Visions of China: A 2008 Olympics Picture Blog : Mike Powell

Off to the airport

Mike Powell — Sun, 24 Aug 2008 00:36:43 GMT

It’s the morning of the last day of the Olympics and I’m getting ready to hit the road and go home. As much as we’ve all looked forward to this moment there’s always a feeling that something important is over. Regardless of the trials and tribulations of the last two weeks, I’ve enjoyed the Beijing Games. Although it has felt like a rather sterile Games with the events and media being kept within the Olympic bubble I can’t fault the volunteers that have helped us do our jobs everyday and made us feel welcome.

I’ve put a selection of my work together here, it’s still too soon to do a proper edit and only time will tell if this work stands up. I’ve found I need a little space from the event to edit work without the emotion of the day. Thanks for following along and sending me e-mails with your comments. They were all appreciated.

Cheers,
Mike

Photograph by Mike Powell for NEWSWEEK

Lost in the Woods

Mike Powell — Sat, 23 Aug 2008 11:27:57 GMT

Photograph by Mike Powell for NEWSWEEK

Big day for me, my last at the Beijing Games. When I was planning this with NEWSWEEK it was a magazine job and the mag closes Saturday night. I’ve been to enough of these to know that getting out of Dodge a day early can really help the exit strategy. So I’m off.

Got to shoot the men and women’s cross-country mountain biking today, had a lot of fun. It was one of the few events where they let the crowd get close to the athletes for once and that all added to the atmosphere but no cheerleaders today, my wife will be glad to know!

I spent most of the day humping through what felt like tropical jungle. It must have been 95% humidity and I was in full “Bridge on the River Kwai” mode. I know, wrong country and all, plus it’s probably just a little park but it felt like a full on jungle to me when I was bush whacking between course sections and walked straight into a giant cobweb which had a giant scary looking spider on it! I spun around to beat a hasty retreat only to walk smack into another one with an even bigger spider on it. What is this a set from Lord of the Rings or what? After extricating myself with only a few strands of web left dangling I decided to stay closer to the course and got on with shooting the race.

Most of what I shot today was on my 50mm f.2 shot at f2. I’ve been using this technique for much of the Games. It allows me to shoot a standard but still have a blown out background that just hints at what’s there rather than being more literal. Most of the photographers I met today are winding down and looking forward to getting home, some are complaining about how soon their agencies have then going on the next job. There’s not much down time when you work for the wires. When I was in Allsport many times I would come to the Games directly from one assignment, like the Tour de France and go off to another straight from the Games or shortly there after. Sounds exciting and it was but I am happy that I’ll be going home and spending some time with the family, the kids have one week left of school hols when I get back so I’ll try not to answer the phone.

Photograph by Mike Powell for NEWSWEEK

Coffee and Cigarettes

Mike Powell — Thu, 21 Aug 2008 15:40:23 GMT

Photograph by Mike Powell for NEWSWEEK

I don't smoke but it just sounds cooler than "coffee and Powerbars."

So coffee has stopped working sometime in the last couple of days. I can’t seem to get a buzz off a large coffee with a double red eye. Or whatever it’s supposed to be called. All I know is this would normally get me running up the walls, but now, not so much…the net effect is that when I shot a half a game of handball on my way over to the track I was a step behind the players and didn’t make a single snap. Fortunately when I got to the more familiar ground of the track things improved.

Photograph by Mike Powell for NEWSWEEK

That said, I’ve changed my music selection at night to a bit of opera, there’s something apropos about a little tragedy at this point in the Games.

Photograph by Mike Powell for NEWSWEEK

Darvis Patton of the U.S.A. walks to retrieve a dropped baton after the men's 4x100 meters relay. Photograph by Mike Powell for NEWSWEEK

I was supposed to go out to the BMX finals today but another summer storm blew through and it was delayed until tomorrow. I went to a hockey game instead, always a bit of fun in the rain. The good news is it blows most of the smog out and we might have some sun. I’m off to the beach and Vinnie will shoot BMX.

