By Mike Tedesco, Pro Photo Community

Bob Rosato didn't start his professional career as a photographer like many of his peers did. Rather, Bob served as a police officer for the City of Hollywood in Florida for six years. Photography was always a passion of his, however. As a child, Bob remembers his mom being into photography and working in the darkroom in their garage. They had a lot of Kodak gear around, and Bob preferred to take both pictures and videos. The first camera he used was a twin lens reflex box camera.

While serving on the police force, Bob had given up photography for a few years, but quickly found that he missed taking pictures. "I took up photography again as a police officer doing sting operation surveillance work, and quickly remembered my love for capturing images, and I wanted to learn more about techniques." His passion reinvigorated, Bob quickly became a student of photography and studied the writings and techniques of the great photographers. "I remember reading books by Andreas Feininger. I would come home from my day job, pickup my camera and books, and would read and shoot, and try to implement what I was reading." He also read Sports Illustrated (SI) to see what his idols were doing in the sports world. "I remember seeing covers from Walter Iooss and Neal Leifer when I was young and I would get excited by their images. I grew up with these guys as an inspiration in addition to John Biever, who is not only one of the best football photographers of all time, but is also the consummate professional."

To kickoff his career as a paid photographer, Bob began shooting weddings. "I was definitely nervous. With a wedding, you only have one chance to get someone's special day right, and I felt like I was walking across a tightrope without a net." Over a number of years, Bob shot over 450 weddings, and while his experience and talent in this arena had grown tremendously, his passion had always been in sports; any other photography job was a means to an end. Once he accumulated enough gear, Bob began shooting high school sports for practice. "I played a number of sports through school myself, so I understood the games that I was shooting which has been extremely helpful in this business because anticipation is so important."

As Bob gained more gear and experience, he began getting freelance work with United Press International and the Associated Press. Soon after, he got work as a contributing photographer with the NFL. It was here that Bob's career really began to take off. "David Boss, who was head of NFL Creative Services, really brought me along early in my sports photography career. He helped to take my photography to another level." In addition to Boss, Bob had built relationships with Manny Rubio and Tony Tomsic who were contract photographers with SI. "These two were iconic in the industry and they both took me under their wing. I admired the work they did in their days because of what it took to pave the way for today's photographer. " At this point, Bob had a big enough career that he was able to leave the police department for a full time career as a sports photographer.

Bob's transition to SI began in 1993 when he was called for a pickup assignment. "My first official assignment was when I shot an Arkansas vs. Alabama football game. I got a double-page opener and then didn't hear from the magazine again for 6 months." At that point, he got a second assignment and then became a regular contributor in 1995. "I remember when I got my first cover in 1997. I can't even express the excitement when I saw the issue." Bob was hired on as a full-time staff photographer for SI in 1998.

It was in this early time with SI that Bob had his first experience with digital photography. "I'd had a long time relationship with Canon and their gear, and was able to get my hands on one of the Kodak 560 digital SLR's with the Canon mount for a Major League Baseball game." Bob was excited about the new technology and cool gear, but the quality wasn't quite there yet for the sports world. As has been seen in digital cameras, the quality of the gear and images quickly and drastically improved and the speed and noise soon were no longer an issue.

So what does Bob like about digital imaging? "It's visual. You get that instant gratification, and I'm able make any adjustments I need on the fly. I feel like I'm taking better pictures now than I ever have." Along with the positives, Bob also recognizes that there are a few negatives in the digital era. "There is more post processing with digital, and more steps are required to get the final image than ever before, but now you just build that into your process and have the time factored in." One other negative about today's digital world is the emphasis on the latest and greatest gear. "What camera and lens you are using is not as important. What went into making that picture is what it's all about. All too often people see a great image and immediately ask what body and lens were used rather than asking what the photographer was thinking about and how they got in the position to take that shot."

At the end of the day, Bob sees photography as a source of art and passion. When discussing aspiring sports photographers, Bob has a few pieces of advice: "You need to assess where you're at and what your weaknesses are. You've got to get out there and shoot in order to develop your skills. Find a place where you can shoot more regularly and develop who you are. It may mean volunteering or not doing your ideal job early on but if it leads to the experience, then it's worth it." In addition, Bob also recommends knowing your subject and being prepared. "Some people have a natural ability to shoot without knowing the subject, but to reach a high level you have to know the sport and ideally the teams or individuals. The more you know, the more you can anticipate and that's one of the biggest assets in sports photography.