Hunter Sheppard Photography

Pregame moments before Spark/Cascade game one 🥎📸

Amari Harper and Sydney McKinney at Tom Heath Field before first pitch.

A quieter look from around the field before another night of AUSL softball in Oklahoma City.

This AUSL photo run is at a crossroads.

Since this project started, it has taken me from local Oklahoma fields to photographing professional softball in Oklahoma, Wichita, Chicago, Portland, and Edmond.

It has led to opportunities, relationships, galleries, recognition from players and teams, and moments I honestly used to only dream about reaching.

Now Durham is next.

But I need to be honest:

Without support, there is a very real chance I may have to pull the plug on the Durham trip by Thursday.

My camera’s mechanical shutter blew out in March. My camera has been sent off for repair, but I still do not have a firm ETA. Renting gear is the only reason I have been able to continue photographing this league at this level.

Between rentals, travel, rideshare, food, bills, and trying to keep this project alive, I am stretched thin.

First Durham checkpoint: $450.

That could be:
45 people giving $10.
18 people giving $25.
9 people giving $50.

Any of those gets this moving.

GoFundMe: https://www.gofundme.com/f/help-bring-my-ausl-photography-journey-to-durham
Cash App: $huntersheppard123
Venmo: -Sheppard-9

Business or sponsor support is welcome too.

If you have enjoyed the galleries, followed the journey, supported the work, or want to help keep this project moving forward, now is the time.

Thursday is the cutoff.

If Durham is going to happen, this push has to start moving now. 🥎📸

Donate to Help Bring My AUSL Photography Journey to Durham, organized by Hunter Sheppard Durham is the next goal. Over the last few weeks, this AUSL photo… Hunter Sheppard needs your support for Help Bring My AUSL Photography Journey to Durham

Game two in Edmond. 📸🥎

Another night at Oklahoma Christian, another Spark vs. Cascade matchup, and another chapter in this AUSL photo run.

This one felt like one of those nights where the game, the people, and the whole journey around it all kind of came together.

A few weeks ago, I was in Hillsboro photographing the Cascade during their home debut against the Spark.

This weekend, that same matchup made its way back to Oklahoma.

Different city.
Different backdrop.
Same growing league.
Same goal every night:
photograph the game the best I possibly can.

Game two had a little bit of everything — big swings, defensive plays, dugout personality, pregame moments, postgame memories, and another reminder of why this run has meant so much to me.

This AUSL journey has taken a lot out of me, but nights like this are the kind of nights that remind me why I keep showing up.

Still photographing.
Still building.
Still documenting every part of the journey. 🧸🥎

📸 Full gallery:
https://huntersheppardphotography.pixieset.com/okcsparkvsportlandcascadegametwo/

Pregame moments 🤝🥎📸

Sydney Romero and Sis Bates before game one of the Spark/Cascade series at Tom Heath Field.

One of those small moments that says a lot about this league and the people in it. 🫶

After the week I’ve had, I needed a night like this. 🥺🥎

Some moments just hit different.

Getting to meet Sam Landry after watching her at OU for so long meant a lot. She was one of my favorite players to watch during those years, so finally getting that photo was special.

Kelly Maxwell was another full-circle moment for me. I had the honor of watching and photographing some of her games with the OKC Spark last season, so getting to see her again tonight meant a lot too.

Then there was Maya Brady, who I loved watching during her UCLA days. Sydney McKinney, another player I’ve always loved seeing play. And Sydney Sherrill, who I first met when she was an assistant at Oklahoma Christian and have photographed plenty with the Spark since.

This AUSL run has taken a lot out of me, but nights like this remind me why it matters.

Players I’ve watched for years.
Players I’ve photographed before.
Moments that make this whole journey feel real.

Grateful for this game, this league, and every reminder of why I keep showing up. 🫶📸

Back at the ballpark for Game 2. 🥎📸

Funny how a few weeks ago I was photographing the Cascade in Portland, and now they’re in Edmond playing the Spark.

That’s honestly one of the coolest parts of this whole AUSL run to me.

Different cities.
Different crowds.
Different energy every stop.

But every series keeps reminding me why I fell in love with photographing this game in the first place.

From Portland… to Oklahoma City… and wherever this journey goes next, I’m just grateful I still get to be here documenting moments like this.

OKC Spark vs. Portland Cascade.
Game two in Edmond. 🥎📸

Durham push is live. 🥎📸

I’m going to be honest because sugarcoating this does not help right now.

I need support now more than ever.

This AUSL photo run has become one of the biggest projects I have ever taken on. Oklahoma City, Wichita, Chicago, Portland, Edmond — every stop has meant something to me because this has never been just about going to games.

This has been about proving how far this photography journey can actually go.

This did not come out of nowhere either.

Everything I have done over the years — local games, high school fields, college tournaments, late nights editing, long travel days, building galleries, showing up when I could, and trying to make people take the work seriously — has led to opportunities like this.

And now, at this level, I have started building real relationships too.

Players, staff, teams, and people around the game have started recognizing the work. That means a lot to me. It makes this feel bigger than just one trip or one gallery. It feels like this photo run is becoming something real.

That is why Durham matters so much.

