In Celina, a high schooler is gaining attention for his work in sports media, from recording Friday night lights at Celina High to capturing some of the biggest names in the NFL. NBC 5’s Alicia Barrera is in Celina with the story.
A high schooler in Celina, Texas, has gained attention for his work in the world of sports media and as a digital creator.
Jacob López is 17 years old, a senior at Celina High School, and the owner of JL Studioz, his own business.
“My focus is videography and photography for sports events and different athletes,” López said.
His Instagram account @JLStudioz serves as his portfolio, showcasing his unique style and the athletes he has photographed and recorded, including Dak Prescott.
Get top local stories in DFW delivered to you every morning. Sign up for NBC DFW's News Headlines newsletter.
“I started my Instagram in 2022 when I was at McKinney North, and during that time there, I gained like 300 followers,” López said.
López would later transfer to Celina High School.
“I got to Celina and started posting a lot more, and my Instagram went up to 12,000 followers,” López said.
Local
The latest news from around North Texas.
López first picked up the camera as a young child. It was during a family trip where his parents took notice for his eye as a photographer.
“I remember a time I was in Arkansas with my dad camping, and we were in a river,” López said. “I pulled out my phone, and there was a bridge. I took a picture of it right as this blue truck crossed across the bridge,” López said.
López still has a copy of the picture.
“That's kind of where I started with this whole video and photography thing,” López said.
His hobby is now his business, which requires hours of filming and editing. As his Instagram followers have grown, so has his clientele.
“I started off with just high school (athletes) from my school,” López said. “And then it grew to filming college players at LSU, OU, Oregon.”
At his young age, López’s work has led him to get NFL players behind the lens on multiple occasions.
“I got to get in touch with Dak Prescott's quarterback trainer, Damien Williams,” López said.
López had previously worked with Williams, a former Mississippi State quarterback and current director of the quarterback training facility 3DQB Texas.
“He introduced me to Dak, and I met him and Ezekiel Elliott as well,” López said. “I was at school, and I saw him there,” López said. “I was already working with his quarterback trainer. And he actually saw me. He kind of told me to go over to where he was. And we just started talking.”
Eventually, López said Prescott asked to see his work.
“He really liked it. And then that's when he told me that I could shoot some stuff for him. We've done a couple shoots,” López said.
Pinned at the top of López’s Instagram profile is a 24-second clip posted on June 8 with a brief caption “@_4dak”. The video has been viewed 382,000 times.
“I showed him the video, and he really liked it,” López said. “He even started following me on Instagram.”
This season, López has focused much of his time on working for Celina TV Productions, a student broadcast program directed by his teacher, Jay Slivocka.
“He's also been a big help for me,” López said.
His work at the school, López said, has also helped him foster relationships to help him achieve his long-term goal of going to college.
“Even our football coach, Mr. Bill Elliott and a bunch of the coaches have helped me also with letters of recommendation,” López said.
Through it all, López balances producing content for his company’s biggest paid client.
“Texas Football life, I film a lot of games for them, including Celina games,” López said.
López said he is saving every penny to get him the education and opportunity to land the job of his dreams.
“I want to go to college. Probably do the same thing at a D1 college,” López said. “Then, you know, film for a professional league or even be some professional athlete’s personal videographer.”
López said he is thankful for the support he has received from his parents, sister, and the community of Celina.
"I started this off as a hobby and just, you know, to have fun. And I never knew it could get to where I'm at now. And, you know, there's even more stuff hopefully planned for me in the future," López said.
