Reporting from Rio: Tips for Shooting at High-Profile Events

I was blessed to be asked by USA Today Sports to help photograph the Rio Olympic games last month. I had previously worked the Winter Olympics in Sochi two years ago, but these would be my first Summer Games, so there was no way I was going to miss it.

For those who do not know, photographing the Olympics is probably one of the most intensive and grueling experiences that a photographer can have, yet one of the most rewarding. I and the rest of the sports photographers got our assignments about a day or two in advance, and from there we were responsible to find out about the competitors, make a game plan on how to photograph each sport, etc. The days were full and very long—in fact I averaged about two hours of sleep per night!

One of the great things about working with USA Today was that most of the shooting positions were wired; I would take a photo and selectively transmit it to an editor back in the Main Press Center. We had thousands of images from all of the photographers being sent in as the events were happening, so the editors could crop and caption, and the world would see them in a matter of seconds. For the big events, USA Today wired several different photo spots so that no angle was missed.

The Summer Olympic Games are filled with sports that are not necessarily in the mainstream, so it was my first opportunity to photograph many of them. It was exciting, but also a tad nerve-wracking knowing that the guy next to me might have shot ten Olympics already. But I just kept my head in the game; as in every sport I photograph, I try to look for good lighting, clean backgrounds, great emotion and a sense of place.

One particularly exciting event for me was covering Michael Phelps, the most decorated Olympian of all time, winning the 200-meter butterfly race and his 20th gold medal, as well as the 200-meter freestyle medley with his teammates. It was also my first time to photograph swimming , so I was a bit nervous, yet excited! My spot was in the second level, and head on. This position is great for the butterfly stroke as the swimmers go in and out of the water very consistently, as opposed to freestyle where my position would have not been as good. I found that my vantage point was also great for capturing celebrations in the team events, perfect for “jube” (or jubilation) photos.

I love to capture wonderful storytelling images, and the Olympics are great for that—these folks work their whole lives for this moment, which usually ensures some sort of “thrill of victory” or agony of defeat.

GEAR
Camera: Canon 1DX Mark II
Lenses: 600mm, 200-400mm, 70-200mm, 24-70mm, 11-24mm, 1.4mm tele-extender

A Day in the Life
– Wake up at 5 a.m., take a shower, eat a 10-minute breakfast and catch a cab to the venue.  (I chose to use taxis, since the media shuttles where I was staying were horribly slow!)
– At the venue doors, me and my gear get screened by military police and my press credential is scanned to make sure I am legit.
– Once I’m inside, I find the photo manager to introduce myself.  Then I get a locker to put my gear in, and I get ready to shoot, plugging my cameras into the VLAN network to make sure I can transmit files properly. Once I’m inside, I find the photo manager to introduce myself if it is a new venue. Then I get a locker to put my gear in, and I get ready to shoot, plugging my cameras into the VLAN network to make sure I can transmit files properly.
– When I’m all set up, I shoot the events at the venue. Sometimes it is just one or two games, like basketball, or sometimes it is all day, starting at 10 a.m. through midnight for beach volleyball.
– At the end of the day, I catch a media bus back to my stop and walk a couple blocks to my hotel. By this time, it could be 2 or 3 a.m. A few hours of sleep later, I start all over again!

TIPS
1. Be patient and arrive super early. Sometimes buses do not show up, there are weather delays, etc., so patience is important! Most photo positions are first come first serve, so arrive about three hours before an event to find a decent spot, or you may be out of luck.

2. Look for clean backgrounds with things that give your shots a sense of where you are (things like the Olympic Rings or Rio signs are great indicators for photos). A photo without these things can simply look like it was taken anywhere, so it’s important to show them when you can.

3. Be friendly to everyone. You will need help from other photographers who might know more about the ins and outs of venues, shooting spots, rules, etc. I just think it’s good karma to help others even though we are technically “competing.”

Kevin Jairaj is an award-winning wedding photographer based in Dallas. He is renowned for his destination wedding, portrait and sports photography, and is a frequent speaker at WPPI.