Manchester half marathon.

This was my first time covering the event, with over 10,000 runners it was going to be fast paced all day. I had two locations for this event, the first was 2k after the start along with 3 other photographers to try and make sure we captured as many of the runners as possible. Being experienced in covering many extreme events over the years I am always well prepared for the unexpected and the other photographers in our group were jumping in my kit bag for all sorts of bits to tie their kit bags to railings, cover bags, tape and anything else they needed. It was a good feeling to be able to help colleagues out especially on this wet and windy day.

My second location was to prove a lot easier as it was 2k before the finish and most of the runners had spread out by this point. I have done many marathons over the years and have mastered the art of looking through the camera with one eye and watching what other people are doing with the other as invariably you get people running at you waving, jumping and all manner of other things to get your attention and I really hate missing people when they clearly want the photos.

For more wet & windswept images head over to our Facebook page…

https://www.facebook.com/reflectivephotograph/

RatRace Hell Runner (Up North)

This event was to be a long one. I got up at 4am as I had a 3 hour drive ahead to get there on time.

The event is a half marathon with the option of doing two laps to make a full marathon and is set in the Delamere Forest, Cheshire where the terrain is unforgiving, peppered with water features and is extremely rough underfoot.

My location was in the Hills of Hell, having had a good look around I decided on a section which had the runners coming through a shallow stream, over a log and back out up the bank. This proved to be a great spot as I did a test dip with a stick and found the ground went down just enough to cause a problem for them as they stepped over the log, and it didn’t disappoint.

The problem for me was that I had to be on a boggy island which had me almost knee deep in mud for the whole day, but it was absolutely worth it. Reminded me of the old Major Series that I used to really enjoy photographing.

As the runners came towards me many of them saw the opportunity to get a nice posed shot with the woods, logs and water which was great for me as I knew what would happen next. Yep, almost all of them stepped/jumped over the log and down they went, water and bodies everywhere! 

This was such a fun event and I am thrilled to be covering the other Hell Runners later this year so if you see me on course just remember I am in that spot for a reason and tread carefully…

To see more great images from this event head over to our Facebook page…

https://www.facebook.com/reflectivephotograph/

RatRace Survival of the Fittest (Nottingham)

This was an emotional day for me.

This event, 6 years ago, was the first OCR event I photographed and over the years has given me some of my favourite photos. This year was to be the last event and, for the first time at this event, I was photographing the finish line. End of an era...

It wasn’t the best weather with it drizzling all day, but the competitors really seemed to go the extra mile and enjoy themselves.

As the runners came towards the finish they all forgot how tired they were and really gave it their all to make the last photos the best, with star jumps, cartwheels and even blowing kisses to the camera they all gave a little extra, their was even a random RatRace space hopper that found its way over the finish line which gave them endless fun.

It really is a shame that this great event is to finally end but it has given a lot of fun to everyone including the photographers.  Thanks for the memories.

For more images from this great event pop over to our Facebook page…

https://www.facebook.com/reflectivephotograph/

Osberton International Horse Trials

Back in October 2019 I had the pleasure of photographing a fantastic BEDE equestrian event at Osberton. This is a national event with riders coming from all over the UK, with lots of famous faces joining in. I was booked to capture the dressage arenas for two days. The riders and horses were majestic in their performances and looked truly elegant in the arenas.

I also photographed the carriages out on the XC Course, which was new for me, but I couldn’t wait to get involved. I found an area on course where I could capture the carriages as they navigated around which enabled me to photograph them multiple times. These made for some spectacular photos as they came rocketing through the water splash and was thrilling both to watch and also to photograph.

After the carriages I had a little time to get out on the XC Course and found a great jump with Osberton House in the background which gave the photos location. This proved to be an exciting spot to see out a memorable event.

To see more great images from this event head over to our Facebook page…

https://www.facebook.com/reflectivephotograph/

Richmond Runfest - London

Saturday.