Photograph by Mike Powell for NEWSWEEK

We’ve been at this long enough now to start looking back on the pics that have been shot. I’ve said before that on these long jobs you need to have a little perspective. 16 days of shooting isn’t going to net you that many real folio shots but if you can get a handful plus of pics you're really happy with you're probably in the ball park. Looking at what I’ve done so far has me feeling I’m about in the range, which has me a little chuffed (translation: happy). I’ve tried when possible to step to one side or use a very different lens than the pack and on the whole I think it’s worked. Working with Donald and Vincent has been a pleasure. It’s very important to have some good drinking buddies at the end of a long day and you really get to see a little bit more of everyone’s character two weeks into the Games.

Photograph by Mike Powell for NEWSWEEK

Old Record Holders and New Record Holders

Mike Powell — Wed, 20 Aug 2008 16:33:57 GMT

Photograph by Mike Powell for NEWSWEEK

I had in-field access for a short period tonight to shoot the pole vault qualies and got lucky. As they say it’s better to be lucky than good. The 200m finals were happening right next to me. I used to love shooting this angle on Michael Johnson and he always made a good pan. His running style kept his body very still while his arms and legs churned. Bolt is another story, though. I shot it at 100th of a sec. on an 85mm prime lens. Normally I can pan slower but Bolt has a loping style that worried me. I was right to be worried, I got a nice series but the only ones that were sharp in the face were where he was on the ground. I normally prefer more extension in my sprint pics.

Photograph by Mike Powell for NEWSWEEK

Ran into a couple of old acquaintances from track again today, Michael Johnson the 2/400m champion, WR holder and multiple medalist and Javier Sotomayor from Cuba who still holds the WR in the high jump although he’s been retired for some time. I can’t say enough about these guys. Both great athletes and good people.

Photograph by Mike Powell for NEWSWEEK

Walking through any part of the Olympic green it’s hard not to walk through someone’s snap shot. It seems to be a national pastime, taking pictures in front of all the stadiums. Tonight on the way to track I finally made a pic of something that wasn’t running, throwing or riding.

Photograph by Mike Powell for NEWSWEEK

I popped into wresting for a while today and ended up shooting the gold medal match in the 74kg class. This Russian wrestler won his 3rd gold medal over three Olympics. Just think about the dedication it takes to first get to that level then to stay at the top that long in a very tough sport.

Photograph by Mike Powell for NEWSWEEK

Busy Bus Day

Mike Powell — Tue, 19 Aug 2008 14:46:53 GMT

6 hours of bus time today. An early trip out to the men’s triathlon, then back to the MPC, out to the Velodrome then back to the MPC. Finally out to Workers Stadium for Brazil vs. Argentina football. A pretty packed day but I managed to pick some of the venues that are farthest away from each other. Another thing, normally I do work and write on the buses. Today for some reason every bus I got on I made by the skin of my teeth, and usually involved me sprinting across the bus depot with all my kit only to find that the bus was packed. I either had to stand, or didn’t have any wiggle room to work. This is a sign that we’re getting close to the end--more people are going to less events.

Start of the mens' triathlon. Photograph by Mike Powell for NEWSWEEK

The start of the men's triathlon. Photograph by Mike Powell for NEWSWEEK

Matty Reed of the United States exits the water during the men's triathlon. Photograph by Mike Powell for NEWSWEEK

The men's triathlon cycling. Photograph by Mike Powell for NEWSWEEK

Sprint cycling at the Laoshan velodrome. Photograph by Mike Powell for NEWSWEEK

Juan Esteban Curuchet and Walter Fernandoat Perez on their way to winning the Madison at the Laoshan velodrome.Photograph by Mike Powell for NEWSWEEK

Juan Esteban Curuchet celebrates winning the madison at the Laoshan velodrome. Photograph by Mike Powell for NEWSWEEK

Shuang Guo on her way to a bronze in the sprint at the Laoshan velodrome.Photograph by Mike Powell for NEWSWEEK

