Privileged to roam the touchline its a wonderful opportunity to capture amateur rugby action and the players from all angles. Great spirit hard fought matches and a true team ethos sums up this club from this photographers viewpoint. I am always pleased to return and shoot a match here at Bramley Road.
SailGP, the fastest sail racing in the world, arrived in the UK to make its debut on European waters at Cowes on the Isle of Wight. These catamarans foil to gain speed and topped 50 knots for the first time at Cowes.
My assignment for UKSportspics to cover the penultimate round of this new sport on the Sunday. Saturday’s racing being cancelled due to winds being just too strong.
Strong winds returned on the Sunday, with this and shooting from a rib made this exciting and at times nigh on impossible to hold a frame. Short zooms fared best though much of the credit goes to the rib skipper and his ability to place us close to the action. Tom Slingsby and Australia won all three races and in the following round in Marseilles the championship. Look out for the return of SailGP in 2020.
GB Rafting National selections for 2019 took place at Lee Valley White Water Centre on the Olympic Course on 8/9th December 2018. At stake a chance to represent Great Britain at the International Rafting Federation European and World Championships.
This is my 4th year of photographing the national teams and the organisation grows in strength every year. Seventeen teams competed, including five guest teams from Europe. Friendly and competitive just about sums up the racing, I have been fortunate enough to roam the waters edge working hard to seek out a new view or composition that shows off the dynamic that this sport has. This year a little more time with the shorter zooms to help me get closer to, or above the action.
More details of GB Rafting here @britishrafting.com More images here @BritishRaftingFlkr
Maxxis British Sidecarcross, fifth round of the championship was held at Canada Heights Swanley Kent home of Sidcup MCC. This event is something special and my fifth annual visit. The course is elevated with a wide variety of views and a great location for photographers. A few more technical comments and links at the foot of this blog
Shooting sidecarcross doesn’t require lots of kit, these visits were managed with a 70-200 zoom lens with and without a 1.4 converter and a 24-70mm zoom. Some of the most rewarding shots are close-ups on the turns. These require either careful timing or protection for the camera and lens because of the mud churned up by the motorcyle rigs. I try wherever possible to shoot with a ‘planned background’ to illustrate the event or with simply the track as my background, this avoids the visual challenge of fences and course marker tape etc. You can see this isn’t always possible. Events such as these bring families and enthusiasts more to shoot than the racing.
The link to ACU below is a great starting place to find future events https://www.acu.org.uk/events
Shooting for @uksportspics covering the Extreme Sailing Series™ on their UK leg at Cardiff Bay
Established in 2007, the Extreme Sailing Series™ is the original Stadium Racing sailing circuit designed for spectators, delivering high-performance action close to shore and putting guests at the heart of the battle. Attracting some of the world’s top sailors, racing the hydro-foiling GC32 catamarans on short courses, the global circuit spans the Middle East, Asia, Europe and the Americas.
I can only describe this as an almost missed opportunity. Shot back in September 2014, the first Invictus games before sports became my chosen genre. Walking through the Olympics Park fortunately with a 70-200 in my bag, I came across the Velodrome complex where the outdoor cycling event was taking place. A truly inspiring group of competitors with all measure of disabilities and physical challenges and yet attacking the track as any competitor would, you dont need to be interested in sports to want to watch or record that. The event had minimal security so shooting was pretty much from the track perimeter. Some great captures and possibly an influence on things to come…
More information on the invictus games and foundation here https://invictusgamesfoundation.org/
philhutchinsonphotography.net 