Loch Lomond at dawn, from where we were camping
I've just got home from the World Cup downhill at Fort William, where I was shooting photos for, well, pretty much anyone who needs them. It was one hell of an adventure. First up was the night drive, aiming to get as far as we could before conking out. Initially aiming for Newcastle, we ended up carrying straight on and got as far as Loch Lomond, where we were lucky enough to witness sunrise, as you can see from the photo above. There's been no manipulation on that photo apart from a bit of contrast. Stunning.
From there we carried on the drive up to Fort William, where we walked the course and then set up camp for the night. Now, I know Scotland has midges, but I had absolutely no idea it was anything as bad as it would be – it was like a biblical plague! Luckily, there was a Buff given away in the press pack. This was used as a makeshift ninja mask along with a hood and a cap. I thought I was being clever, turns out that the midges were cleverer. At one point I looked down and there must have been around 20 of the buggers sat on just on one of my hands.
Sunday was spent shooting. I lugged the big guns down the hill, set up on some corners and shot away, happily killing the ambient light. Another photographer commented to Stu, my assistant for the day (or as he prefers to be called, my 'flash bitch') 'That's a little overkill isn't it?' No. No it wasn't overkill!
That night we ended up sleeping in a treehouse on a Buddhist retreat in a small village near Lockerbie. It was one of those 'friend of a friend' kind of deals. Thanks to Joe, Andy, and Tom's parents who were kind enough to invite us and let us sleep in that amazing place. Photos were taken on the holga of the retreat itself to use up some film that I shot during the race itself.
A great weekend. Hopefully I'll stop itching at some point in the near future…
From there we carried on the drive up to Fort William, where we walked the course and then set up camp for the night. Now, I know Scotland has midges, but I had absolutely no idea it was anything as bad as it would be – it was like a biblical plague! Luckily, there was a Buff given away in the press pack. This was used as a makeshift ninja mask along with a hood and a cap. I thought I was being clever, turns out that the midges were cleverer. At one point I looked down and there must have been around 20 of the buggers sat on just on one of my hands.
Sunday was spent shooting. I lugged the big guns down the hill, set up on some corners and shot away, happily killing the ambient light. Another photographer commented to Stu, my assistant for the day (or as he prefers to be called, my 'flash bitch') 'That's a little overkill isn't it?' No. No it wasn't overkill!
That night we ended up sleeping in a treehouse on a Buddhist retreat in a small village near Lockerbie. It was one of those 'friend of a friend' kind of deals. Thanks to Joe, Andy, and Tom's parents who were kind enough to invite us and let us sleep in that amazing place. Photos were taken on the holga of the retreat itself to use up some film that I shot during the race itself.
A great weekend. Hopefully I'll stop itching at some point in the near future…
Stu: 'Take a photo of me on the start gate. It's as close as I'll ever get to riding down one of these things!'
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