TOLEDO, Ohio — Some of the greatest moments in sports history have been captured on camera.
Photography is an essential part of the sports experience from the pros down to the local level.
One local photographer and former athlete is using the art of pictures to tell a story that goes beyond the game.
Jacob Peters spent his whole childhood playing soccer.
After graduating from Central Catholic in 2021, he went on to play at Lourdes University. But after one season, Peters made the tough decision to walk away.
"It was so hard to do that because it almost felt like when I was walking away from that, I was walking away from what defined me my whole life," said Peters.
Peters started battling depression and anxiety as he looked for a direction in life.
"I was having a conversation with my dad and one of the things he told me was, 'You got to find something to get your mind off this. You got to find something you're gonna love,'" said Peters. "And he had this old camera."
Peters started out capturing high school games, and if you thought it came naturally to him, you'd be wrong.
"The first photos I took were just so bad. I mean none of them were really good," he said.
Peters had plenty of opportunities to put down the camera and give up on it but people kept reaching out and wanting more.
"I started to get really good responses from the photos. It motivated me to keep going with this."
A few months ago Peters put out a call to athletes for a project on his photography page on Instagram.
"Basically they just had to answer 'Why?' Why they play the sport they love," said Peters. "It was all about experiences with your mental health."
Peters got more than 160 responses in the first hour. It gave him the chance to see a different side of the athletes.
"I didn't know a fraction of their story and now I have the opportunity to share that," he said.
He doesn't think of himself as the best photographer in the world but he knew he could be different, sharing stories about athletes and the battles that aren't on the court.
"I wanted to be more than just a photographer to people," said Peters. "I knew I had this power. I knew I had these gifts. I wanted to do more with it. I wanted to help people tell their stories."
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