Confetti fell from the sky as Chandler Mixon made a decision that no one else was willing to make. He didn’t stay on the sidelines. He didn’t choose a safe angle.

Instead, he ran toward the stage to join Deuce Vaughn, Holly Rowe, Brett Yormark and Chris Kliemen.

“I’m going to go on that stage and get the shot,” Mixon said. 

At that moment, he was the only photographer who was able to capture Kansas State lifting the Big 12 championship trophy into the air.

Mixon’s confidence is what makes him stand out as a photographer.

“I was born in Columbus, Georgia, and I spent most of my younger years there and also in Phenix City, Alabama, until 2010,” Mixon said. “I wanted to be a storm chaser, I wanted to be a real estate agent, I wanted to be a YouTuber — none of those worked out.”

For some, this uncertainty would be alarming. However, he knew it was going to push him somewhere special. 

After graduating high school, Mixon moved to Panama City Beach, Fl., where he attended surf competitions with his camera.

“I would look at the surf forecast like it was the weather,” Mixon said. “If it was good waves, I’d go out and shoot.”

On a successful day, he would get surfers, fans and local shops to buy his photos. Mixon admits the way he worked then wasn’t organized or polished, but it shaped who he is today.

He made his way back to Manhattan in 2020, where he enrolled at K-State. At the time, sports photography wasn’t popular, and though opportunities were limited, Mixon didn’t stop advocating for himself.

“I was trying so hard to get an internship,” he said. “[The photo team] just didn’t have spots.”

To get his foot in the door, Mixon emailed Andy Liebsch inquiring about jobs at K-State HDTV and was offered a position as a cable puller and camera operator. He worked his way up to the creative media department.

“I was just trying to do everything I could and just shoot as much as possible,” Mixon said. “I would always bug the social media people, like, ‘Hey, when do you have a spot?’”

Mixon eventually earned the photographer internship and became the first student photographer to travel with K-State Athletics. 

His work became more than just the game-winning shot; it was the emotions that truly made the game special.

“I feel like my relationship with the players, you can kind of feel it in my photography,” he said. “You just have to be where your feet are.”

Coworker Will Huster has gotten to know Mixon over his three years working at K-State Athletics. 

“Instead of just keeping a picture because it’s Avery Johnson, he makes you really think about why you should keep the image,” Huster said. “He asks you, ‘Did you keep it because it’s cool, or did you keep it because we can use it?’”