This past week, I yet again had the opportunity to photograph our home races on Lake Carnegie during another successful day for the tigers.
Sam Jordan '16 gets ready to race Georgetown and Penn
Unlike the last time I was on the launch, the weather was beautiful: this time I was more worried about sunscreen than keeping my camera dry. In some ways, shooting in direct sunlight is more challenging than when it's drizzly and overcast: it's easier to expose an image a little bit in post-production than it is to fix harsh shadows.
The lightweight men's 3V races to victory over Georgetown and Penn
Regardless, I was able to get some photos I was really pleased with; the upside of sunny days shooting fast-moving boats is the ability to use a lower ISO and faster shutter speed for sharper, less-grainy images.
Casey Ward '15 sitting ready at the start line during the lightweight men's 1V race
One of the biggest challenges of photographing crew, especially three years in, is the challenge of trying to capture moments in a way that you haven't done before; at least ideally, the rowing stroke should look exactly the same every time (and you won't make friends if you try to mix it up by showing a photo that's unusual because the blades are flying all over the place!)
The lightweight men's 1V races to victory over Georgetown and Penn
That's why my two favorite times to shoot are at the start and finish lines; I love capturing the concentration on people's faces before the announcer says "Attention: Go!" and I love getting the reaction shots at the finish: the fist bumps, the tired smiles, people leaning back into each other's laps.
Erin Reelick '16 and Margy Bertasi '14 recover after the openweight women's 1V's tight win over Yale
I don't know whether not having captured a rower vomiting over the side of the boat yet makes me grateful or feel like I'm missing out. Probably grateful.
The openweight women's 1V competes for the Eisenberg Cup
It was exciting to be able to capture such a successful day for the tigers; the lightweight men swept over Georgetown and Penn, the openweight women had strong wins in their first, second and third varsity boats, and most excitingly, my own team had a great first home race.
Eden Full '15 checks the time at the start line
Although I was disappointed that Georgetown scrapped their lightweight women's varsity four, which meant that I wasn't racing, it was exciting to be able to photograph my teammates in the first and second varsity boats race Georgetown's 1V and see our first varsity girls retain the class of 2006 cup.
The lightweight women's 1V poses with coaches Paul Rassam and Hank Zimmerman after winning the class of 2006 cup over Georgetown
Congratulations to all the tiger crews for a great weekend of racing. Here's to replicating that this weekend!
Thanks as usual go to Marty Crotty and Ed Hewitt for getting me on a launch to photograph