This is the second year in a
row that I’ve been asked to photograph the Redcar Sprint Triathlon in NorthYorkshire. I’m an experienced sports and events photographer used to working at venues like Gateshead Stadium,Middlesbrough football ground and the official BHF commercial photographer in Newcastle’s Great North Run, so I’m very familiar with being in several places at once, in order
to capture all the action.
Organised by Trihard Events
in partnership with Redcar and Cleveland Council, the Redcar Sprint Triathlon is
a swimming, cycling and running race, with entrants taking on a 750m swim
followed by a 20km cycle race and 5k run.
This gruelling event takes
place on Redcar Esplanade and sees entrants dive into the sea next to the
Dundas slipway, then run back to the transition point, collect their bikes and cycle
along The Seafront between Zetland roundabout and Majuba Road, doing six laps.
They then ditch the bikes and run a 5k lap along the seafront heading for
Marske, turning just after Green Lane and then racing back to the finish line.
Fortunately the triathlon transition
area and the seafront made a great area for a panoramic view of the action, and
in some spots I was able to take pictures of runners and cyclists from one
vantage point, as they passed each other.
The Middlesbrough Gazette
estimated that 200 people gathered for the event, and I guessed that around 170
were actually taking part. They were of all capabilities and ages from about 20
to late 50s too, not just elite athletes. It was great to see people challenge
themselves, setting their own personal best and pushing themselves as hard as
they could.
With the Redcar Beacon and the
Palace Hub forming a colourful backdrop to some of the shots, the sun shone and
the blue sky was contrast to the black wetsuits and lime green swimming caps
distributed by the organisers. One of the joys of sports and event photography over the North East is all the contrasting colours people wear, whatever type of sport they are
doing, that adds to the impact of the pictures.
Because I knew people would
be spread out over the course and particularly for the shots of the swimmers, I
had taken my latest piece of kit the 1.4x convertor along fixed to the Canon 70 -200mm F2.8 IS, which proved very useful. In total I had two camera bodies and a
set of lenses in my lightweight bag, to give me a great choice at the edit stage.
The whole event is done at
speed and is over and done with in just over an hour so I had to work quickly
to get all the pictures I wanted. The local press hailed the
event a great success, and I was pleased to have captured the spirit of the
occasion, and the efforts of the contestants.
A recent commercial photography job saw me photographing across all of the Tees Valley, for my client Local
Enterprise Partnership Tees Valley Unlimited.
Tees Valley Unlimited works to
deliver jobs and economic growth across the Tees Valley, an area of 304 square
miles, which is located between North Yorkshire and County Durham, stretching
from the mouth of the River Tees through to Darlington.
This was a wide-ranging photography project
that needed a lot of planning to structure a large number of shoots in
different locations, and each with a different focus. I spent hours putting
together a comprehensive plan to detail not just the type of commercial photos I would
take, but how I would carry out this complex project, and I believe this was
one of the factors in my winning the work.
My first job was to sit down
with the LEP team to talk about the Tees Valley commercial photography project, and what they wanted
to achieve from it. This was a useful stage - getting to know the client and
their objectives is the most important part of a job and happens long before I
pick up a camera.
My brief covered key areas across
Tees Valley and nine specific topics ranging from photographing wind turbines in the North Sea and trains to people and places, all designed to promote Tees Valley as a great
place to work, live and do business.
I also needed to factor in
both landscape and portrait shots, plus some with the space for designers to
overlay text if needed. The images will be used across the LEP’s new website,
its marketing literature and could feature on large format outdoor spaces such as
buses and billboards or used as canvas prints in meeting rooms, so the photo
library had to be extremely versatile.
Wide ranging projects like
this that include a lot of outdoor photographs are governed by changeable
weather, and I did a lot of early mornings and late nights. At one point I photographed Middlesbough from Eston Nab in the dark and I can tell you I’ve never come down a hill so
quickly.