Maximilian Levy of Germany and Mickael Bourgain of France during the team sprint for at the Laoshan velodrome. France finished with silver, Germany won bronze. Photograph by Mike Powell for NEWSWEEK

Chris Hoy of Great Britain comes around Jason Kenny to take gold in the sprint finals at the Laoshan velodrome. Photograph by Mike Powell for NEWSWEEK

Argentinian Nicolas Pareja slides into a tackle as Pato Alexandre of Brazil (9) and Pablo Zabaleta of Argentina (4) look on during Argentina's 3-0 semi-final win. Photograph by Mike Powell for NEWSWEEK

'Round in circles

Mike Powell — Mon, 18 Aug 2008 12:57:09 GMT

I’ll admit it I went a bit MIA this morning. Donald and I were both due to head to the triathlon this morning. I was heading to my room at 2:30 this morning and the idea of another early start just killed me, so I sent him a text. “Not going to tri, enjoy”. I’d had multiple late night early starts and know my snaps will suffer if I keep at it like that. Donald was all psyched about trying to get a camera in the water and I would rather be at an event on my own for once. We’ve been doing some major events en masse for a few days. So I bagged it, sorry Si. That’s my story and I’m sticking to it.

Photograph by Mike Powell for NEWSWEEK

I think most photogs have two points in the Games, one where they need to sleep in order to finish strong and one where they need to blow off a little steam. That was my need to some sleep moment.

Photograph by Mike Powell for NEWSWEEK

I’m heading to the velodrome today for the first time this Games. It’s a favorite of mine but is usually hard to get to because I’m at the athletics so much. As I said before I’m a bit of a cycling geek and enjoyed racing on the velodrome as a Masters racer. I was never much good on road races. My excuse is I’m 6’4” and 200lbs so the skinny little climbers would kill me. On the velodrome I got to beat up on them a little. Pack racing on the velodrome is a bit like NASCAR with pedals. It is so much fun.

Photograph by Mike Powell for NEWSWEEK

Photograph by Mike Powell for NEWSWEEK

It’s nice to see how it should be done at the Olympic level. The Brits set a new WR in the 4000m team pursuit, I was in Sydney when the Germans first broke 4 minutes, if memory serves me.

Photograph by Mike Powell for NEWSWEEK

'Something Different'

Mike Powell — Sun, 17 Aug 2008 15:58:07 GMT

Photograph by Mike Powell for NEWSWEEK

Going to bed last night at 2.30 a.m. and getting up this morning at 6 on top of the cumulative sleep deficit left me a little worse for wear today. It also left me with a severe dose of writers block. I’ve started this blog several times today and didn’t get far each time. Usually something sparks an idea during the day and leads to me being able to knock out a few para’s on something that at least interests me.

Photograph by Mike Powell for NEWSWEEK

Phelps got his eighth gold medal but we’re all a bit jaded now and quite frankly except for yesterdays near miss on #7 it all felt a bit pedestrian. How jaded can you get! I’m sure I’ll look back and be glad I was there for at least some of it. Anyhoo, that didn’t spark anything in the old noggin.

So I waited ‘til the end of the day to see if anything at the track got me going and was standing in another photographers moat trying to figure out what to do next when I over heard another snapper talking about how he was going to try and do “something different” tonight.

“Something different.” I can’t tell you how many times I’ve heard that one. From editors and photographers. I guess it’s the holy grail of snappers. I got thinking about it and tried to put my finger on what “something different” actually is. Well of course it’s lots of things.

Photograph by Mike Powell for NEWSWEEK

Simon Barnett, the DOP at NEWSWEEK has given us a very free rein to go shoot “something different”, but sometimes it hamstrings you. You see a very nice picture that on most days you would eagerly shoot. But being at the Olympics there are 300 shooters already trying to shoot it and the pool guys have better access and 200 remotes under it, over it and probably on it! So your shrug you shoulders and wonder off in search of the illusive “something different”. Or you shoot it anyway and hope for a unique moment. It’s amazing how different images can be even when your all shooting the same thing.

