Junior Itai Lerman’s main motivation to do photography when he started high school was his mom. But as he dove deeper into his new hobby, he saw how much he enjoyed and had a talent for taking and editing photos. He broke out of his shell and became an integral part of the high school’s photojournalism community. Other students come to him for advice, and he provides it, taking joy in mentoring.

His photojournalism teacher, Scott Kreher, has taken an interest in Lerman’s growth. In his opinion, Lerman has not just gotten better at photography but has gained a deeper understanding of how cameras work.

All of this effort over his first three years in high school eventually paid off when Lerman had his photos published in Sports Illustrated. His talent was now on display for a national audience. Despite these successes, Lerman is unsure about his future in photography. His main goal for the immediate future is to be asked by a team or league to take photos of a professional sports game; however, even though this goal seems to put him on the path to becoming a professional sports photographer, Itai is unsure whether he wants to make a career out of photography.

Lerman’s growth as a photographer is dynamic, and he continues to push the boundaries of his craft and hone his skills.