Block Island Race 2009: a wide angle kind of day

Our day started out at Indian Harbor YC, taking photos for the club for some US Sailing Youth Champs promotional materials. We took some more traditional shots as well, but liked this one that we took with a fisheye lens.

With blue skies and a little bit of haze, it was a good day for shots with a wide-angle lens, and we took that mentality out on the water for the 2009 Storm Trysail Club Block Island Race shots. And despite light wind, the shots came out very nicely. See the photos here.

What a great night to sail around Block Island, and a great start to the summer season on Long Island Sound. 2009's going to be a busy summer on the Sound, with many big events to photograph, including US Sailing Youth Championships, Block Island Race Week (not quite LIS, but close enough) and many classes' North Americans and Nationals.

Click here to see the 2009 Block Island Race Photos.

Nordstar Photoshoot follow-up

Check out the write-up from our Nordstar Patrol 31 boat test photoshoot: click here to go to OceanLines. And stay tuned for the full review.

2009 Greenwich Cup Spring Photos

I was smart enough to bring a handheld GPS on this foggy Saturday morning on Long Island Sound (our dinghies don't exactly have console-mounted GPSs...or consoles), but I happened to grab the one without the local charts loaded, so finding the starting line for the Greenwich Cup was something I didn't take for granted. But just seeing my position relative to land was enough to get me there on time, and the fog lifted during the first race.

The Greenwich Cup is always a fun regatta for us to cover, and this was no exception. We even had some good breeze and competition was tight as usual.

We've got some great shots from the weekend, including this trademark Greenwich Cup shot, with Indian Harbor and Riverside - the two host yacht clubs in Greenwich - visible on the transoms.

See the 2009 Greenwich Cup shots here.

PhotoBoat On Fireboats

The Centennial New York Athletic Club - Yacht Club - Stratford Shoal Race kicked off this Saturday with a lot of pomp and circumstance, including a spray show from two fireboats. The distance race got off to a great start despite thick fog, but we take this opportunity to bring up the last time we saw a fireboat in action...on Tortola a few years ago. Allen took this photo while on staff at Yacht Shots BVI in 2006. A group of vacationers and their luggage were picked out of the water by a nearby sailboat after they had to abandon ship. The BVI salvage company did a nice job putting out the fire, and the shot made the cover of the BVI Beacon.

Anatomy of a Photoshoot

All the parts came together perfectly for Monday's photoshoot for OceanLines, a great passagemaking online magazine. I shot a Nordstar 31 Patrol on the Connecticut River outside of Essex. The weather was beautiful, the boat looked great, the background setting was interesting, and communication was seemless- all integral pieces of a photoshoot, some easier than others to control. I switched between wide-angle and zoom lenses, and even snuck in a slow shutter speed shot that came out nicely.

Keep an eye out for the boat test write-up on OceanLines.biz.

Volvo Ocean Race Boston Stopover

Boston was hopping with activity this weekend for the 2008-9 Volvo Ocean Race stopover. Saturday's In-Port Race was disappointing due light wind and grey skies, but mother nature made up for it on Sunday, with 25+ knots and bright sun. Sunday's racing was a pro-am, and the course was modified due to the high wind. Race committee had them doing a series of short match races with each boat rounding it's own marks- not as cool as seeing them jockey with each other, but it is understandable that they did not want to risk a collision during this promotional racing day, when their real mission is to set sail for Galway next week. Despite having to be reefed and not using a chute, the Open 70s looked great crashing through the chop and sending spray flying through the air all afternoon. Click Here to view our photos.

Reflections...

We have to point out this cool shot that Connor Fitzpatrick took during USODA team trials. Notice the opti reflection in the aviators of this focused sailor...

USODA Team Trials

It was a weekend for dry suits at the USODA Team Trials at Noroton Yacht Club. These Opti sailors proved their mettle with 4 long days of racing, sometimes in the rain, some days until after 5 pm. But we heard no complaints from competitors. Opti sailors rule. And they certainly came prepared.

See the 2009 USODA Team Trials photos, including daily highlights and folders sorted by sail number, here.