Tag: chamonix

1,2,3,4,5,6,7,8…………….I count 30.Outdoor photographers love clean images. We can often be seen crawling around on the ground making sure that our field of view is uncluttered with nothing else, especially other photographers, encroaching on our frame. Every now and again though it feels nice to break the mould, bringing me to today’s behind the shot, focusing on a series of images from this years Mont Blanc Marathon.I’ve never been a huge fan of finish line images. Like podium presentations they often feel like a necessary evil with a nod in the direction of the sponsors rather than the athletes themselves. More often than not these images see a quick turnaround with them forgotten about the following day. I’ve been on a mission of late to take scenes from an editorial setting, such as a race like this, and make a completed image that stands the test of time, like using studio strobes to light a bike race.I can’t help but wonder how many of the images from these 30 cameras pointed in her face saw publication? You would hope that as accredited journalists the published rate would be high, but i’d love to know the real percentage. As i was commissioned only to photograph the leading female this gave me a small window of opportunity to test angles as the first men arrived. Kilian Jornet was unsurprisingly first to appear, crossing the line after 3hr23. I’d ventured into the photographers pit myself to check out the angle but the small area was awash with cameras and at that time there must have been at least an additional 20 bodies all craning to get the same shot.Despite feeling like herded cattle, i firmly believe that many accredited journalists (much like the iPhone “journalist” above) just don’t question the possibility of photographing from somewhere else. Maybe it’s the power of the media pass around their neck dictates that they have the right to photograph from a hallowed position that keeps them from straying, despite the fact that their lens is aimed at exactly the same point as 50 or so other people.I’ll admit, moving position though was a gamble. I had two of Elisa Desco’s sponsors requiring images and she had held together her side of the bargain by being in a position to win the race. The marathon distance that this year would crown the winner as World Champion was kind of a big deal. Elisa had fought off intense competition and entered the finishing straight after 3hr53. With every other photographer preoccupied with the finish line, I was able to capture some great moments from this unique angle. I mentioned it was a gamble and it really was. There’s a huge risk that a photo from behind could prove unflattering, uninspiring and just plain busy.As you can see from the image in the header, this made its way to become advertising for Scott Shoes (with Compressport also using one of the shots in the series). There’s no fear of an unflattering image here, her figure looks incredible and the fact that all of the photographers are fully clothed in waterproofs really adds to the environment.Of course, media accreditation is a great tool that we have at our disposal during events, but it’s great to take a step back and think about how to create different images to all the others, that will stand that test of time that i talked about. A week after this race I photographed a series on the Tour de France without accreditation and it proved to be a great lesson in working hard for my shots. The Tour de France is a logistical nightmare at the best of times and without a pass, there has to be some intense planning on what you want to achieve from that day. A selection of shots from that project are now available on a Micro Site and i recommend you check them out.You can view more of my ‘behind the shot’ series here.