Posts Tagged ‘Alinghi’

My favorite photos from the 33rd America's Cup

Saturday, February 20th, 2010

It was a cold day, waiting on the photo boat for the race committee to start the race, then speeding around like devils at 50 miles/h following the boats after the start (now I know how fast is Hydroptere).

5 Miles in to the race we had to stop and after a short break off again full speed for almost 20 minutes towards the gybing mark. Once there we had to wait a bit.  My Iphone was playing Jean Michel Jarre, with the big lenses we saw them on the horizon coming closer and closer,  they seemed slow.
Soon we realized that they aren’t. My song wasn’t over and BMWO followed by the umpire boat gybed allready at the mark. Right after comes Alinghi 5:  The cup is gone from Switzerland.

Jürg

PS: The photo of Alinghi 5 was taken on the same leg as the BMWO photo, on the way to the finish after the gybe.

on tv

Thursday, February 18th, 2010

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2ac4bK7g4vw&hl=de&fs=1]
It was sure one of my highlights during the 33rd America’s Cup having a professional TV crew following me during 1 day shooting. The TSI is the Televisione Svizzera Italiana the Italian part of Switzerland where I grew up, unfortunately because of all this travelling for sailing I spend too little time at home.
The portrait went on TV the 13th of February during the news, it’s impressive to hear from the TV crew that at least 100′000 person saw it.
Grazie TSI
Jürg

Congratulations to BMWO

Monday, February 15th, 2010

They left the harbour and raced: BMWO 1 Alinghi 0

Saturday, February 13th, 2010

The race was way out, Alinghi on port and BMWO on Starboard entry, first cross dialup and penalty…..BMWO with the wing sails higher and faster on the beat almost 10 degrees and deeper and faster on the run almost 30 degrees.
Tomorrow is another day, forcast 2 knots. Alinghi keep saying we are fast with light wind…let’s see if we have a race tomorrow and who knows maybe we have a third race too…
Good evening from Valencia
Juerg

Will they ever leave the harbor to race?

Wednesday, February 10th, 2010

raison d'etre ?

Friday, February 5th, 2010

Valencia is getting ready

Friday, February 5th, 2010

First day in Valencia, it doesn’t seem that in less than 3 days there will be the 33rd Americas cup. Plenty of activity going on, tv trucks cables, noise etc. The harbor is busy but no AC boat’s. BMWO is in the commercial harbor and Alinghi 5 is under the tent.

On the top of the Varadero building you can find 2 SNG flags and a big sign “Mediacenter” at the entrance. Even here lot’s of preparation activities going on. Nearby the Alinghi base, impressive building, shop is open, music plays.

We are used to those prevent activities, for a typical regatta that what’s normally happen but for the cup it’s a bit a strange feeling.
Another thing: The weather forecast for February 8th announce 5 knots of wind in the morning, will this be the Alinghi day or does the wing from BMWO will impress us all?

I’m looking forward to see what’s happening in the next days.

Jürg

Getting Ready for the Cup

Saturday, January 30th, 2010

Since a while Daniel Forster and me we started to work together on projects, this give us the chance to cover more complex shootings easier such as for example the 33rd Americas cup.

The distances are so big it’s impossible to shoot at the start and then being on time also at the weather mark. So during the 33rd America’s cup we will share the positions on the race course with the goal to give a better coverage to our customers.

The size and speed of the boats is also a bit of a challenge. For those who shoot in their free time try to go on the street and take a picture of a car moving towards you with 50 – 60 km/h maybe even more, you have to be quite fast with framing and the focus to get a sharp picture. Another point are the distances that’s why we will be using the big long lenses. For the cup Nikon Switzerland give me the chance to use their 500mm lens with VRII function. I really curious too see the difference. by the way the lenses it selves is 3.5 Kg plus 1.2 Kg the camera this means holding up almost 5 Kg.

Sometimes I think back at the Olympic Games where we got  Chinese agency photographers used to work in the football stadiums with tripods, coming on board with tripods and monopods. Very quickly they realized that this is of no use as the boats are moving too much. Some even got seasick but that’s another story.

Please come and visit our new website www.go4image.com especially for the 33rd Americas cup we made a gallery with Daniels images of the last 10 America’s cup going back more than 30 years to Newport 1977 until the images we will start to publish next week.

Jürg

Louis Vuitton Pacific Series Book

Friday, March 13th, 2009

bookcover

Together with Lynn Fitzpatrick we managed to publish the Louis Vuitton Pacific Series Book within hours of the prize giving for the Louis Vuitton Pacific Series, a coffee table book with a foreword by regatta organizer, Bruno Troublé, will be available for distribution.

With just the right balance of prose from sailing journalist, Lynn Fitzpatrick, and some of my best images. The book is the perfect keepsake for everyone attending this historic match racing event in Auckland, NZ. For those who were not present for five days of practice and 16 days of exciting match racing between world renown skippers, helmsmen, tacticians and crew from 10 teams representing 9 countries, this photo journal allows you to live vicariously.

Order the book online here

See more about the book

On the waterline

Tuesday, November 11th, 2008

Trofeo Desafio Espagnol Valencia

Last weekend I have been in Valencia for the Desafio Annual Regatta. For some a really important event such as Alinghi and Desafio, some others like BMWOracle guess not so interested in it. For me it was a great opportunity to try out a new camera system and this with nothing less as the Americas cup boats.

Since 1 year was thinking how to realize this kind of image, specially as I like to work from the water surface and with the wide angle lenses. The perspective is different and amazing, with underwater housing I can finally combine this two in to one image without damaging the camera and even go a bit under the surface.

It’s really motivating to explore and learning this technology. As sailing photographer you always take images from sailing boats, and in the mean time we did almost every possible angle and corner of the boats and this is finally something new and give us new options.