I have had the distinct pleasure of photographing this fun and challenging event for 4 of the 5 years for both event organizers.  First two years I was shooting editorial images, the third competitor images with my event photography business Outer Image Collective and the fifth again shooting editorials for new event owners Ironman Oceania.  If you have not participated in this event check it out, using the link to the left in the client requirements area. 

  Now this race is a qualifier for Cape Epic so there is definitely some fast racing at the pointy end but for most its a reason to spend 4 days riding with mates having fund and enjoying a cold beer at the end.  So photography brief was just that, capture the good times before, during and after the racing all takes place.

  Scouting the event the first year as many new locations I had not shot before was very important. Each year I was taking editorial images meant I needed to know where I was going as not always in the media vehicle keeping with the race leaders.

  Out on course capturing as many locations as I could focusing on the areas scenic views, trails and people having fun meant driving to known hot spots then wandering out along the course before moving on.  This was done best by car as some locations were fairly far apart. 

  Post race, I needed a handful or two of images “as soon as you can” so laptop ready to go meant either sitting in the carpark at the finish line or if lucky and a vinyard finish in the sales showroom cafe.  Clients used dropbox or I have provided images thru my website as an easy digital download. 

  Drone aerials.  Everyone loves a great aerial view of their race start or out on the trails showing the winding course with a train of riders.  I would use either my Phantom 4Pro or Mavic Air depending on if I was just shooting from where I parked or from where I wandered further in on the trails. 

  Final gallery of images are not needed immediately but I always try to have done within 48hours of the race concluding as its still fresh in my mind when it comes to selecting favourites and editing.  I provide clients images in a high resolution file, one for Facebook, one for Instagram and one for general website use.  This saves time having to resize from the high-resolution file and provides a better quality.