Photograph by Mike Powell for NEWSWEEK

Sometimes you actually do find something different and merrily shoot away and send it in the editor. Who doesn’t get it “‘cause it doesn’t look like a real sports snap.” (Note: this hasn’t happened with the NEWSWEEK crew).

“Something different” soon becomes commonplace. Track finish line remotes used to be pretty rare. Underwater remotes didn’t really start (I believe) until Heinz Kluetmeier of Sports Illustrated started putting one in the pool at the Barcelona Olympics in “92. Now the swimmers are tripping over them. Lovely pictures but not something different anymore. Same with shooting from the catwalk in a stadium, it’s just another angle now.

I’ve found that here at the Games as soon as you put a lens on longer than 200mm you’ve got very little chance of looking different. Not that you can’t shoot good pictures, they come from almost anyplace. But the lens starts to dictate the style.

Photograph by Mike Powell for NEWSWEEK

At the Winter Olympics in Turino I shot a whole series on a 50mm lens shot almost wide open at f2. I really liked the feel of the images and wanted to try more of it here. It’s not so easy at the summer Games, I’ve found that I’m further away from the action. But every now and then I’ll get a shot and by the end of the Games I’ll have a handful that will show a style that I have been trying to build on for some time. I’ll put a gallery up near the end if it all comes together. Shooting this way means letting go of shots I know will work in favor of trying for an image that might not work and even if it does nobody else might like. Sometimes I can do it and other time I lose the courage and fall back on my sport shooting background. I’ll try and keep plugging away though. In an attempt to shoot “something different”, even if it’s the kind of work nobody else would want to shoot!!

Phelps Ties Spitz

Mike Powell — Sat, 16 Aug 2008 07:49:03 GMT

Photograph by Mike Powell for NEWSWEEK

Big day today....Michael Phelps going for gold #7 and the 100m final. Against my better judgment, I’m down at the pool at 7 a.m. to make sure I get the position I want for Phelps. Tying Mark Spitz’s record medal count is a great story and one of the few long time Olympic records left. Just days before coming to Beijing I was in a restaurant in Los Angeles and Spitz came in for breakie. I photographed him for a Swatch watch portrait series prior to the Atlanta Games, maybe seeing him that day was an omen.

At past Olympics I would have been at the track by now fussing over the upcoming 100m finals, discussing the various merits of each athlete in with a chance and going over positions for the day. The 100m is one of those blue ribbon events that create a lot pressure on photographers. Rightly so; it is all over in 10 secs or less, and sometimes it’s hard to see who’s going to win until the very last 100th of a second. If you're going to shoot tight you better be confident in your lane choice, or be ready for a quick change. I’m still torn between shooting the final on a long lens or going for a wider shot that shows the atmosphere again.

The morning at the pool paid off with a nice snap of Phelps. Since the relay he’s been quiet after winning medals, but today he really celebrated after he tied Mark Spitz for 7 golds in one Olympics—an amazing feat. I was shooting from a balcony at the opposite end of the pool on a Canon 800mm f5.6. He reacted straight up at the scoreboard above my head. Nice start to the day. Now I get to head over to the track and see if I can do as well on the men’s 100m finals tonight.

Photograph by Mike Powell for NEWSWEEK

A Bit of Sun

Mike Powell — Fri, 15 Aug 2008 11:32:44 GMT

7.30 a.m. National Stadium Photo workroom.

I’m loath to admit this, but this mornings’ photo meeting at the track stung a little. Getting infield access at the Olympics is a prized trophy. For many of the Olympics I covered that was my domain and I guarded it jealously. To be able to shoot with that kind of freedom and only having to share the space with a select group of very professional colleagues is an honor that I enjoyed immensely. I knew many of the athletes competing, some on a personal level; the in-field group was family, maybe a little competitive at times but brothers in arms nonetheless.

When I left Getty Images to work on my own, my career had taken a turn away from event coverage and more toward feature and commercial sport work. I don’t for a moment question that choice but I was a little apprehensive about how I would feel not being Johnny on the spot on the in field. As the photo chief handed out the in-field bibs to the agencies I did indeed feel a pang for the old days. Walking back to the MPC (main press center) I was feeling a little melancholy and needed a pick up. A kick in the pants more like. The Games can get emotional and keeping it all together is part of the trick making it through the 16 days of Glory….