This was a full weekend running festival. Starting Saturday in the beautiful Kew Gardens with just over 4,500 runners taking part in the first 10k around the gardens.

I had two locations for this event, the first was intended to capture the runners around 1k after the start which is always a challenge as the runners are still all bunched up and it can be very difficult to identify them individually as they run past. With so many runners I still managed to photograph many of them, and plenty gave me a wave as they passed by.

My second location was a short walk away and was as the runners came out of the rose garden area. They were all still in good spirts when they came past with some waving and even jumping for me which made for some great photos for them.

Sunday.

The second day was the full and half marathons along the River Thames through Richmond. Again, this event had around 5,000 runners, my first position was 5k in and I was able to get the Richmond Bridge in the background to give location to the images. Using a wide-angle lens to get dynamic images along with utilising the  zoom to select individual runners and get close up photos of them. At this location I was just off the Heathrow runway and had many planes taking off overhead, so I had to take a couple of photos as this was the second time in two weeks I was at the end of a runway.  Hopefully next time I will be heading towards a plane and some sunshine!

To see more pictures from this event go to our Facebook page..

https://www.facebook.com/reflectivephotograph/

Pedal for Scotland

The event was the day after Man V Mountain which I had also photographed.

This led to a staggering 817 miles covered and me visiting Wales, England and Scotland in one epic weekend. Even covering such a large area of the United Kingdom I still managed to get the best of the weather for both days. Result…

Pedal for Scotland is made up of three different events:

1.      The Classic Challenge Glasgow-to-Edinburgh ride

2.      The Big Belter (a 100-mile sportive)

3.      The 10-mile Wee Jaunt between Linlithgow and Edinburgh. 

For this event I was to cover part of the finish before another photographer took over, then moving on to another location.

My second location was almost at the end of Edinburgh airport runway and as you will see planes made an appearance in many of the images as they taxied the runway and took off which made for some interesting photos. I was able to find a spot that put the new Forth Road Bridge in the background of the photos (although small it is there!) Many of the riders were happy to see me and did different things to catch my attention and be photographed, there was even Woody and Buzz Lightyear on a tandem.

To see more images from this fun event head over to our Facebook page…

https://www.facebook.com/reflectivephotograph/

Man v Mountain - 2019

This is the 5th year I have photographed this event and it never fails to take my breath away one way or another. I am normally the one photographer that gets sent up to the top of Mount Snowdon, however this year I was to go back in the old miner’s village.

In the week before the event, I was checking the weather daily as my first year photographing this event I had the worst weather I have ever had photographing an event and had convinced myself that going back to the village would be tempting fate.

On the day of the event the sun was shining, and I had everything crossed it would stay that way for me and the competitors. Having finally climbed to the location where I was to be for the day - which was at the top of the vertical kilometre – a truly punishing climb carrying all my gear.  This was a tough stretch for the competitors as they will have done 20 miles before they even reach me.

This year I knew the competitors wouldn’t be almost at breaking point by the time they reached me, so I was determined to make them smile when they needed it most. So, I got them to stop and pose take a moment and have a little fun for the camera and they didn’t disappoint. I had them jumping, doing press-ups showing their “guns” and yes running all be it only for 6ft as I told them the camera never lies and when they get the photos, they can prove they ran up the mountain.

For me this event in wales was the first of two events which saw me cover a monster 817 miles in two days and visit Wales, Scotland and England.

So, after finishing this event and heading back to the car I put in the sat nav “Edinburgh” for the Pedal for Scotland event.

To read about last years event from the top of Mount Snowdon use the link below.

https://www.reflectivephotography.co.uk/blog/2018/9/19/ratrace-man-v-mountain

To see more photos from this years event head to our Facebook page…

https://www.facebook.com/reflectivephotograph/

Mudnificent 7

Well what can I say about this one…

This event is fun, fun ,fun. It’s great for everyone involved, nobody takes any part of this seriously, its all about taking part in a fantastic event. I have looked forward to this one all year as I knew what to expect from photographing this event last year.

