what we do and learn all about the insides of PRA!
239 N Spring St, Pensacola, FL 32502
The
Christmas Parade Dash 1 Mile, hosted by the Pensacola Runners Association, is a holiday tradition for the whole family! Bring the family out, for a fun, fast 1 mile through Downtown Pensacola to kick off the Downtown Pensacola Christmas Parade!
Pensacola Runners association
P.O. Box 12552 Pensacola, FL 32591
Follow us on
Facebook
One of the premier destination road races in the Southeast, the Pensacola Beach Run Half Marathon & 10k/5k, a Pensacola Runners Association event, features a half marathon and a "pick your distance" 10k/5k, meaning participants do not have to decide whether to run the 10k or the 5k until they are out on the course! Run along a fast and flat race route along the shoreline of the Gulf of Mexico here along the Gulf Islands National Seashore in the Florida panhandle area, the Pensacola Beach Run Half Marathon is open to both runners and walkers and takes participants along this city's scenic waterfront along paved roads between the Gulf of Mexico and the Santa Rosa Sound.
Pensacola Runners association
P.O. Box 12552 Pensacola, FL 32591
January 11th-12th, 2020
Back-2-Back Challenge Weekend:
Start the challenge with the
Pensacola Beach Run Half Marathon on Saturday, January 11, 2020 at and then finish it off with the
ServisFirst Bank Mobile Marathon on Sunday, January 12th, 2020.
Runners can choose between the Full or Half Marathon for the
ServisFirst Bank Mobile Marathon.
All finishers of both events will receive a special hand-made commemorative plaque!
Use Promo code
PRA2020 when registering for the Mobile Marathon for your membership discount!
Register online for the
Pensacola Beach Run Half Marathon and the Register online with
Marathon Guide for the
ServisFirst Bank Mobile Marathon and choose the Back-2-Back Challenge option. (A service fee will apply.)
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Because you are a PRA member...
Discounts, Promos and More!!!
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December 14-15
Mississippi Gulf Coast Marathon
January 12, 2020
Louisiana Marathon
Attention ALL PRA MEMBERS!
Use code PRA2020
January 17-19, 2020
Louisiana Marathon
Attention ALL PRA MEMBERS!
Use code RUNPENSACOLA
March 6-8, 2020
Erlanger Chattanooga Marathon Weekend
Please join your fellow PRA member at the 2020 Erlanger Chattanooga Marathon. Lori Short is an ambassador for this race and is offering you a discount! Please use discount code is Lori20 and is valid until 3/1/2020.
Come join me!
http://www.chattanoogamarathon.com
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PRA GEAR IS HERE!
Order PRA singlets and hats
HERE.
PRA Hats: $15
PRA Singlets: $25 (mens and womens sizes)
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A
ll current PRA members are invited to the University of West Florida Track at 6:00 PM each Monday evening for a FREE interval workout led by UWF Cross Country Coach Caleb Carmichael!
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Run with us every
Thursday evening at 6pm at the Gulf Coast Brewery
for a 5K fun run and get your
first beer
on the house! Yes, that's right! Printed
maps
will be available at the brewery. After the run, each runner gets a free beer of choice and can play a variety of complimentary games such as Cornhole, Ping Pong, Checkers, and other ancillary games right there where the beer brewing and production takes place! To satisfy your hunger, there is also a food truck serving some delicious food for purchase! All runners, walkers, families or pet are welcome.
Gulf Coast Brewery is a micro brewery located in downtown Pensacola, FL. Come have a drink of local beer brewed on site!
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The PRA Needs You!
The PRA is an all-v
olunteer, 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization with the mission to promote, support and develop running, walking and racing along Florida's North
ern Gulf Coast. Our goal is to enhance the experience of being a runner or walker in Northwest Florida.
The events and programs we produce would not be possible without the support of the Pensacola area's active and involved community of runners and w
alkers. That said, we are always looking for new members and volunteers to get involved and help take us to the next level.
If you'd like more information about how to get involved please send your your inquiry and contact information to the PRA at:
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The Pensacola Runners Association brings together runners, walkers and fitness enthusiasts to promote, support and develop running and racing along the Northern Gulf Coast. Our objective is to provide information, education, training, social and sporting events for competitive and noncompetitive runners and walkers of all ages, races, genders and abilities.
Benefits:
- Discounted entry rates on the full calendar of PRA Races/Events.
- The chance to eat, drink and socialize with fellow runners at our free, members only social events
- Access to our action packed monthly newsletter: "the Rundown"
- Eligibility for the Lou Gregory, Jim Harrington and Volunteer of the Year Awards
- Access to free, members only weekly interval workouts overseen by a professional Coach
- The opportunity to do your part to promote, support and develop running and racing along the Northern Gulf Coast
- Invited to come join our monthly board meetings every second Tuesday of the month at 5:30PM at Running Wild
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Thanks to our Organizational Sponsors!
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Pensacola Runners Association offers "The Rundown" as an informational service to its members. Any articles, opinions or recommendations are owned by the respective authors, and are not necessarily opinions adopted by the Pensacola Runners Association. The Pensacola Runners Association recommends you consult your physician prior to engaging in any physical activity.
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