Today was a change of pace which is sometimes nice to have in the grind of the Olympic Games. I spent the morning getting my underwater housing ready up to FINA specs and approved so I could submerge it later that evening. After I spent a couple hours on that project I headed to the Equestrian Cross-Country event which I have never shot at the Olympics before, but heard it was a great venue from Photo Manager Rich Lam. So after a couple trains and a nice walk through the very quaint town of Greenwich, I landed at the Equestrian venue without a minute to spare before the start.
The beautiful course cuts through the 185 acre Greenwich Park, with sweeping views of the city and surrounding areas. I would compare the London Olympics cross-country equestrian event to covering a golf major – about 70 thousand people walking behind ropes and barriers along fairways of grass carved out of the hillside. But instead of watching guys hitting a little plastic ball all over the place, horse fans saw cool amazing animals clearing jumps and obstacles. They had everything from moon and planets, to the customary chess set, to different miniature landmarks from London and English folk…
But after walking around for most of the day I found the last picture right before I left for the bus. I literally envisioned where the photo could happen, with the fans shadows interacting with the horse’s, ran to the spot, took the photo, knew I had a good one, and walked off with a smile on my face before anyone else copied it (I think). The funny thing about the Olympics or any multiday multisport event is that when people see a nice picture on the wire or website, they usual go out and try to copy or emulate it. I’ve done it before and many photographers do it at these events. Some intelligent photographers keep their cards close to their chest and don’t play there hand or photo until the last day so no one has a chance to go back and do it. Others try to go out and find something new. I was tempted not to post this picture until the Equestrian event was over in the hope no one would emulate it, but I am now sure someone else will figure it out and get a similar one…
Enjoy the pics and post comments so I know you’re looking!
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