>>3354955OP here.
I got lucky and met a guy on Twitter who needed to rent a 5D. I happened to have one and we built a working relationship with that. I do both stills and motion but focus more in motion while he exclusively does stills. He started out shooting Texas hs football and a regional Nike marketer found him and brought him on.
We've worked with Chevy, NFL, Samsung, Yeti, various Mexican football teams (American and futbol) but our main client is Nike, specifically their US Nike football account which is managed by the agency Analog Folks.
Equipment isn't exactly as important as you'd think. Most clients have no idea about the standards in regards to gear. They just want a pretty product at the end.
I shoot on a c200 and a7iii but I rent reds and alexas when needed as this is usually in the budget. We own a full photography package, multiple 5D's and a 1dx mk II and a profoto lights and modifiers. We rent out continuous lighting.
I wouldn't worry to much about your gear. But you need to be able to show potential clients that you are capable. Make what you want to be paid to do. Go shoot for free and make what you want. If it's good someone will pick you up. We've been at it two years and just now are things picking up.
