Creating a Book Cover Portrait: Capturing Eight Decades of Jim Kaat’s Baseball Legacy in One Compelling Photograph
From the pitcher's mound to the pages of his latest book, Jim Kaat's eight-decade journey in the world of baseball continues to captivate fans. I recently had the privilege of photographing him for his latest book, Good as Gold.
Jim is a former Major League Baseball player and is a retired television sports commentator, after four decades. For three seasons, he was an All-Star; he was a Gold Glove winner for 16 seasons, the highest ever by any player. He played baseball for 25 years after starting his professional season in 1959.
Although I have spent 40+ years as a professional photographer and I have photographed literally thousands of people, I must admit there was still a flutter of nervousness, along with excitement, when Jim called and asked me to do the cover for his book.
A Stuart Magazine Photography Assignment Leads to Son’s Cherished Autographed Baseball
The thing I love the most about being a professional portrait photographer is all the people I meet along the way. And often the relationships last for many years.
I first photographed Jim in 2010 when he was featured in Stuart Magazine. That photo shoot was at his Stuart, Florida home, with some of his baseball memorabilia. As we got to know each other, I studied the space and asked Jim to lean on his balcony railing. He wore his old Minnesota Twins jersey and held a baseball. I took advantage of the excellent natural light that filled the space and his trademark smile brought it all together.
It was an easy and relaxed photo shoot and the image really captured his personality.
While at his house, he was kind enough to ask about my family and then offer to autograph a baseball for my son Andrew. He was seven years old at the time and was playing on a Little League team. Jim’s kind gift made Andrew feel very special. We went online to learn about Jim’s career and look at old photos from early in his career, including his baseball cards.
Jim Kaat’s baseball cards from the 70’s
Now, at age 19, Andrew is still proud of that autographed baseball.
“It’s pretty cool to have something signed by a famous person and that he was thoughtful enough to think of giving it to me when I was a little boy playing baseball,” Andrew recently said.
Andrew, when he played on a local Little League team.
Capturing Moments and Memories: Jim and Margie Kaat's Portrait Session
A few months later, I returned to his home to photograph Jim and his wife Margie. They were the top bidders on my donation of a portrait session to an American Cancer Society silent auction. I loved doing this photo shoot because it captured their relationship and also their beautiful home. While creating the images, it was so obvious how much they love each other.
At the time they lived in a Caribbean Colonial-inspired courtyard estate called Rabbit Run, located on the St. Lucie River in Stuart. They sold that home about a year after our photography session, making those images that much more meaningful. We created a Storyteller Coffee Table Book from the session, which will always help them remember their years together in that beautiful home.
Baseball Exhibit at Stuart’s Elliott Museum
A few years after their photography session as a couple, Stuart’s Elliott Museum provided the next connection with Jim. The museum has a comprehensive signed collection of baseball-related items including autographed baseball cards, baseballs, bats, and other artifacts. Jim provided some of the artifacts and has also spoken at the museum to promote the exhibit.
My son Daniel was an intern at the museum in the summer before he started high school. He read and enjoyed all the exhibits, including the extensive baseball collection. When Daniel noticed that some of Jim’s memorabilia was on display, he was excited to tell me because he knew that I had photographed Jim and that he had given Andrew the cherished autographed baseball.
Here’s a short video of Jim talking about the collection:
Planning Jim Kaat's Book Cover Photo: A Collaborative Journey
Fast forward to the summer of 2021 when Jim reached out to me and asked if I would photograph him for the cover of his upcoming book, Good As Gold. I was glad to hear from him and of course said an enthusiastic “Yes!” He put me in touch with his editor Jeff Fedotin at Triumph Books and we talked about concepts and ideas.
Being an avid reader, I already knew how important the cover was. It was the thing that would cause a person to gravitate toward the book and would get more people to read it.
“A book cover creates the first impression on its potential readers,” according to this article from Limelight Publishing. “A successful book cover needs to make a reader 'feel' the manuscript rather than 'tell' about it.” So my goal was to create a storytelling portrait of Jim.
In preparation for the photography I studied the covers of other memoirs– sports personalities, presidents and other significant people. I wanted to create an impactful image that captured Jim’s personality and would make the cover compelling.
Jim and his wife Margie met with me at my Stuart photography studio to brainstorm and nail down all the details.
What color shirt would be best? (blue.)
