A tall, lanky former football player jogging along the Washington waterfront is a frequent sight, but what many people don’t realize is that exercise enthusiast is also a bit of a photography buff.

Stephen Braddy is a Beaufort County native and graduate of Bath High School who later was outside linebacker for the East Carolina University Pirate; in fact, ECU won the Peach Bowl in 1991, Braddy’s senior season with the team. Nowadays, he spends his work days as a juvenile court counselor.

To keep in shape and to work off a little stress, Braddy hits the Washington waterfront several days each week. While running, he snaps sights along the way with his cell phone camera. Friends have admired his photos on his Facebook page, inspiring him to branch out and expand his hobby.

In fact, supporters spurred him on to enter his first photography contest, one sponsored by Arts of the Pamlico and displayed in the Turnage Theatre gallery. Braddy selected a nature scene he shot at Goose Creek State Park and a landscape taken along the Washington waterfront for the contest. The exhibition opens Aug. 2, with a reception and awards presentation.

Braddy said he has long enjoyed the beauty of nature and the great outdoors.

“My parents were always outdoors people,” he recalled. “I just came to appreciate being outside. And I’ve been interested in photography since I was younger. I remember when the first disposable cameras came out. I was always the one taking pictures when I went camping at Goose Creek with my friends.”

Given the quality and clarity of Braddy’s photos, many people are surprised to learn they are taken with a cell phone.

“I’ve got a nicer camera but I just don’t carry it with me when I’m jogging,” he said with a laugh.

Family members and friends have been lucky recipients of Braddy’s photos, several of which he has enlarged and printed on canvas. But now he’s looking to branch out and possibly offer selected images for sale. He hopes the exposure of the Arts of the Pamlico photography show will help in that regard.

For now, Braddy is just content to keep adding to his photo collection.

“This is something I enjoy doing,” he noted. “I have a passion for it, no doubt about it.”