ESPN’s “Journalism Showcase” – December 15, 2017

ESPN The Magazine’s “The Walk-In” highlights the fashion choices of various athletes. Writer Stacey Pressman and creative director Chin Wang discuss the process leading up to the impressive digital presentation.

With so many fashion-conscious athletes how do you choose which ones to feature?
SP: I approach different athletes in the various sports who we think are relevant, fashion-forward and who would be willing to get on the phone with me to break down their outfit after a game. It was our creative director Chin Wang’s idea to make our print feature come to life, and she designed this digital execution.

Can you describe how the photoshoots come together?
SP: We’ve been experimenting on how best to go about this, but so far I have notified the athlete ahead of time that we will be shooting them on a certain day, just so they’re aware that it will be featured in ESPN The Magazine. We send a photographer to the arena, field or ballpark and make sure they are set up so when the athlete ‘walks-in,’ we’re ready. This shoot has lasted as short as nine seconds to maybe two minutes, however long it takes them to walk from the parking lot to the locker room. I find that many of the athletes enjoy participating because it’s not a huge time commitment and it gives them an opportunity to talk about their clothing and accessories– something they do spend time thinking about.

Lastly, how do you execute the digital presentation?
CW: The content design team works hard to create fun visual stories that play well on all our platforms. This project originated in the Magazine and we were excited to reimagine it for digital. Great collaboration with designer Jay Hutton, photo editor Nick Galac, and of course, Stacey Pressman.