What style of shirt? (long-sleeved polo to bring attention to his face, while still adding color)
What memorabilia should be featured in the images? (baseball, 1982 World Series ring, Golden Glove Award)
What feeling did he want the images to have? (happy, friendly)
What would be the best background? (dark, so the focus would be on Jim).
What would help Jim relax and be himself? (having Margie there for encouragement, fun and input)
The Photography Session and Choosing the Best Ones
Since we were organized and had a plan, the actual photography session took only about an hour. I was set up when they arrived. It was a relaxed, enjoyable photo session, with the resulting images capturing Jim’s personality well. During the photo shoot, we did multiple poses and used the ring, baseball and trophy as elements in the portraits.
Jim said he was surprised by my attention to detail in terms of posing and directing him to tilt his head a certain way or how to hold the baseball so it would add to the portrait.
I went through all the images and selected my top choices before sending proofs to Jeff, the book editor from Triumph Books. “These are fantastic!” he said. In fact, he and the art director loved the images so much they decided to feature one on the back cover also.
Jim and Jeff decided on a compelling yet simple image for the cover–focusing on Jim’s smile and his World Series ring. I agreed this image captured him well. On the book’s back is an image of Jim with one of his Golden Gloves trophies.
“It’s the best of my book covers,” Jim told me.
This is Jim’s third book. His others are: Still Pitching: Musings from the Mound and the Microphone (2003) and If These Walls Could Talk: New York Yankees: Stories from the New York Yankees Dugout, Locker Room, and Press Box (2015.)
Soon after the photo shoot, the Baseball Hall of Fame announced that Jim would be inducted in 2022, a few months after the book’s release. The announcement came just in time to feature it on the cover as well.
My Son Meets Baseball Legend Jim Kaat
Our story came full circle when Jim called and invited me to his house in Stuart to give me a signed copy of the book. Andrew, now 19 years old, came along. I loved witnessing the moment when the boy who received that signed baseball more than 10 years earlier got to meet this legendary baseball player he had only heard about.
Jim’s advice to Andrew: “Aim high and never think your dream isn’t attainable.”
Before we left that day, Andrew snapped an iPhone photo of Jim and I with the book.
I am so glad I met Jim all those years ago! I truly enjoyed working on the book cover project. Through the years I have had my commercial work published many times–on magazines, in newspapers, brochures, postcards and more. But there’s something permanent about a book cover. Additionally, this is a memoir with stories from a life well lived, which gives the book many layers of meaning.
I’m not going to lie. It was a bit of a thrill to see the book on display at our local Barnes and Noble bookstore!
See more about Jim and some links to other resources at the end of this blog post.
Jim Kaat’s book proceeds support the Neuroendocrine Tumor Research Foundation
Jim has a bigger purpose for writing this third book, beyond sharing about his eight decades in baseball.
Sadly, his daughter Jill was diagnosed with stage four neuroendocrine cancer about the time he starting writing the book. Then she passed away on March 5, 2021.
“Jill’s attitude and resilience in handling this horrific disease has been an inspiration to me,” Jim writes on the dedication page of the book.
Proceeds from this book will be passed on to the Neuroendocrine Tumor Research Foundation.
Other Relevant Resources
Read Jim Kaat’s Bio on Players Bio site.
You can buy Jim’s “Good as Gold” on:
For a comprehensive analysis of Jim Kaat's performance in the Major Leagues, don't miss his official player page on the MLB website.
Professional Portraits in Stuart, Florida
Interested in having Diane create impactful portraits for you? Contact Diane Dultmeier today for professional portrait photography in Stuart, Florida and surrounding areas such as Palm City, Jensen Beach, Hobe Sound, Fort Pierce, Vero Beach, Jupiter Island, Port St. Lucie, Tequesta, and Hutchinson Island.
For 20+ years as a family portrait specialist on Florida’s Treasure Coast, I have been known for relaxed portrait sessions at locations around Stuart, Palm City, Hutchinson Island, Hobe Sound, Fort Pierce, Vero Beach and all areas in between. I am not like most photographers these days because I believe your family deserves to be celebrated each day, as part of your home decor. When you work with me, we will collaborate in creating Fine Art Portraits of your family, which will live on your walls or in a custom-designed album or folio box and be remembered as one of the best investments you have ever made. In addition to creating portraits for families, I create headshots and personal branding images for business use. To learn more, go the the Dultmeier Photography homepage.