Game on, off to the Gymnastics, woman’s individual all–around and I think I’ll try and give the Canoe/Kayak another crack, the sun's out today. It’s payback time.

Photograph by Mike Powell for NEWSWEEK

After a few days of gymnastics you start getting that déjà vu feeling. The performances start looking familiar—they should be, the gymnasts are doing pretty much the same routine for all the events. The trick for me is to move around and shoot them in different ways and angles so your photography doesn’t have that same feel. Again trying to capture a feeling of place and action I chose to use shorter lenses when I started out today, then switched to a more traditional look on the beam later.

Photograph by Mike Powell for NEWSWEEK

I managed to get 40 winks on the bus and woke up near the Canoe/Kayak venue bathed in sunshine. I get to complain about getting sunburn today instead of trench foot! It’s so sunny the locals are actually taking pictures of the sky on their snap cameras, must be a rare sight.

Photograph by Mike Powell for NEWSWEEK

I haven’t shot much Canoe /Kayak work before but one thing that became apparent very quickly was the inconsistent nature of the medium. One athlete will come through the hole I had chosen and look great then the next would just vanish under the white water. You're just hoping that a face or eye will pop out of the wave but most often there’s either too much water or too little. That said, if you plug away you even your chances at the nice picture.

Photograph by Mike Powell for NEWSWEEK

Just to give you a little snapshot of where I am right now, I’m heading back to the MPC on a bus from the Canoe/kayak venue, which is about an hour out of town. The bus is completely filled with media of some form or another and photo, TV and computer gear. A Spanish journalist is talking to his editor in his quick fire staccato language and another journalist from Greece is shouting down his phone at someone. About half the bus is trying to sleep. I’m next to photographers from Germany, China and the Czech Republic. We’re all trying to get a jump on the next job by editing photos as we go. Except for me, I’m writing of course. Wonder what the NEWSWEEK journo’s think of that? Can’t imagine they’re too worried, it would be like them picking up a 600mm and shooting some sports while they’re out. Mind you with all the technology that goes into gear now they might come back with a few snaps. Writing stills requires wordsmith skills and when done well is an art. Please excuse my scratching.

Photograph by Mike Powell for NEWSWEEK

A Blustery Day

Mike Powell — Thu, 14 Aug 2008 13:38:27 GMT

I was looking forward to shooting the Canoe and Kayak event today; I had never seen a man-made whitewater course and and the sight intrigued me. As it happened I watched the river get filled on TV from the photo workroom as it was bucketing down rain outside. It had taken a long time to get out here on the bus so I was committed to shooting this and the conditions were getting worse by the minute.

Photograph by Mike Powell for NEWSWEEK

It was time to go out and get in position so I donned my rain jacket and covered my gear in ponchos to try to keep the rain out. It was now darker at this outdoor event than inside at the gymnastics venue, so making award-winners probably wasn’t on the menu today. 30 minutes of action later and the event was delayed due to lighting. After hanging out at the media lounge drinking coffee for a while they canceled until tomorrow. I think this is the first time I came back from a water event wetter than the competitors. I’m used to these kinds of delays at the Winter Olympics where I usually cover the Alpine ski events. Often you go up the ski hill at the crack of dawn knowing that the event will probably be canceled or delayed due to poor conditions but you have to be in position and ready—weather changes quickly in the mountains. I remember spending 3 or 4 days doing this at the Nagano Olympics, which was plagued with bad weather in the early days. Up the hill every morning, early, find a spot stand there for a couple of hours shivering, delay, stand around for a couple more hours, cancel. Try again the next day. Funnily enough I prefer the Winter Olympics.

So at this point I’m sitting in a puddle coming back from the event thinking that I haven't got much to show for the day. So I need to pull a picture out of the hat here and save my day. Guess I’ll squelch my way over to the fencing and see if that works. All in all a lot of time and effort spent for small rewards.