The pace was fast and I
remember one Sunday shoot that started at 4am and finished at 4pm and as I
rounded off the day by taking photos of people enjoying themselves on Seaburn
beach I was pretty much exhausted.
Every day was different and
I covered a 100's of miles. I might start off with an early morning photography shot at Hartlepool, then move on to photograph apprentices at a chemical plant at
Wilton in Billingham before calling at Darlington Railway Station to photograph business people getting on and off trains, and finish by photographing aircraftshots at Durham Tees Valley airport near Darlington.
One of my favourite leisure shots
from this job was one of a mature chap simply standing looking at the beautiful Saltburn coastline. A perfect lifestyle shot, this reminded me what a little gem the Tees
Valley is, and I realised I was not alone in thinking this when I tweeted from my
Twitter account @charnleyphoto
that ‘Teesside is not full of smog’ and it got 34 retweets.
I love being a North East
photographer. We are blessed in this region with beautiful coastline and
countryside, presenting a fantastic commercial photography chance to showcase Teesside towns such as Darlington, Middlesbrough, Stockton, Hartlepool and Redcar, plus traditional villages like Norton, Yarm, BIllingham and Eaglescliffe.
It’s an incredibly beautiful part of the world,
I’ve lived here for 18 years and I still keep on discovering areas I’ve never
seen. The great thing about being a professional photographer is being able to
help people see familiar sights with a fresh eye, and I hope my work has
achieved that aim for Tees Valley Unlimited.
In view of all the
photography jobs needing pin-sharp close ups in venues where it is hard to get
close the subject, I’ve recently invested in a fantastic high performance telephoto lens, a Canon 300mm f2.8L IS. The optics are stunning, the quality of pictures is breathtaking in their crispness,
helped by an image stabiliser minimising camera shake keeping the focus staying rock solid, even in
low light conditions.
 |
| Redcar Sea Front |
Along the way in my 30-year
background in press and commercial photography I’ve picked up the North East Sports Photographer of the Year and photographed a series of national and
international rugby and football matches. My new lens will make specialised jobs
like this, where I need to get close up shots while standing yards away, much
easier.
I’ll predominantly use it to
photograph events such as this year’s Nova Great North Run, where I'm officially booked or the River Rat
Race as these are fast-paced events where you have one chance to get the
perfect shot. I photographed Mo Farrah at a Great North Run two years ago, but I
suspect even the ‘gentleman of running’ is unlikely to go back and do a stretch
again for photographic purposes if someone turns up without the right kit for
the job.
Because the new lens in
effect knocks the background out of focus, I’m looking forward to using it for
commercial photography and nature shots too. I’m really enthusiastic
about its uses - horse racing at Gosforth Park, motorsport events at Croft
Circuit in Darlington, activity shots for outdoor brands such as Berghaus and Go Outdoors –
the list of potential jobs it can cope brilliantly with is endless.
 |
| Redcar Trunk Road |
Successful outdoor
photography can dependent on the weather, and can involve several
visits to a location to get the right conditions. I don’t know whether I’m pleased or not that my new sports
lens can shoot in appalling weather and still generate stunning images. I
foresee some cold, wet winter shoots this year, but as long as I get the shot,
I’ll be happy with that.
Year after year camera
equipment gets smarter and faster – although sadly, the cost never seems to go
down at the same rate - and I’m pleased that I’ve made continuous investments so
that whatever type of photography I’m doing, whether it’s a commercial photography job in North Yorkshire,
outdoor events or a large business award event in Harrogate, I’ve got the right range of camera
equipment for the job.
Combined with my compact studio
lights and kit, I’ve got everything I need and it can all be carried
on the go from job to job too.
The end result is that no
job is impossible – try me!
For my commercial head shot photography sessions around the North East and Yorkshire I start by identifying what
particular look and feel the client wants to achieve, and secondly how they
want to use the pictures. For instance the commercial portraits for an annual report for a law firm will be very different to that of a digital design company’s
social media feeds like Facebook, LinkedIn or Twitter. The client might need different portrait photography for certain people too.
