As far as "Where were you?" stories go, AndrewBernstein is the king. But on January 20, 2009, one of the great "Where were you?" moments in American history, he was with"The King."The day Barack Obama was inaugurated as the 44th president of the United States,Bernstein was in a suite with LeBron James and his two children.While the world watched Obama's oaths, Bernstein found his focus split betweenthe screenand James and his sons.MORE: | "He was with the Cavs then, it was his off day (in Los Angeles), and it was literally me, LeBron and his two kids in the other room with a big TV," Bernstein said. "So I'm watching the whole thing unfold, and he's trying to watch it, and the kids were little then, and they are jumping all over him. It was just hilarious. It was such a special moment to be able to be thereand obviously an incredibly historic moment for our Jeff Locke Jersey country, and then for me to be able to watch it and record it with him.It sort of I don't want to say 'broke the ice' because there was never any ice, but we shared a moment."For most of Bernstein's career, he hasn't needed a TV screen. He is the official photographer for the NBA, among the other profe sional sports leagues he contracts with. Bernsteinhas shot every NBA Finals since 1983, and has been up close for the most special, even if fleeting, moments in NBA history.When Isiah Thomas scored 43 points on one ankle in the 1988 NBA Finals, Miami Marlins Hats Bernstein was under the basket, chronicling every swish and every wince.AfterPhil Jackson won his 11th NBA title, the most ever for a head coach, with the Lakers in 2010,Bernstein and Jackson co-authored a book called Journey to the Ring. Jackson provided the writing and Bernstein delivered candid photos from the entire season--even personal, off-the-court moments like the team Thanksgiving.And when Michael Jordan won his first ever NBA title, Bernstein was there, inches away, photographing one of the iconic moments in all of sports as Jordan cried while hugging the Larry O'Brien Trophy.Somewhere between all of that, Bernstein was no longer simply photographing NBA legends. He became one himself.When Kobe Bryant was first drafted to the NBA, Bernstein introduced himself, only to find that Bryant already knew who he was. Bernstein's name was on the basketball posters he had growing up.In an interview with Sporting News after the 2015 NBA Finals, Bernstein shared some of his favorite memories of his long career spentinches away fromthe biggest stars in the NBA.What follows is an edited transcript of the interview.Q:It can be difficult to get pro athletes to be vulnerable around media, how do you build that kind of trust with the players and coaches?A: You hit the nail on the head, that key word is trust. Im a pretty outgoing guy, and I love friendships, but I learned very early in my career that relationships within my work were key to my succe s. I didnt just want to come record the game and go home. I love all the inner-workings of the game. I love the personalities. I loved being with the guys, traveling with them, locker room training room. The guy who really helped me from the very beginning was Pat Riley. When I was first starting out, and he became coach, I had the type of personality where I put myself in situations where you had to say no to me in order for me to get it. Pat understood that I was the kind of guy who needed to do a little more as a photographer.So as I approached his huddle to Miami Marlins Hoodie try to shoot in the huddle, at first he didnt welcome me very much.But then he saw I was very persistent. We actually talked about it, and I said Coach, Id love to be able to shoot the huddle and get you during the timeout talking to some of the guys, and he got it. He totally got it. He said, you know what Andy? Youve been trying to do it, go ahead and do it. And that gave me a lot of self-confidence. It built trust very early. When you have the trust of the head guy, the coach, it all trickles down.In those days there werent so many layers of barricades between what I do and the team. Red tape or whatever you want to call it. So that gave me a tremendous amount of self-confidence. And as my career grew, I was able to use my personality, and use the trust that I had built first with the Lakers and then through Phil (Jackson) with the Bulls, people got used to seeing me around, and they knew I was cool and they didnt have to worry about me. So there was a tremendous amount of trust there.Q: Spending as much time as you did with the Lakers, what do you remember about the dynamic between Shaquille O'Neal and Kobe Bryant?A: I have some really great memories of those two guys together. We did numerous photo shoots together for the NBA, for Miami Marlins Jersey the team. Those guys were great to work with. They always were fun with each other, being in the training room with them, in the locker room, on the bus, plane, whatever. I think a lot of people from the outside like to overblow the tension, so to speak, that they had. Honestly I don't think there was any tension. I think they were just very strong personalities and different kinds of guys.I remember a couple of instances in particular. One was when the Lakers were playing Indiana in the Finals, and Kobe was injured and couldn't play that night. And Shaq gave him a piggy-back ride from the bus to the locker room. How many guys would do that, first of all? That was a wonderful moment.And then when they won their first championship together, and just the joy they had to win it together, and just the photos that came out of that of them on the court and in the locker room with the trophy, and the portraits that we did with the two of them together and with Phil.There was oneFinals, I don't remember which one, might have been New Jersey (2002), where it was just the two of them alone in the training room with (longtime Lakers trainer) Gary Vitti. And they were just talking like two guys, like you and I, if we were in the bar together, we would talk. It was a beautiful moment to see that these guys truly were teammates. And again, Miami Marlins Custom Jersey they don't have the same personality, but it doesn't mean they can't get along and be friends and have the same goal and mi sion. That's the relationship that I saw from the beginning until they parted ways.Q: Kobeseems like such an interesting personality off the court. What kind of interactions have you had with him?A: When Kobe became a father, Idon't want to say he changed, but a lot matured in him. On the court, and then obviously off the court, because when you become a dad you've gotta change pretty fast. It's the real world, and it's hitting you between the eyes. So we would have some "Dad" conversations. I used to love when he would bring his girls to the game, and he would wait for them aft