Christine asked me for a favor, which – when it is such a favor coming from one’s wife – means that you are being kindly told to do something.
You see, Christine is a triathlon enthusiast and has a loyal coach who was hosting a local event recently. Her coach was in a bind: the local photographer who usually photographed he events had to drop out unexpectedly. Having seen my images of Christine in the past, the coach asked Christine if I would consider filling in for her, and Christine said that she would ask me. This all translates to me being volun-told, I think.
This was not in my comfort zone at all. I needed to get a ‘hit’ with nearly every shot; people wanted to be able to see themselves getting out of the water and crossing the finish line. There could be no second takes. And these were action-shots. I capture occasional images of my children slowly running across gyms and fields, not adults quickly running toward me. Still, the organizer thought I was her best chance at receiving some decent images, so I gave it my best shot (no pun intended).
In the end, I think I did alright, considering that I am not a pro.
I was happy to get some fair images of people prepping before the race. Not as many as I had hoped for, but I didn’t realize that a lot of folks aren’t really chummy before a race. They are all friendly, but all those hugs and commiserating seems to happen after, as they share their stories of a race then-completed. I guess pre-race is the time for them to get in the right head-space.
The images coming out of the water were my favorites. I was crouched down, which (in hind-sight) offered a nice perspective as they ran toward and past me. It was also the best opportunity for me to see people’s reactions as they came up for air knowing their faces weren’t going back in the water again. Those were the images that were the most candid. The most honest.
The bikes – for the limited time that I shot them, were pretty simple, really. I found a spot with good light that wasn’t the best spot, but (by the time I had finished getting images of everyone at the water) it was the best available. It worked fine: It was sunny and I was able to shoot with manual exposure at f/8. I stood close enough to the road with a wide enough field of view to set my camera to manual focus and pre-focused on the path that every rider would use as they rode past. Click. I missed 4 riders when I accidentally bumped the focus ring, but otherwise nailed them all.
And the finish line? Same scenario: I picked my spot, framed the shot, manual focus, manual exposure, and just clicked the shutter as they ran through. The problem was finding the right location, but I don’t think that there is one.
Ideally, the runners would get steered out of the path and the photographer could shoot straight ahead at the finish line with a long lens, but they run forward past the line and would obscure the view of the runners behind them, so off to the side (at an angle) worked best, but the images were difficult to crop and have them look their best unless the runner came through the middle of the arch. If they were to one side or the other … well, it still captured a moment, only not as photographically as it could otherwise be.
In the end, I had 700 images to process, and with bright morning sun and harsh shadows, it took some work to get the most from the finish-line images. I was able to send them out the next morning and I have received positive feedback since. The photos are a little more punchy-looking than I would have made them for my own family collection, but I think they offer a ‘pop’ that athletes gravitate toward.
Pre-race, I told the desperate organizer/coach to expect a 50% hit-rate and I exceeded that. So, for my first time trying to do such a thing – I think did alright, actually.