Expert Behind the Lens
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Feature
Chasing the Action
He played pro football , drove a rally car for 10 years , ran a paintball company and even served as a reserve police officer with SWAT training , but today Chris Hitchcock is best known for his stunning sports photography , particularly covering triathlon , trail running and mountain biking , and he ’ s running up a storm to train for a big upcoming job . – BY SEAN FALCONER
Later this year in October , Chris Hitchcock will head to the Kalahari Desert in the Northern Cape with a bagful of cameras , lenses and flashes and his running shoes to shoot the Kalahari Augrabies Extreme Marathon . It ’ s a seven-day , 250km stage race through some of the most extreme terrain and temperatures in the country , and just running it is a major undertaking , let alone trying to lug all that equipment around on the route on foot ! But Chris is up for the challenge , and that ’ s why he ’ s been heading out around midday each day to train for this event .
“ It ’ s not so much about the distance that I will cover on foot each day , but the heat that I will have to be able to manage , so I am currently running in the midday summer heat to try get used to it . I usually love running at 10pm at night , but now I ’ m out at midday , doing the 10.5km loop in the Tygerberg Nature Reserve near my home in the northern suburbs of Cape Town , because being ‘ match-fit ’ to keep up in events is part of being a professional photographer ,” says Chris .
“ I also know from experience how race organiser Hano Otto works . At the Namaqua Quest , he dropped me at one end of a 10km canyon and said see you on other side in 90 minutes . I had to run to get to other side , with all my equipment , and still get shots of the runners along the way ! That ’ s why I have to be fit to do this job . In fact , I reckon a sports photographer has to be ‘ sniper fit ’ – able to run , stop and take the shot , then run again .”
Expert Behind the Lens
Chris is actually quite used to getting sweaty , or wet , while shooting events . The 57-year-old often hitches two or three camera to his neck and shoulders , puts a few extra lenses and flashes in his pockets , and heads up a mountain on foot to get closer to the action . Sometimes he dives into the water to get stunning swim pics at triathlons , and also uses drone cameras for panoramic aerial shots , and he is fully booked for one , sometimes two endurance sport events for every weekend of the year , while still also managing to shoot weddings in between as well !
Of course , it helps knowing something about a sport in order to know what to look for , and where to position yourself on a course to get the best shots , and here Chris is well covered , since he is an experienced runner , rider and triathlete himself . “ I was a mountain bike rider for many years , and even though I actually used to hate running , I decided to do something special for my 50th birthday , so I entered the Ironman –
Images : Courtesy Chris Hitchcock
TOP PICKS : We asked Chris to select a few of his all-time personal favourite images in his vast collection of photos .
Blurred Lines , Indoor Track Cycling Beneath the waves , Woolworths Triathlon
Sunrise Runner , Old Mutual Two Oceans Marathon
26 ISSUE 91 FEBRUARY 2017 / www . modernathlete . co . za