Pour Chris • Basketball USA

Chris Ellis died on Saturday at the age of 51. Having become a professional photographer after starting out in print, he covered 16 NBA seasons and epitomized the American dream.

Chris Elise dreamed so much about this ranch. He only talked about wide open spaces, endless roads and evenings remaking the world in a good rocking chair. With, of course, a glass of whiskey in hand! Three years ago, he and his wife finally found this nest. Covid has taken a toll on his income. He didn’t know if he would be able to work on the court at Staples Center again. Once again, in his life, he chose another path! “We ended 2020 well: we went to Tennessee between Christmas and New Years and found our ranch, 35 minutes from Nashville. 40 ares, main house, guest house, two ponds. The distillery is 5 km away. Officially owners February 1st, move in June 2022 ». There are harmless messages that cannot be deleted. This Wednesday, we read it again and again, and tell ourselves that life can be frankly unfair.

Unfair because Chris left, broken in his sleep. He was 52 and had followed Basket USA forever, or almost, after taking his first photos for Paris Basket Racing, then Reverse/BasketSession for which he worked for 16 years.

Unfair because Chris spent 20 years building his dream life. At first, like me, he started in computer printing, and in the same company Tests Group. He was on the 6th floor, I was on the 3rd floor. We crossed paths. We talked from time to time. Not knowing that ten years later we would join our destinies thanks to the NBA. And above all become friends.

At the age of 34, he gives up his pen for the camera

The change happened exactly in 2005. At the age of 34, Christophe put down his pen and let go of the keyboard. He decides to “shoot”. It’s amateurish at first, but the virus takes over. What if this American sports enthusiast made his career? In January 2006, this Scottie Pippen fan became a freelance sports photographer, not leaving his job as a journalist. He didn’t necessarily have a favorite sport at the time and we found him at the Marathon des Sables in Morocco. It wasn’t until two months later that we saw him for the first time on the edge of the floor. It’s to photograph Boris Diaw, then in the Suns.

Then, in 2007, his photos started appearing regularly in magazines like Reverse of course, but also ESPN Mag, L’Equipe, L’Equipe Mag and even the bible: Sports Illustrated. It was decided, he would make it his new profession. As Walter Iooss Jrhis idol. 2008 is the year of take off. Accredited for the biggest sporting events (tennis, basketball, League 1 football, soccer us, etc.), his photos are visible in most specialized magazines, or on the covers of books.

A year later, Basket USA is also growing, and we want to work like the big boys: have correspondents on site (Arnaud, Benjamin, Emmanuel, Melvin, etc.), but also photos of matches and players for articles. There is no question of taking pictures on the Internet. This is theft, and we want to make an example. So we break down, collect our savings and inevitably turn to Chris. He still lives in France, but his dream is to settle on the other side of the Atlantic.

LeBron James’ dunk changes his life

First he goes to Boston, to a friend’s house, where he sleeps on the sofa. Many times, every time he returns to France to see his mother and during a traditional meal with our friend Jerome, he assures us that it is over. That he can’t do that. It’s too complicated to live off your photos when you’re a Frenchman covering the NBA in the United States. The competition is tough, the written press is disappearing, the French media are not inviting him. Five months, the NBA takes a break. How to survive? How can you not give up when all your equipment is stolen from your car! That’s why we help him as best we can. We’re emptying our pockets, and we’re organizing an exhibition of our most beautiful photos on the Champs-Élysées. He buys appliances. He lends. But as soon as he returns to the United States, the same problem. He manages. And then there is this photo of lebron james dunking jason terry in 2013. The rest is told by Chris.

“I sent messages to the agencies that I was free and I was working for them.” And then, the NBA contacted me when I was in Boston about my photo of this famous LeBron James dunk on Jason Terry. he said in an interview with New Republic. “I had the best shot and the VP of photography contacted me. We reached a deal and I licensed the rights to this dunk to the NBA, which means they sell this image and then I get royalties. Upper Deck created a limited edition LeBron James autographed poster of five photos of this dunk. It sold for $899 at the time and is worth $2,000 today. One day I got a statement about my copyrights which were very low. I simply told the NBA accountant that he wasn’t making me much money anymore and I wasn’t sure if I was going to renew the rights to this dunk. The next day, Joe Amati, VP of photography, called me because he apparently wanted to retain these rights. I explained my freelance situation to him. Joe then suggested that the NBA represent me for all my photos. I told him I also had all my supplies from ten seasons. He said, “Chris, send it.” It was a big change. The NBA took over my stock and has since sold all my photos and represented me. Suddenly, my pictures became available to all media through the NBA partner agency (Getty Images). »

Suddenly, thanks to copyright, Chris was able to make a living from his photographs and moved to Los Angeles where he joined our journalist Benjamin Adler. For what? Because there are two franchises, the Lakers and the Clippers, and it’s an opportunity to take as many photos as possible. It is also the possibility of “shooting” in other sports, but also in other fields. For us, he also goes to Denver or Utah because “ it’s so easy to work in small markets “, and above all because he loves America: the Midwest, the wide open spaces, the horses, his Chevelle (of which he spoke so well), cowboys and… backpacks. However, he really met Gigi, who would become his wife, in an anthill in Los Angeles, during a Clippers game. It’s the kind of story you only see in…Hollywood. And still Chris says it best.

Hollywood encounter

“My wife is very successful in her business” he explained, still La Nouvelle Republique. “She wrote several bestsellers, screenplays… And when we met, we quickly wanted to be serious, and therefore to be very honest with each other. I wanted to give her a lot and I was ashamed that she was rich and I wasn’t. I told him “you know, I’m just an NBA photographer.” And she looked at me smiling and answered: “I don’t need your money yet.” And above all, I saw you work for months, I saw your passion then I knew you and I saw everything you sacrificed just to be there, to do this job. If you didn’t have this passion, this ideal and these values, I wouldn’t be interested in it.” She didn’t want to be with someone to be someone and her children were her priority. She was married to Brian Grazer who is a big Hollywood producer with whom she had two sons, Thomas and Patrick, whom I call “my sons from another father”. I also get along great with their father. In the end, my American dream gave me everything, even my wife and Thomas and Patrick are like blood. Being a parent is incredibly rewarding. And that is so important. There is no greater luck. »

Happiness that ended on Saturday in a dream. suddenly. So did his dad, who also passed away too soon, at 47. As our journalist Arnaud Gelb in 2016, who also left far too soon, and who we obviously thought of on Tuesday when we learned of Chris’ death. Both lived their American dream to the end. They have become models for some French NBA fans who dream of settling in the United States. The two had only one ambition: to share their passion for the NBA with as many people as possible.

We will never forget them.