I might photograph the Chief Executive
looking solemn if the brief is a photo to go out with a news release involving poor
financial results, but take the
same shot with different lighting and add some movement and energy for a piece
about the company’s charity support.
If I’m working with a new
client I do some research on their website and in the press to give me a feel
for the style of images it prefers. A US-based pharmaceutical business may want
a very polished and corporate look, while a UK call centre wants its pictures to
give a warm, inviting impression, and a graphic design company prefers to give
off a creative, edgy vibe.
Where senior executive portraits are concerned I’m always conscious that they are busy people, so it’s
important to get the job done quickly but still return the shot that meets the
brief. Whether I’m working with the board of directors or a young subject on
work experience I’m always confident and relaxed, I’ve been doing this for three
decades and my background as a press photographer based in Middlesborough and Scotland, gave me the ability to work
quickly and under pressure comes in very handy.
The shot I’m looking for
will often dictate the angle I use for commercial portrait photography, as this
can change its whole feel. I might
give the shot a slight tilt, or shoot the subject from below. Or if I’m looking
for a warm, less authoritative look I might photograph the subject from above. Business people don’t want
to have to travel to visit a portrait studio, so I’ve put together a portable,
flexible range of camera kit that gives me all the tools of a studio, in a
small amount of equipment. I call it my studio in a box and means I have
everything with me if I decide to use a telephoto portrait lens or Lastolite light
reflectors to add atmosphere and contrast to a shot.
Sometimes I meet the client
beforehand to discuss the job, or we speak on the phone so I get a feel for
what they want to achieve from the commercial head shot portrait session. I
often visit a locations before the photo shoot too with perfect locations on our doorstep - say an industrial background of Billingham, North Yorkshire Moors landscapes or maybe Durham city retail centre getting
across what the business does. For example if I’m photographing the chief executive of a car parts manufacturing business the client will probably want
me to do those pictures on the production line, and for the managing director
of a fitness gym I’d be looking for shots in a busy studio with people
exercising in the background.
Organised by Trihard Events
in partnership with Redcar and Cleveland Council, the Redcar Sprint Triathlon is
a swimming, cycling and running race, with entrants taking on a 750m swim
followed by a 20km cycle race and 5k run.
This gruelling event takes
place on Redcar Esplanade and sees entrants dive into the sea next to the
Dundas slipway, then run back to the transition point, collect their bikes and cycle
along The Seafront between Zetland roundabout and Majuba Road, doing six laps.
They then ditch the bikes and run a 5k lap along the seafront heading for
Marske, turning just after Green Lane and then racing back to the finish line.
Fortunately the triathlon transition
area and the seafront made a great area for a panoramic view of the action, and
in some spots I was able to take pictures of runners and cyclists from one
vantage point, as they passed each other. 
The Middlesbrough Gazette
estimated that 200 people gathered for the event, and I guessed that around 170
were actually taking part. They were of all capabilities and ages from about 20
to late 50s too, not just elite athletes. It was great to see people challenge
themselves, setting their own personal best and pushing themselves as hard as
they could.
With the Redcar Beacon and the
Palace Hub forming a colourful backdrop to some of the shots, the sun shone and
the blue sky was contrast to the black wetsuits and lime green swimming caps
distributed by the organisers. One of the joys of sports and event photography over the North East is all the contrasting colours people wear, whatever type of sport they are
doing, that adds to the impact of the pictures.
Because I knew people would
be spread out over the course and particularly for the shots of the swimmers, I
had taken my latest piece of kit the 1.4x convertor along fixed to the Canon 70 -200mm F2.8 IS, which proved very useful. In total I had two camera bodies and a
set of lenses in my lightweight bag, to give me a great choice at the edit stage. 
The whole event is done at
speed and is over and done with in just over an hour so I had to work quickly
to get all the pictures I wanted. The local press hailed the
event a great success, and I was pleased to have captured the spirit of the
occasion, and the efforts of the contestants.
