Give Line is an ongoing project about Ultimate Frisbee—not just as a sport, but as a world of its own. It’s about ritual, community, and the weird, tender magic that happens when people chase a flying piece of plastic together. Especially in the South, where most sports come with a whole lot of tradition and testosterone, Ultimate feels like something different. It’s goofy and joyful and surprisingly gentle. It’s self-officiated. It’s mixed-gender. People work stuff out on the field, in real time. The goal is joy just as much as it is winning.

I’ve been photographing Ultimate players across the Southeast U.S. for the past few years as I’ve been playing the sport, often running off the field to grab my camera in between points. This project lingers on the sidelines—where the soul of the sport reveals itself. Temporary tattoos applied by tongues, homemade costumes and ridiculously dirty cheers, liquor-filled water guns at 10am and glitter everywhere, the passing of pickle jars, sips of beer, sunscreen. Bodies collapsing into each other between points, exhausted, happy, seen. The way people light up—doing the most ridiculous, funny things with total sincerity—is what keeps me coming back.

There’s a physical closeness here that feels rare and deeply unselfconscious. It’s absurd and earnest and completely free. Ultimate creates space for people to be fully themselves: silly, intense, tender, loud, weird. There’s no need to hold back. That freedom, that joy, feels rare—and deeply worth holding onto.

Book coming soon!

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