Cesar Matamoros wrote about the "Sports photographer mentality"...
"I usually take photographs for a local triathlon. I tend to take
pictures showing crowds, advertising, and the like. This year, due to
nepotism, I was �relieved� of my duties......"
In a similar vein (sort of), for the past several years, I've worked
security for the World Championship Saddlebred Horse Show, held in my home
town (some of the workers, like me, work on a volunteer basis to earn money
for charities, with the pay going directly to the charity.) It's a
week-long affair, with a lot of very rich and famous horsemen and women
from all over the world. Security's job is to ensure that only people with
the proper credentials (trainers, grooms, and press) are allowed access to
the ring around the show ring, and that they do not take food, drink, pets,
etc. down to the ring. I've met and spoken with several photographers in
the horse business, some were very interested in seeing the MZ-S, even
though most were using Nikon or Canon. I usually start the conversation by
joking with them that their camera brand is not on the accepted equipment
list. I've yet to make an attempt to work with them. From our
conversations it appears that most have a very full time job. I'm too
close to full retirement benefits in this job.
Last night I stopped a lady going to the ring with a mixed drink. She
proceeded to inform me that no one could expect her to stand in the press
box all night and take photos of those horses all night without some
alcohol to get her through the ordeal. I hadn't even noticed the camera.
Sure enough, she had a press pin, but wasn't dressed like most of the press
row photogs. She was dressed like most of the spectators/owners, like
going to a very formal party. I told her that in my experience alcohol and
photography didn't mix very well, since my focusing ability drops
proportionately to the amount of alcohol consumed. That started a long
discussion. She proceeded to tell me that she had been given the job of
photographing several horse shows for a trade magazine and she was on her
fourth camera. The magazine had assured her that she couldn't break this
one since she had killed the first three. She wasn't worried about
focusing, "The camera does that." Then she proceeded to show me the "cute"
little icons that selected the camera functions. When I finally noticed
the camera, it was a Minolta Maxxum QTS1 or QSTi, which appeared to be an
entry level auto-focus SLR, with a definite consumer grade zoom. Sure
enough, she was traveling to the most important horse shows all across the
United States with her publisher/editor and taking photos of competitions.
She only needed 4 or 5 photos of each show for the magazine, and knew which
classes, horses, and riders would be most interesting to her magazine's
audience. Here was a lady with a great part-time job, and she apparently
wasn't interested it doing a good job and apparently had little skill to
offer.
It's amazing to me how many of the wrong people get the good jobs. I
probably need to send her magazine some examples of what a good camera and
operator can do. But then again, as in Cesar's case, maybe I'd be fighting
nepotism. Sorry, just needed to vent my ire.
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