SeeClub Zuerich Rowing Photos

I’ve been spending some time lately photographing a group of competitive junior rowers who train on Lake Zuerich and on the Rhine river in Eglisau, Switzerland. It’s been a blast being out on the water with them. More than a decade ago I was in their shoes as a rower at Mt. Baker Junior crew in Seattle. The commitment and drive which are necessary to be successful in competitive rowing represent a serious physical and mental challenge.

My friend Daniel Protz, who competed as an Olympic rower with the U.S. National Team, is coaching the SeeClub Zuerich junior team and I really enjoy watching him instill a sense of intensity in his team. It’s somewhat fitting (if you know Dan) that he’s out there coaching with a recently sustained broken back. He’s a person who doesn’t seem to care much for obstacles.

I’ll continue photographing this project until I feel like I have a clear story line and solid group of photos for publication. It’s been fun to experiment and tune up my sports photography eye which feels out of practice entirely. On Friday I experimented with some off camera lights triggered by remote control to go for a look I’ve not yet seen in crew photography. This shot with the train in the background was made just as the boat was leaving my “lighting zone,” so the exposure is not as ideal as it was a few seconds earlier. But I find the train and sunset hard to pass up.