Erik Esparza | Ezekiel E. Photography

Written by Kevin Green | Photos by Lily Chris Photography

Although capturing the perfect shot is always a goal for Erik Esparza, it is not the ultimate aspiration.

Nowadays when he picks up a camera, it is more about capturing a legacy. The longtime photographer behind Ezekiel E. Photography is now watching his passion come full circle as he teaches his three sons the same craft that once changed his life.

“Being a husband, dad and working in visual storytelling are not things I have to do,” Esparza said. “They’re things I get to do.”

FROM HOBBY TO CALLING

Esparza’s journey began in a ninth-grade photography class, long before digital cameras and editing software.

Students had to buy their own black-and-white film and photographic paper, so he borrowed his parents’ old YASHICA camera from the 1970s and began experimenting on the streets of Princeton, New Jersey.

He didn’t fully understand how to use the light meter yet, but some of his photos came out surprisingly well.

“When I saw that picture appear for the first time in that chemical and saw that picture come to life, I was like, ‘This is amazing,’” Esparza said.

He was hooked, and that spark eventually grew into a 17-year career (and counting).

It wasn’t until his mid-20s that he got a digital camera, but that affinity for film photography lives on. In fact, it is one of his most sought-after services for weddings, alongside instant photos.

Speaking of wedding photography, Esparza’s introduction to that genre was born from happenstance one evening during a casual get-together at his place.

Friends noticed the framed photographs decorating his walls and asked where he had gotten them. When he told them he had taken the shots himself, a friend — who happened to be the club’s assistant dining room manager and wedding coordinator — asked him if he had ever photographed a wedding before.

That question would change everything for Esparza, both professionally and personally.
He agreed to give it a try, and the experience opened his eyes to the world of wedding photography and shaped his career.

“What was once a hobby turned into a thriving business because of something that my friend Stefanie saw in me that I never considered, which was my eye for composition, color and storytelling through photography,” Esparza said. “A skill I had unknowingly developed after shooting hundreds of rolls of film and taking thousands of photos since I developed my first roll of film in ninth grade.”

That friend Stefanie who introduced him to wedding photography? She would later become his wife and business partner.

From there, Esparza’s creative journey took off.

“To quote Ilse Bing,” he said, “I didn’t choose photography; it chose me.”

BUILDING A BUSINESS

Esparza’s entry into professional photography was entirely self-taught.

He learned through YouTube tutorials, trial and error and an unwavering curiosity, quickly mastering both the artistic and business sides of the profession.

Together, he and Stefanie built a successful wedding photography brand in Miami, Florida, carving out a niche in a fiercely competitive market.

Through a mix of SEO mastery, strong marketing strategy and word-of-mouth relationships with hotels and venues, Esparza rose to prominence as one of the city’s top wedding photographers.
“With her by my side, we built a fledgling business,” Esparza said. “… We dominated the wedding world in Miami, Florida.”

However, as the business flourished, so did his desire for something slower and more meaningful.

A NEW CHAPTER

Six years ago, the Esparzas moved from Miami to the Tulsa suburb of Bixby to raise their three sons in a faith-driven community while also being closer to family.

“Our purpose for doing business and family began to take on a different meaning,” Esparza said. “The fast-paced Miami life became a bit much, especially with three rambunctious boys, so we decided to pack up and head to Tulsa, where my wife’s folks live, connect with a solid church — which her father pastors — and settle in the suburbs for them to drop their roots and establish solid values.”

In Oklahoma, Esparza began blending his two passions for photography and marketing into a hybrid business model.

His work now includes everything from wedding and portrait photography to brand storytelling and even the occasional youth sporting event.

However, he says it is his style that separates him from other professionals like photojournalists.

“Anybody can go and capture an event and stuff going on, but for me, it's really about telling a story — to understand what a person's vision is and be able to capture it in a way that really speaks to either that individual or their company,” Esparza said. “They're not just photos; the messaging behind them is solid to where it makes sense when someone sees them, and they're like, ‘I get it.’” 

And increasingly, his work has become a family affair.

PASSING THE TORCH

Esparza’s days of building a portfolio for himself have taken a backseat.

That is because his greatest focus now is on building his sons’ confidence as young creators and entrepreneurs.

“Now, with our boys — two 14-year-old twins and our youngest, who’s 10 — we’re grafting them into the family business,” he said. “We’re teaching them creativity, critical thinking, innovation and most importantly, communication.”

One twin has already launched his own 3D printing and content-creation business, while the other has taken to photography, shooting his first solo family session and even second-shooting a wedding alongside his father.

Meanwhile, Esparza describes his youngest as the Spanish word “chicle,” meaning sticky like gum because he is always nearby and gaining knowledge from his brothers’ projects and creations. He uses writing and storytelling as an outlet for his imagination, crafting books and comics while utilizing modern technology to fully accomplish his vision.

“Now I can have all this content I've been dying to have for years,” Esparza said. “The behind-the-scenes stuff, they do this for me now. It's been really cool to watch them begin to develop and learn how to use all these tools for video editing and all this kind of stuff. That for me, that's really, really exciting. It's really cool to be able to be able to pass the baton, and it makes me excited that whether they use it or not, they're learning a new skill set.

“For me, that's the most exciting part of this journey.”

LESSONS BEYOND THE LENS

That mindset of self-reliance has already paid off.

In addition to helping their father with wedding gigs and behind-the-scenes content, the twins are currently running a “Courage Builds Dreams” campaign as a way to fundraise for a class trip to Philadelphia and Washington, D.C. this spring.

“We could have helped them financially; however, they were adamant about doing it on their own, using the content creation and entrepreneurial skills they are learning,” Esparza said. “They have since raised about half the amount needed to achieve their goal through their ‘Courage Builds Dreams’ campaign, as each initiative brings their contributors into their story as ‘Dream Builders’ who help pave the way to where our forefathers once stood.”

For Esparza, those are the moments that matter most.

In a way, the lens that once chose Esparza is now choosing the next generation. What once began as a career for him and Stefanie has now become a teaching ground for their sons.

Esparza’s motto for them is simple and direct:

“Be a leader,” he said. “The only thing limiting you between you and your goals is the grey matter between your ears. Gross, but it makes sense.”

For more information about the twins' Courage Builds Dreams campaign, visit couragebuildsdreams.com.