Durham would be a new market, a DI softball venue, and another major chapter in this run. It would be a chance to keep pushing this project beyond the places I already know, keep building the body of work, and keep showing what professional softball looks like through my lens while this league is still growing in real time.

But right now, I am stretched thin.

My camera’s mechanical shutter blew out in March, and renting a camera is the only reason I have been able to keep photographing games at this level. My camera has now been sent off, but I do not have a firm ETA on when it will be fixed or back in my hands.

That has put pressure on everything.

Between camera rental costs, travel, rideshare, food, monthly bills, and trying to keep this work moving, I have burned through what little cushion I had. I have not had a real holiday weekend. I have been photographing, editing, traveling, posting, trying to keep momentum alive, and doing everything I can to hold this run together while the clock keeps moving.

The timing makes this even harder.

A lot of people were offline, traveling, with family, or spending money elsewhere over the holiday weekend, and I completely understand that. But Durham cannot sit in limbo much longer. If this is going to have a real chance, the support has to start moving now.

First Durham checkpoint: $450.

The full need is higher than that, but this is the first number that gives the trip real movement and keeps Durham from turning into a pipe dream before it even has a chance.

I am not asking people to just say they support the work.

I am asking people to help back it.

GoFundMe: https://www.gofundme.com/f/help-bring-my-ausl-photography-journey-to-durham
Cash App: $huntersheppard123
Venmo: -Sheppard-9

Business or sponsor support is also welcome if someone wants to help back part of this Durham trip and keep this AUSL photo run moving.

Every donation helps. Every share helps. Every comment helps.

This trip is not guaranteed.

But if enough people step up, Durham still has a real chance.

And honestly, keeping this AUSL photo run alive right now would mean more to me than I can fully explain. 🥎📸

🥎 Oklahoma City Spark vs. Portland Cascade — Game One

Another night at Oklahoma Christian and another chapter in this AUSL journey. 📸🥎

A few weeks ago, I photographed the Cascade during their home debut in Hillsboro against the Spark.

Last night, that same matchup came back to Oklahoma City.

Different city.
Different setting.
Same growing league.
Another night of moments worth documenting.

From big swings and defensive plays to dugout personality and the weather moving around the metro, game one had plenty to capture from start to finish.

Still traveling.
Still building.
Still documenting every part of the journey. 🧸🥎

📸 Full gallery:
https://huntersheppardphotography.pixieset.com/okcsparkvsportlandcascadegameone/

Hillsboro was the journey.

This weekend feels like the reminder of why I started doing all of this in the first place.

A few weeks ago I was photographing the Cascade in Oregon during one of the biggest stops of the entire AUSL trip.
Now they’re in Oklahoma City for a home series against the Spark — and somehow this league already feels bigger every time I walk through the gate.

Different city.
Different atmosphere.
Same goal every night:
document the game the best I possibly can. 🥎📸

OKC Spark vs. Portland Cascade.
Game one in Edmond.

I hate having to make this post, but I need to be honest.

I need support TODAY to keep this photo run moving.

I’ve done more with less so many times.

I’ve shown up with rented gear, borrowed gear, rideshares, train rides, late nights, long edits, cheap meals, tight turnarounds, and barely any room for error. I’ve found ways to keep showing up for athletes, teams, families, programs, and this softball community even when the money side made no sense.

I’ve put everything I have into this run — the games, the travel, the photos, the edits, the miles, the stress, and all the work it has taken to even get to this point.

But right now, I’m operating in the red.

Immediate camera, travel, food, and basic keep-going costs are all hitting at the same time. It has reached the point where almost my entire monthly check, and then some, has had to go toward keeping this alive. I barely have any buffer left.

Because of disability-related work restrictions, I don’t have the option to just pick up extra hours somewhere and catch up later.

The biggest immediate piece is the camera rental extension, and I’m hoping this is the last time I have to extend it. I’m in the process of hopefully getting my own camera shipped off this weekend, so this extension is meant to be a bridge to keep the work going right now — not something I can keep floating forever.

I also have the Spark/Cascade series this weekend, and I’m trying to keep myself in position to do that work the right way without falling even further behind.

This has been one of the biggest opportunities I’ve ever had as a photographer. I’ve worked too hard and come too far for this to stop because I couldn’t get enough support at the exact moment I needed it most.

I appreciate every kind word. I really do. But today, I need more than people rooting for me.

If you’ve ever enjoyed my photos, used them, shared them, followed this journey, or told me you support what I do — this is the moment where I need that support to actually move.

I’m not asking one person to carry this.

But I do need enough people to act today.

GoFundMe: https://www.gofundme.com/f/help-bring-my-ausl-photography-journey-to-durham

Cash App: $huntersheppard123
Venmo: -Sheppard-9

If this does not move today, I may have to step back from this photo run for the foreseeable future.

I’ve gone to bat for this work over and over again.

Today, I need people to go to bat for me.

Donate to Help Bring My AUSL Photography Journey to Durham, organized by Hunter Sheppard Durham is the next goal. Over the last few weeks, this AUSL photo… Hunter Sheppard needs your support for Help Bring My AUSL Photography Journey to Durham