Throughout the past 15 years, Cathy Lojo would sit in the stands of the Estadio Santiago Bernabéu and her eyes would wander from the field.
The Real Madrid CF fan’s gaze would become fixated on the people surrounding the field — specifically those in brightly colored bibs with cameras.
“My eyes have always spent 10-15 minutes each game staring at photographers and envying them,” Lojo said. “Not only do they get to take pictures, but they get to be close to the players.”
Lojo, a Spanish teacher at St. John’s Prep in Astoria, has always had a fascination with photography – she’s better at the artistic side than the technical side, she says. Recently, she was able to experience what so many she envied do for a living.
Lojo entered New York City FC’s #5boros1city Instagram contest last summer. Entrants had to submit their best Club-related pictures and the winner was the person to acquire the most fan votes. Lojo did just that and won an opportunity to be a photographer – wearing one of those brightly colored bibs — for New York City FC’s Historic Home Opener on March 15 at Yankee Stadium.
“When I won this contest I started to take classes because I had to get my act together,” Lojo said. “I rented a really nice lens. I was serious about photography, but I got really serious after winning the contest.”
Lojo thought of her winning photo in collaboration with her nephew, Steven Rey, who also submitted photos to the contest.
“My nephew suggested I put the sticker on iconic places in New York City,” Lojo said. “I put the NYCFC sticker on one of the viewers overlooking the Hudson River and said, ‘Looking forward to the season.’ Surely enough it was a beautiful sunset that day. I went to my favorite spot and a boat was coming by, too.
“Photography is as lot of being in the right place at the right time. It was the combination of the idea I had with my nephew and being at the right place at the right time.”
Sometimes all of those factors align to create the perfect image or experience. It did that day for Lojo and it did again on March 15 as she was on the sidelines for New York City FC’s 2-0 win over New England in front of 43,507.
“It was a dream come true for me,” she said. “To be at the Historic Home Opener, not only as a photographer on the field but as a fan in the middle of it all, was truly an amazing experience. I got a little emotional. I remember goosebumps all over my body.
“The second goal celebration happened right in front of my face and it’s moments like that I’ve been admiring the last 15 years at games. I was that girl. I was that lucky person.”
CLICK HERE TO VIEW CATHY'S PHOTOS FROM THE HISTORIC HOME OPENER