Photograph by Mike Powell for NEWSWEEK

Super Size Me

Mike Powell — Wed, 13 Aug 2008 13:52:28 GMT

Yuyuan Jiang competes on the uneven bars. Photograph by Mike Powell for NEWSWEEK

It’s amazing how shooting one or two nice pics can change your outlook on life. Today I felt like my brain was switched on and the pictures where coming without much effort. Much more fun than struggling to make anything work.

Yuyuan Jiang competes on the uneven bars. Photograph by Mike Powell for NEWSWEEK

Women’s team gymnastics and it’s one of the better arenas to work in. During the warm ups on the uneven bars I watched to see if I could find a moment that is not usually seen in still images. This shot is the release before she comes back over the top and catches. It’s different than the way most guys shoot this move as they shoot the girls as she reaches between her legs to catch the bar (see next pic). I noticed in warm-ups that unlike most rotations here she thrust her hips skywards before releasing. Amazing extension and commitment by the athlete.

Shanshan Li competes on the balance beam. Photograph by Mike Powell for NEWSWEEK

Shooting the beam on a 50mm wide open got me into the zone of atmosphere and athleticism that I’ve been trying to find. So I finished the morning session in a grand old mood.

Hao Wang of China competes in Table Tennis. Photograph by Mike Powell for NEWSWEEK

I’m a bit of a foodie, I cook for fun and really appreciate the skill of good chefs. Not the fancy haute cuisine type food but great local peasant food. It tells me more about a country and culture than any history book. China has probably the most varied and exciting cuisine in the world. But this is the Olympics—apart from the accidental tea ceremony earlier in the trip I haven’t been in a good restaurant. Most night finds me eating room service steak and mash and lunchtime is usually a synthesized combination of protein and carbs in a silver wrapper. Today I broke down and ate at the official food supplier of the Games. McDonalds. Even as hungry as I was this wasn’t a great experience.

Ai Fukuhara of Japan competes in Table Tennis. Photograph by Mike Powell for NEWSWEEK

Next stop was table tennis, no medals today but a chance to shoot pictures. I’d forgotten what a fast sport this is, amazing speed. I only stayed here an hour or so before heading off to the Worker’s Stadium to shoot USA vs Nigeria football.

Goal keeper Brad Guzan of the U.S. Photograph by Mike Powell for NEWSWEEK

Shooting footie can be frustrating when all the action is at the other end. Nigeria kept the ball well down in the U.S. end and I just hung out and watched for most of the game. The last five minutes was a bit more action-packed and the teams both ended up absolutely exhausted from the effort in the hot, humid conditions.

Marvell Wynne of the U.S. defends. Photograph by Mike Powell for NEWSWEEK

Robbie Rogers of the U.S. and Victor Anichebe of Nigeria. Photograph by Mike Powell for NEWSWEEK

Wrestling Saved the Day

Mike Powell — Tue, 12 Aug 2008 13:35:22 GMT

Trying to step away from the crowd and shoot something different can hard some days. I felt I’ve shot my own pictures a few times this Games, Women’s beach volleyball and Women’s Gymnastics have produced a couple of frames that personified my ambitions to shoot action with atmosphere. Today I felt I got beaten into submission and fell back on my long lens sports shooting repertoire. I don’t think the pictures are horrible; I quite like them, only quite though. They just aren’t what I wanted to shoot. The wrestlers at the end of the day saved it for me, those guys are tough, I mean rocks.

The day started at the pool with several finals, one of which was Phelps going for another Gold (200m freestyle), which he did in a new world record. Only I think he’d used up all his emotions the night before and was keeping a lid on things so he could qualify a short time later in the butterfly. Which set the tone as other medalist kept it quiet. Session over the men’s team gymnastics was still on next door so popped in there for the last couple of rotations. After that I had planned on going over to the boxing again and trying for a ringside seat. Men’s bantamweight prelims, should be pretty quiet, nope all the pool shooters where there and as I explained yesterday, overhead boxing is one of my least favorite things to shoot. Although a friend of mine and very good boxing photographer, Al Bello, reminded me of a picture I took at the Seoul Olympics. Coming to Oscar De La Hoyas fight late I rushed into the stadium found the first photo spot in the stands I could find just in time to shoot a pic of Oscar on his knee praying and pointing skywards to a Stars and Stripes that was overhead. If I remember, he’d lost his mother not long before the Games. The picture told it all. So overhead boxing does work sometimes.

