LIFE THROUGH A LENS

Armed with little more than a semi-fancy camera and ambition, James Shrubsall spends a day at the Women’s Tour to see if he can cut it as a snapper of the world’s most beautiful sport

- James Shrubsall

They say a picture paints a thousand words. Which to a busy writer sounds ideal – pass me the camera someone, how hard can it be? Cycling journalism is as much about imagery as it is about words; we drink in the pictures, the mountain scenery, the sunflower fields and the agony on the riders’ faces. And then we wish we could take photos like that.

‘Viewfinder warrior’ doesn’t have quite the same ring to it as ‘keyboard warrior’ perhaps, but nevertheless, and all in the name of serious investigative research, I paused the day job, grabbed my old DSLR camera, and set about finding out just what it takes to be a race photographer.

Thanks to Simon Wilkinson and Alex Whitehead at SWPix – whose names you will probably recognise from the credits to thousands of pictures published on websites and in magazines from races around the world, including those that regularly appear in Cycling Weekly – I had the chance to test my ability with pictures rather than prose for a day.

SWPix is run by devout Yorkshireman and proud former tabloid snapper Simon Wilkinson. He employs two staff and numerous freelancers and over the last 20 years or so has covered more bike races than you and I have had hot dinners – not to mention all the cricket matches, the swimming and the football.

If you’re a frequent visitor at UK National Series events or major races abroad, you’ll likely have seen Wilkinson stalking purposefully around start and finish paddocks, brandishing his long lens as he crouches or climbs his way into the best vantage point. He’s a busy guy, and having him show me the ropes was quite the privilege.