WBTV photographer Brad Stafford died early Wednesday morning after being diagnosed with cancer just after Christmas.
The Charlotte, N.C. CBS affiliate reports Stafford’s wife was by his side when he died.
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“Brad had been a friend and colleague of us at WBTV for 41 years,” WBTV News Director Dennis Milligan said. “He was a stalwart photographer. He was one of the nicest people you’d ever know. He always tackled every assignment with a sense of professionalism.”
Monday was Brad’s 67th birthday.
“It’s much too early to be writing a note like this about someone we love,” Milligan wrote in a note to staff Wednesday morning. “He was loyal to the end to WBTV and to all of us who work here.”
Veteran anchor Paul Cameron worked with Stafford for nearly 34 years.
“When I walked into WBTV in 1981, Brad had already worked here for seven years,” Cameron said. “He was a master photographer shooting 16 mm film when you had to know the mechanics of exposure, lighting and focus – settings done automatically in modern cameras.”
“When it came time to assemble a team of photographers for the multitude of race specials we produced over my 15 years in sports, we leaned on Brad’s experience. He willingly climbed the tower in turn 2, standing on a hot roof all day long to capture memorable racing moments,” he continued.
“You could always count on Brad’s work – a photographer’s photographer,” Cameron said. “This is just a small slice of what he contributed to our station for the last 41 years. May he rest in eternal peace.”