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Writer's pictureSteve Frith

Percy Pud 10k 2019



December 1st 2019:


The start of a very busy month, with quite a number of road and off-road races to cover. Around 3,000 runners managed to win a place in this ever popular out and back 10k, including Eilish McColgan. Doubt she had to hover over a laptop and enter on line, but her presence is always a crowd puller.




Usual morning walk with Willow, trying to keep her out of the mud. Time was short and I wanted to grab a bite to eat and yet another cuppa to keep me going. Bradfield isn't too far away and the traffic was sparse. Hoped that the sun wouldn't make too much of an appearance, just stay behind some fluffy white clouds please. Harsh sunlight plays havoc with images. Especially when it comes from one side or is directly behind the runner.

Had a natter to Carol, another photographer, until the lead car came into view. Time to calm the nerves and await the tsunami of competitors. Squat down and ready to rumble.



Light coming from the right-hand side wasn't too harsh. I'd positioned myself where trees were shielding the sun quite a bit, this helped in achieving the correct exposure ... almost. I'd set the camera to manual, allowing me to change both the shutter speed and aperture if I needed to. No time to go into MENUS and fiddle about.

I used the Nikon D500 with the cracking 85mm prime lens, just love it.

Shutter speed set at 1/1000th sec Aperture f4 which gave me ISO 900.

In hindsight, I should have used f5.6 or f8 for a "bigger" depth of field.

Nah, f4 is really sharp on the 85mm f1.8 lens.



For the first two or three minutes, the runners kindly kept to one side, this allowed me enough room to take a reasonable image or two in terms of composition. Then the tidal wave began to roll towards me. Suddenly, the road is flooded with enthusiastic PB seekers and I had to retreat to the pavement. Even there, I'm not safe. A decent image became less and less likely, it was time to resort to head and shoulder shots.




As time went on, I noticed the shadows on the dam wall.

The changing shapes, so mesmeric. Hundreds passed by, all shapes and sizes. The resulting image doesn't do justice to the thoughts that flashed through my mind.


"We are but fleeting shadows passing through the sands of time."






With nearly 3,000 runners, there is no way that you can take a photograph of everyone who takes part. As far as I know, there was no official photographer at the Percy Pud. Carol and Lionel were out there snapping to increase the chances of an image for you.. Even so, it is an impossible task to provide everyone with a memento of their run.





The flood turned into a dribble and one last shot before the leaders came into view.

A sub 30 minute run was certainly on the cards for the leader. The £1,000 reward for a course record was almost certainly within his grasp.




It's always easier to create reasonable compositions with the front of the field. Individuals or small groups coming through at a reasonable pace, lend themselves to images that satisfy my "Is this good enough?" mentality. Many a photo finishes up in the recycling bin. The trees on the left of the runners helped to filter the sun's rays. Nice one.




Eilish McColgan smashing her own record and another £1,000 is banked.


I moved the cones out of the way after the first few runners, allowing the wall and the pavement to create a natural curve. How long before the masses made their way back?



Alan Ford of Barnsley Harriers 1st V40 Great running shape and concentration



With the 1st Male and Female already recovering from their efforts, the tidal wave returned. The camera notified me that I'd already taken 1,500 shots and the thought of editing so many weighed heavily on my mind. Be sensible Mozzie, you can't put out 1,000's of photos on line.


The decision to move towards the car was made. I chose a spot on the last climb. Not the best place to be. Strong sunlight would prove to be a pain. Time to call a halt to proceedings. One image proved to be worth the effort. Diffused light on the trees in the background, made the shot a keeper. Love it.



"This is probably the best running photograph I have ever seen." - quote -Gary Othick



Back home and the process begins. Photos loading and shopping beckoned. The joys of Christmas. Managed to sort through a few when I eventually returned. It took about three hours for all of the dng's to be "absorbed" by the computer.


I'm like a kid in a sweet shop when I begin the editing process. Yes, I should go through them methodically but … First port of call is to edit the winners' photographs and post them on Twitter and Facebook.


A note attached to the computer informed me not to worry about how long it would take to work through the 2000 plus images. By Tuesday evening, I'd had enough of editing. The sheer volume had taken its toll on me. I've become more and more critical of what goes out on line. They're my images and the quality really does matter to me.

After a rest, I worked through the ones I'd rejected and put those out in another album.



Massive thanks to those people who dipped into their pockets and donated to my chosen charity: Woodhead Mountain Rescue. The £5000 target has been reached and with gift aid, it's almost £6000




 

Help needed:


You been an amazing bunch of people, helping me to raise around £15,000 for malarianomore and £5000 for WMRT.


I've only used a "fee" once for my own personal gain. AND … that was to buy an external hard drive to store running images on.


Is there any mileage in asking people to PAY for an image?


There are a few pieces of camera gear that I'd love to add to what I have already.

I've lost count of the tens of thousands of images taken and the camera shutters won't last forever.


How realistic is it to ask for contributions?


Any contribution would be voluntary and I certainly wouldn't expect people to feel that they had to. It would be their decision, no pressure whatsoever.


Do I set a target?


Crowdfunding or Paypal?


I try my best to take images that people will treasure for years to come. They are of a fairly good quality and must be worth a couple of quid each. Well, some of them.


PLEASE PM me with any suggestions and/or comments.











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