It did not disappoint!!

I was covering the “Electric Shock Therapy”, now everyone that does OCR knows all to well the Tough Mudder Electroshock Obstacle. This however was a play on that very obstacle complete with wire rope and power cables to a box. This one had NO power at all, which meant that when the competitors came up to it they thought that they would get an electric shock (Mind Games in play here).

I had people trying to avoid the wires, crawl under them and everything in between. I was completely aware of there being no power so when asked I didn’t say it wasn’t powered. I did have a lot of fun with them as when they had completely avoided the wire and got to me I whispered that it wasn’t powered at all, the look on their faces was priceless, but you have to play along with the game. This obstacle gave some fantastic images, some people didn’t fall for the “No Power” but they played along and had fun in the process.

Lot of the competitors dress up for this event as you will see, various inflatable items were carried around as well. Mudnificent 7 give everyone a small yellow duck with their number on to carry round the event and if they get it back to the finish they get money off next year’s event. This year I saw ducks in places that ducks shouldn’t be, down bras, in socks, down pants and everywhere else imaginable.

As a photographer it can be hard at some events to get involved with the spirit of the competitors, which I love to do, but at this event both the competitors and organisers truly embrace the photographers and welcome us shouting encouragement and really do play for the camera.

Head over to our Facebook page for more picture from this fantastic event.

https://www.facebook.com/reflectivephotograph/

RatRace - Mens Health Survival Of The Fittest

I covered both Cardiff and Nottingham this year. It was my first time at Cardiff Mens Health and the event and the location didn't disappoint, Both Cardiff and Nottingham are one day events with competitors running around areas of the cities with lots of obstacles thrown in for good measure.  

At both events, by complete chance, I ended up covering what they call the washing machine which is a large wooden structure with four doors on both sides and a machine pumping huge amounts of foam into it.  think back to your student days when you added too much washing powder at the local laundrette and you will get the idea.

This obstacle produced a lot of fun and laughter for the competitors. This for me was just too much to hold back from and I got stuck in with bubbles up to my chest and was soaked to the skin, but this enabled me to get some fantastic photos of the competitor as they tried to find their way through the bubbles and out the other side.  Let's face it if I hadn't jumped in by the end I would have been pushed in.  The photographer is never safe for long...

Some of these fun images will be posted on our Facebook page, so pop over and have a look.

https://www.facebook.com/reflectivephotograph/

RatRace - Coast 2 Coast

EPIC....

This event is exactly that - 105 miles over 2 days.

First there was an nine and a half hour drive from Newark to Fort William at the edge of Loch Ness to a hotel and a very well deserved pint with a fellow photographer.

The next day I was up and raring to go at 04.30 for a two hour sunny drive north to Cawdor Castle which is only 7 miles from the start of the event. I shot images here last year and found all the competitors very fresh faced and full of positivity which helped get some fun/cheeky (you know who you are!) images so I was hoping for the same again. The day didn't disappoint as they were all up for having some fun striking poses for the camera as they ran past the castle.

Then it was off for a four and a half hour drive down to the Glen Coe Hotel to the finish line and yes some of the competitors manage to complete this epic 105 mile event in just 1 day...

I managed to arrive half an hour before the first competitors started to cross the Loch in the kayaks.  They looked understandably very tired, but still gave a smile as they ran , yes ran past me to the finish.

Day 2 and I was up early again to get to the road section to cover the participants on their bikes. I managed to get myself into position low down in a ditch to get the best reactions from the competitors as they came past with the mountains as a backdrop.  Those of you that have seen me at past events know how I love to jump out to surprise you all with the camera.  Too much "You've Been Framed" as a kid I guess.

Sure enough being this low down, I got the reactions I was hoping for and people loved posing as they rode past to help me produce some great images for them to cherish of their great adventure in the Scottish Highlands. 

For a few images of this event go over to my Facebook page.

https://www.facebook.com/reflectivephotograph/

Watch out for me next time - look low!