I had a bit of an Olympic moment on the bus back from wrestling today. Scored a great pin from a couple of Iranian journalists. They saw whom I worked for and where very keen to let me know that Iranian people love American people. We all agreed that people weren’t the problem, governments were.

The good thing about shooting the whole Games is if you don’t have a Gold medal performance one day you can come back the next and have a crack. Here’s to tomorrow, Gymnastics and Table Tennis. Good night.

Photograph by Mike Powell for NEWSWEEK

Beach to Boxing

Mike Powell — Mon, 11 Aug 2008 15:09:53 GMT

Photograph by Mike Powell for NEWSWEEK

I’m not one for walking around with ear buds plugged in my head all day, shutting the world off. But during the Games a little music helps things along and keeps you in a good mood. I go to my comfort foods at this time, flavours that have seen me through the last few Games. During the day Jamiroquai, I first heard him while in Nagano before the Winter Olympics and he saw me through some pretty awful weather standing on the side of mountains during delays. At night, during late night editing sessions, I go to Miles Davis. For some reason he helps me stay up at night, probably because 3am is only time you should be listening to jazz, it’s just the right time.

Photograph by Mike Powell for NEWSWEEK

I started the day at Beach Volleyball as sport that grew up on the beaches of my adopted Southern California and made it’s way to the big show. These athletes are remarkable to photograph, as close to the grace of dancers you’ll find in any sport that isn’t judged. The height they get out of sand is beyond my comprehension. You can tell from the pics that I am enamored by the serve and you’d be right. I’ve seen so many spike and block in your face shots that they all start looking the same. Not that I won’t shoot them but tonight this is where my head was. The serve shot of Ana Paula is my favorite shot of the Games so far.

Photograph by Mike Powell for NEWSWEEK

When I first got the Beach stadium it was grey and a bit drizzly. Not very inspiring. I quick look at the guide told me that boxing was pretty close and in session so I jumped a one-time shuttle that went there, handy. The stadium was the Worker’s Stadium and it lived up to its very old school PRC name, brilliant. Big star on the ceiling, quite imposing.

Photograph by Mike Powell for NEWSWEEK

My access only got me in the stands and there’s nothing I like less than shooting boxing on a long lens in a dark hall. I went for it and tried a couple of spots to shoot from with similar two-dimensional results. Tried sliding into the mixed zone on the floor to shot some portraits under the contrasty TV lights, no go. Even tried sitting in one of the many vacant seats that didn’t have “Photo position” stickers on them. No go. Not much fun until I ran into the photo chief for boxing and said that he might be able to help out on another day with a little ringside action. That would make another trip back to the Worker’s stadium a go.

Photograph by Mike Powell for NEWSWEEK

Funny thing happened on the way back to the Beach. I had to get a cab back over the Beach Volleyball, as they don’t usually connect the venues with shuttles. So off I head to the gate and get an uneasy feeling. This is the first time I’ll be going out of the so-called “Clean zone” since the Games have started. Inside the “Clean zone” I’ve been scanned and vetted. You might think I’m having a grand old time in China but really I could have been in any sports stadiums any old place. Just with lots of Chinese people. We’re very sanitized and isolated when we do this kind of work. Got to get out more!

Photograph by Mike Powell for NEWSWEEK

Dodging Storms in China

Mike Powell — Sun, 10 Aug 2008 16:17:33 GMT

Photograph by Mike Powell for NEWSWEEK

I’m writing the first half of today’s blog from the media bus going to tonight’s USA vs China basketball game. The skies have just opened up and the mother of all thunder and lighting storms has just hit. Glad I’m on the bus and not schlepping across the parking lots getting soaked!

