Greg Shamus (Photography ’93)

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For Gregory Shamus, anything is possible. From weeknights spent in the darkroom at CCS to Sundays spent on the ground at Ford Field, his story is one of determination and grit.

Gregory has photographed some of the most iconic moments in sports history, from the Olympics to Superbowls and The Masters. His work can be seen anywhere from ESPN to The Golf Channel and Sports Illustrated, to name a few. We had the privilege of sitting down with Gregory to talk about his journey, what inspires him, and what he’s most proud of.

The Interview

“It won’t be easy, and it won’t be given to you, but if you believe in yourself it can be done. Don’t let anybody tell you that it can’t.”

– Greg Shamus

What led you to choose this career path in Sports Photography?

I’ve always been into sports. I played basketball in high school and was offered a scholarship to play basketball, but that college didn’t have very many programs that I was interested in. It was kind of a natural progression to go into a career in sports photography because It had been such a huge part of my life and my youth. It just seemed like the logical next step.

What motivates or inspires you?

What motivates me the most is that even if I’m going to the same stadium or the same arena, the game is always going to be different. Nothing repeats itself, and to me, that is the challenge. Trying to tell that story whether it’s the rookie playing their first game, or it’s some triple overtime win, or maybe there’s a celebrity there that needs to be covered, there’s always something unique about every game.

What do you love most about what you do?

You know, you can take videos, and you can do other things but there is something about a photograph. It sits on somebody’s mantel or sits on somebody’s desk, or hangs on somebody’s wall and you can walk past it, you can stop and look at it and it immediately takes you back to that moment. Whether it’s Tiger reacting to a putt, or Tom Brady raising a Super Bowl Trophy, you can pinpoint exactly where you were, what you were doing, and what you were feeling when that moment happened. To be able to just relive it and continue on – to me that’s kind of the essence of a photograph. It’s not to sit down and watch for an hour, or to have a lengthy commitment to it – it’s to stop, look, remember, and move on.

I’ve had coaches that I’ve worked with tell me, and I’ve had players tell me, “I have that picture on the wall. I stop, I look at it, and I remember that moment,” and it doesn’t get much better than that.

“I’ve had coaches that I’ve worked with tell me, and I’ve had players tell me, ‘I have that picture on the wall. I stop, I look at it, and I remember that moment,’ and it doesn’t get much better than that.”

– Greg Shamus

How did CCS prepare you for your career?

CCS helped with my career path in many ways. I have a Bachelor of Fine Arts in Commercial Photography. I’ve used many of the techniques that I learned at CCS when I’m out doing portraits, studio lighting, and arena lighting with strobes. I’ve used metering techniques that I learned in those classes. Even though you wouldn’t think that a commercial photography degree would translate, I can’t even tell you how many times I’ve used things I learned at CCS.

And then look at the fine art classes that I took. That’s where I learned what makes a pretty picture, how to compose a picture, and how to look at the background, foreground, and subject matter. So, you take it all together and apply it in the sports world, and it’s amazing how many things I use that I learned in those classes with those amazing instructors.

More about Photography at CCS. →

What are you the most proud of in your career?

My wife is also in Journalism, she works for the Detroit Free Press, and we have three amazing children. It’s not an easy career to have with a family. You spend time on the road, you’re working weekends, you’re working nights. So to get that support first and foremost is amazing.

And to work for a company like Getty Images, the support I’ve gotten from them through many different challenges over the last eight years while I’ve been on staff is also incredible. I’m very proud of the company I work for and the colleagues I work with. We have some of the best sports photographers in the world, and I’d put our staff up against just about anybody.

From a professional standpoint, I’ve had people tell me that they may send a great studio photographer if they know it’s going to be “situation a,” and they may send another photographer if they know it’s going to be “situation b.” If they’re not sure what the situation will be, they always send me, because I can handle many different aspects of the business, whether it’s dealing with a client, or working with a subject, studio lighting, action, or whatever it might be. My talents take me beyond just the camera. Being told that is something I’m pretty proud of.

It’s not always just about having the camera to your eye. You need to be able to interact with people. You need to be able to raise a family. So, it’s kind of the whole thing put together that makes me the most proud.

What would you say to people who are apprehensive about pursuing their dream job?

I can say that I wake up every day and I don’t feel like I have a job in the traditional sense. I say all the time that I get paid to do something that a lot of people pay to go to. That comes with hard work, and you need a little luck along the way, but it happens to people all the time. You can look at so many artistic fields that if you have the drive and the persistence you can make it.

There are 30 staff photographers for Getty Images Sport in the United States. So, for me to take a step back and think of it, there are 30 of us in the United States and I’m one of them. It lets me know that all that hard work paid off, and that goes right back to spending all night in the darkroom. Pulling all-nighters with my classmates, down in the basement in the darkrooms putting together that freshman black and white series. It’s a work ethic that started here and then it’s just continued.

It won’t be easy, and it won’t be given to you, but if you believe in yourself it can be done. Don’t let anybody tell you that it can’t.