Wedding photograph by Martin Hemsley, wedding photographerWedding photograph by Martin Hemsley, wedding photographer
Wedding photograph by Martin Hemsley, wedding photographerWedding photograph by Martin Hemsley, wedding photographer
Wedding photograph by Martin Hemsley, wedding photographerWedding photograph by Martin Hemsley, wedding photographer
Wedding photograph by Martin Hemsley, wedding photographerWedding photograph by Martin Hemsley, wedding photographer
Wedding photograph by Martin Hemsley, wedding photographerWedding photograph by Martin Hemsley, wedding photographer

Photographs you will treasure, from a day like no other

Olympic Torch - Documentary Photography

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Monday
,
2
July 2012

On Sunday the Olympic Torch Relay passed through Leamington Spa, just half a mile away from where Harriet and I live. I've thought long and hard whether to post anything about this event on my Wedding Photography website, because after all what has the London Olympics got to do with Wedding Photography here in Warwickshire? Nothing really. Or has it?

There are many skills required in order to produce nice images at an event. For instance at weddings it's very important to know something about the future Bride and Groom, to understand the schedule for the day, to be able to anticipate what happens next and to have the skills to be able to adapt to the unexpected. Most of this can be planned for in advance. So going back to the Olympic Torch Relay, my only source of planning was going to be the internet and the odd article on the TV. As soon as I started surfing the net, I realised how much of a challenge it was going to be capturing the event on the day.

It looked as though the only thing that could be relied upon was the arrival time of the flame. Anything else was basically up for grabs. The number of articles I came across which showed crowds completely surrounding the torch bearer were a little disturbing. It looked as though it could easily become a 'sticky bun fight'! Basically I had to 'wing it', and hope for the best, which is completely  opposite to the way I like to work.

Hang on a minute, I've just re-read the start of this post and realised how self-centred I sound. The main purpose of the day was to celebrate an incredible event after all (not how photographers become engrossed in their own life!) again exactly the same as a wedding day. So let me tell you more about the evening. I arrived about 50 minutes before the Torch was due to pass by, chosing to stand on Kenilworth Road towards the outskirts of the town. The atmosphere was buzzing. There were families everywhere, and people of all ages. Some glugging wine, others singing together, with loads flag waving and many folk wearing fancy dress. A real carnival atmosphere. The only plan I had for my photography was to try and stay in front of the festival goers, and my best chance of that was to stand in the middle of the road!?!

I found a couple of Warwickshire Council types in bright orange vests and asked them about the correct protocol, which sadly they weren't sure of. It was no good, I had to find the police and check with them. To cut a long story short, they let me stand in the middle of a pelican crossing, on one of those small pavement islands. Result.

So how did it go? The build up was amazing. More and more people arrived; the crowd started to surge across the road. Then a thousand-and-one (it seemed!) Police motorcyclists arrived, with many of them giving the crowd 'high fives' as they rode by. This helped the carnival atmosphere even more. The odd advertising vehicles came and went, and then a row of Police joggers protecting the torch bearer came into sight far down the road, which set the crowd off into a frenzy. It didn't take long for the procession to reach us. I fired away on my Canon, but stopped just as the flame reached me. I got completely distracted with it all.

It was a brilliant experience to be part of, always being aware of what was going around me whilst shooting, and quickly adjusting settings on camera, just like being at a wedding. My ability to capture award winning photos were compromised by uncontrollable events, ie safety, crowds, police etc. Again similar to weddings, minus the police hopefully. A once in a lifetime experience; I can't wait to attend the games next month in London.

So here are some images from the afternoon. Check out the Police 'high fives' and see how many smiles you can spot?

Torch tradesman
Olympic flags for sale
Olympic hat seller
Anticipation
Police arrival
Olympic high 5
Olympic car and mascot

 

Olympic spectators

 

Police High Fiving

 

Plodding the streets
Police cyclist
First sight of Olympic torch
Wow there it is
Olympic torch up close
Leamington Spa Olympic Torch

 It was a fantastic afternoon, and it was great seeing everyone enjoying themselves......

 

Saddle sore

Oh, maybe not everyone, perhaps he was a little saddle sore from riding all day long?

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