In icy conditions, athletes from around the globe are doing battle under the lights of Pyeongchang’s Winter Olympic sporting venues. Following every snowboard flying through the half-pipes, every bobsled thundering down the track and each stick hitting a puck is an army of professional photographers covering the events for media outlets across the planet.
Photographers set up a camera rig at the ice-skating ring in Pyeongchang.
A photographer sets up a composition high up in the ice rink.
Up to now, not much has been seen by the general public of what goes on behind the scenes for these pro photographers, and the efforts brands put in to help them maintain their gear and keep on shooting, which is especially important in the harsh environments of Pyeongchang, where temperatures have been even colder than forecast.
Need a camera or lens? Take your pick!
Well, wonder no more as we’ve got some amazing images to share with you from from Canon’s CPS (Canon Professional Services) base at the Winter Olympics. And, if you love chunky cameras and big lenses, these images will leave you drooling and, more than likely, with some serious gear envy.
Don't worry, there's plenty of 1DX Mark IIs to go around.
We spoke to Canon insider, Rob Luckett, who shared some interesting stats and figures with us. Rob informed us that, to ensure the CPS operation runs smoothly, Canon have 72 staff members at the Winter Olympics. The Canon staff come from 10 different countries and speak a total of 10 different languages.
Canon estimate over 1000 repairs and maintenance jobs will be carried out during the Olympics.
There's no second chances at sporting events, so maintaining gear is crucial.
The Olympics don’t happen every day of course and pro photographers have to be ready for those crucial, gold medal-winning moments of sporting glory, and this means that they can’t afford to have anything go wrong with their kit. If they do have a problem, CPS have plenty of gear at Pyeongchang to loan out, with images showing a room full of pro-level DSLR bodies and L Glass telephoto lenses. So exactly how much repair/maintainence work is needed from the hundreds of photographers covering the 15 main events at Pyeongchang? “We estimate CPS will provide over 1000 maintenance jobs or repairs while there,” explained Rob.
Canon have 72 staff on hand to help look after their professional photographers.
Canon's staff come from 10 different countries and speak 10 different languages to aid communication.
. digitalrev.com2018-2-13 03:00