Usually when there’s an event that is going to create this much interest they issue tickets for the photographers, so even if you have a pass you can’t get in without the ticket. This just ensures that there’s room for people to work. For some reason that escapes me, they didn’t do that for tonight’s game. One of the most long-awaited match ups of the Olympics??? Beats me. Now I’m sure there are a few campaigners that have been courtside jealously guarding their bit of hardwood floor since the wee hours of this morning. However I like to think I’ve matured beyond that kind of behavior but more likely I’d just rather shoot all day then go see what’s up.

Photograph by Mike Powell for NEWSWEEK

Photograph by Mike Powell for NEWSWEEK

Talking of which, I shot the women’s gymnastics qualifying rounds this morning and finally started feeling some love. I haven’t been overly stoked on most of my work so far, which happens to be an occupational hazard, but today I shot a couple of gymnastics shots that I liked. The tight shots of the Chinese girls on the uneven bars and the much wider shots of Nastia Liukin on the balance beam. It’s kind of an exercise in contrast. I’m rather partial to the Liukin shot. It’s the kind of image I’d hoped to be shooting here combining the atmosphere of the Games with world-class athleticism. Had I shot the beam tight you’d have never known how high she gets off the beam. It blew me away when I saw it on the back of the camera. We’ll see if I can do the same with basketball later.

Photograph by Mike Powell for NEWSWEEK

A quick note on speaking English and making the day a little easier. There is no shortage of volunteer helpers at these Games. Zero unemployment is a policy here. The thing that has blown me away is not only the big smile and help offered at every corner but the level of English spoken by everyone in an Olympic uniform. I only mention it today because I got a NeeHow (sp?) (hello in Chinese) today in the pressroom and it shocked me. Which gave me a little chuckle, we are in China after all…

So I‘m at the basketball and as I said it was first come first served on the seating. I’ve got a front row seat but here’s the killer, no leaving your spot or you lose it….not even a pee! So no dinner tonight and I better not drink anything. Before the USA vs China game is a Croatia vs Australia game. I doubt they’ve ever seen as many photographers. The half time entertainment is just like an NBA game.

Photograph by Mike Powell for NEWSWEEK

Probably been a tough night for China hero Yao Ming but he’s knows his teams chances and fought hard ‘till then end.

Photograph by Mike Powell for NEWSWEEK

Cycling at the Great Wall

Mike Powell — Sat, 09 Aug 2008 12:33:03 GMT

Photograph by Mike Powell for NEWSWEEK

Opening ceremonies puts me on my heels for the first couple of days. Lots of pressure and always a very late night. Last night was no different. I finished work at 3.30 am grabbed a quick beer and some food with Vincent then headed up to repack for today’s Men’s cycling road race. It was 4.30 am by the time I got my head down and of course after thinking I’d dodged the jet lag bullet here it came. I basically lay there awake until my alarm went off at 7.30am and headed down for some breakie and onto the first bus of the day.

We had not secured one of the limited places on the small buses that would stop at Tiananmen Square so I was planning on shoot the start getting on a bus and heading the finish. As it happened, about a third of the photographers that had won the position lottery for the buses didn’t show so I just slid on and went to work. That made life much easier for the day.

On the bus over I got to catch up with Graham Watson a fellow Brit, gent and excellent cycling photographer. In fact he pretty much set the bar for quality work in the genre. It’s always nice catching up with some friends that I really only see every few years.

I’ll admit I’m a bit of a cycling fan/geek and any time you get the list of competitors together of this caliber I get pretty excited. Unfortunately the last thing you get to do when covering the events is actually enjoy them.

I managed to get around to a couple of spots on course then decided to shoot about 150 down from the finish as opposed to right at the line where everyone else was. Well the sprint didn’t fully open up in front of me but they were pushing hard and I didn’t have to bang bars with everyone at the finish. Bonus!

Photograph by Mike Powell for NEWSWEEK