Today I woke up at 4 am to drive with my friend Gray Quetti to shoot a triathlon in Orlando. I was about to get an education in the world of sporting event shooting. The idea here is to get individuals in the act of swimming, biking, and/or running so that they would have a souvenir photo of themselves. For first time participants, competing in this kind of event is truly an accomplishment, as many of them took difficult roads to get there. I used to do a lot of road running events and can remember getting those small pictures of myself usually in a state of pure exhaustion. The whole transaction takes place online, with the photos posted onto Printroom.com and people able to view and purchase. I had shot bicycle races before and realized that moving objects are not that easy for me to shoot. I have enough trouble composing objects that don’t move. It’s a whole different mindset, not too much different than bird or wildlife I suppose, but it’s the moving aspect of the subject that got to me. The lighting was also a big challenge as you don’t always have a choice where to position yourself especially when you are standing on the shore of a lake, with the sun rising in front of you. Well, I managed to squeeze off a few candids, as I circulated among the crowd at the finish line. Will I be pursuing sports photography? Not anytime in the near future. But it was fun getting out and doing something different, helping out a friend, and having fun outdoors. Can’t get better than that.
