My "photographic year" doesn't really start on January 1st. Gaps in my snapping calendar, tend to split the 365 days into spurts of activity. There are manic months, when there are two or three races a week, some of which I just have to say no to. That's down to me wanting to remain sane.
Although being busy seems to be an attractive proposition, the editing process takes a great deal of time. My lack of speed leads to frustration, followed by a feeling of ... "Do I really want to do this again?"
January 'til March has been quieter than I would want. Parkruns have come to the rescue and I've been able to try out a few different positions around the courses, as well as creating presets. These presets speed up editing and are an invaluable aid.
Andrew Coomber, Bridget's brother, gifted me a Loupedeck console. The ability to apply different actions almost instantly, saves me a great deal of time. It's so easy to set up and I'm grateful to him for "donating" it.
Saturday parkruns have filled the gaps between major events. Snapped at the Trigger, Tigger Tor, Lads Leap and the Wombwell 5 during January and February.
Hardly a photographic rush. Thankfully, I've managed to achieve a reasonable balance before the madness ensues.
Winter sunlight isn't the best environment to shoot in. Low in the sky and bright when the clouds allow a gap to appear, it can be difficult to produce some decent shots.
I've shot from quite a few places around Locke Park, with the finish line being the most productive. With the sun shining brightly from behind the tower, I needed to find somewhere a little bit more sheltered. Strolling towards the cafe, I happened to look back from one of the junctions that dissect the course. With the trees creating a wonderful backdrop, I decided to give it a go. The trick would be to track the runners and focus on them as they hit the middle of the path. Can't wait for the autumn leaves to appear, the colours will be amazing and a definite keeper on the cards.
Just slightly higher up from the junction. The path edge from the bottom right of the image, acts as a leading line. Not sure that this will work when the trees are covered in leaves. Autumn should be okay.
There's always one. It's never easy to snap runners at the start of a race. This is where most of my "deletes" are to be found. Hate those fluorescent tops. They should be banned.
Recently invested money in a D500 substitute. I sold my top of the range camera during lockdown, depression etc. They are now £200 more expensive than when I bought mine in 2019. I'm an idiot.
My recent acquisition is a Nikon D7500; it has the same sensor as the D500 but only one card slot. The D7100 is a great camera and I suppose I should have resisted the temptation to treat myself.
One card slot? This is something that has never bothered me. A 64gb card is more than enough for my needs and it doesn't take a moment to replace one. Pleased with the camera so far, looking forward to testing it at the Ian Roberts Fell Race this weekend.
Last Saturday saw me snapping at the Penistone parkrun. Not the easiest place to find some decent start images. Walked on the TPT much further than I usually do and found a spot with no tree shadows. Harsh light from my right didn't do me any favours. I knew that they wouldn't be up to much, so why did I bother!
As you can see from the image, I tend to crouch or kneel down when I'm shooting. This allows the runner/s to appear more dominant than the photographer. With so many runners, it would be impossible to shoot them head on. My trick is to move slightly to one side and focus on the front athlete. This will hopefully produce a line of bodies heading off into the distance.
Small fields are much better than crowded ones. I have a chance to produce one or two decent images like the one above. With the sun behind me, the task becomes far simpler. Gaps between the runners allowed me to position myself directly in front of them, moving out of the way is becoming harder though. It's a sign of old age.
The next few months are hectic: Trunce races, fell races, road leagues, Spencers Dash, Silkstone Shuffle, the list is endless. I'll need to be wary of burn out and pick and choose accordingly.
Ian Roberts Fell Race - this Sunday 20th March
In the days preceding the race, I'll look through the previous year's images to refresh my memory in terms of camera settings, lens used and where on the course I was standing. With two cameras now available, I'll set one up with the 35mm on and the other with the 85mm. The weather forecast for Marsden is looking good, no need to wrap up warm for once. The main problem will be the direction of the light. I'm crossing my fingers that I won't be shooting directly into it. Shooting in a NorthWesterly direction, I'll hopefully be okay.
The last time this race was held was in September, the beautiful golden grass won't be available unfortunately. I'll have to work on a Preset that gives me the "film look" that gives my work individuality.
Looking forward to the cakefest after the event. Hopefully there will be some left by the time I get down there.
Looking at the finishing times, it'll take the winner around 45 minutes or so to reach me the second time round and the last runner ... about an hour later.
Such fun!
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