A photograph has the power to capture a moment and tell a story. Over the coming weeks, the Kansas City Chiefs will showcase 10 of the best photos from the 2024-25 season, with insights from Steve Sanders, Director of Photography for the Chiefs.
The series continues with photo No. 6, titled “Sack Nation in the House,” taken during Week 14 against Los Angeles. The image features defensive tackle Chris Jones emerging from the tunnel during pre-game introductions. Photographer Andrew Mather captured this moment using a Cannon EOS R3 camera with a focal length of 22 mm, an exposure time of 1/400, and an aperture of f/2.8.
Steve Sanders explained why this photo was included in the collection: “We were really excited to have something different in the stadium going on for pre-game introductions mid-season, and that meant we had to adapt. It was pretty dark, there was heavy fog, and the fans had the cell phone lights on in the stands,” Sanders said. “In this one, you see Chris emerging from the fog with his hand to his ear. It’s just a fun picture.”
Sanders also commented on how well-framed this photo is: “One of the things that I really liked about this was how the ’95’ was repeating on the ribbon board, and the third repetition of that was right into Chris’ chest,” he said.
Regarding navigating through foggy conditions during photography, Sanders noted: “We lose a lot of frames where smoke just overpowers the subject, but… it was perfect,” he said.
Finally, Sanders acknowledged Mather’s experience shooting concerts helped him capture this moment: “He shoots in this kind of mixed lighting a lot,” Sanders said.
