The SCC 7s, Sports Photography and a lens decision
[This blog provides a BTS look at shooting the SCC 7s, and my own thoughts and experiences. If you just want to see the shots from the 7s, please click here to see my new sports photography portfolio.]
A recent photo of me playing. As the only photographer in the team, me playing has normally meant that there is nobody to shoot the match. I was fortunate that some of the volunteer photographers from the SCC 7s came down, and took this great shot of me in action. Photo credit: Adrian Chew @chewandchew.
While I’ve been a photographer for more than a decade, I’ve been playing rugby since I was about 5 or 6. It’s a sport that my family was very much involved with, and something I continue to love and play competitively to this day. Probably because I’ve always been involved in playing, photographing rugby was never something I really had the chance to do, or at least not while I was growing up. It was only when I joined the Singapore Cricket Club (SCC) Rugby Section, where my team needed a photographer, that I started trying my hand at it, taking photos in matches I was not involved in. While I’m still very much a novice at sports photography, I’ve tried to apply what I know from other genres, and have been lucky to have a constant stream of matches to shoot through my club.
Shot from the National Gallery across the road, I really enjoyed shooting from the high vantage point, and picking out shots from up here - definitely a point of difference for next year, and something to consider.
While I shot the SCC 7s last year in 2022, this time around I was the official photographer for the event, which meant that I had both the privilege and responsibility of capturing the action on and off the field. Because I was getting paid, I knew the stakes were much higher. I was also in charge of 50 or so volunteer photographers, mostly enthusiasts from within the sports photography community, which meant that I knew there would be plenty of photos of the rugby itself. I ended up spending a lot of time shooting the behind-the-scenes action, scampering around the tournament grounds, trying to capture a more holistic view of the tournament. With that being said, I was ultimately there to shoot the rugby, and so when I had pockets of time, I would plop myself next to the tryline to shoot a match or two.
Early morning golden hour bathes the the posts and the National Gallery behind. I really like the geometric nature of the shot, with the lines (mostly) straight.
View from the “Eagles Nest”, the control centre for the tournament. Not a view that most spectators (or photographers) would be able to get, I wanted to make sure that the people working BTS were also credited.
I think that over the course of a rugby tournament, one eventually gets a feel of the tournament and the main narratives, which makes it easier to think about how to approach two full days of non-stop action. Some of these are quite obvious - Who will win the cup? How will the SCC team do? Some on the other hand, are more personal, like the performance of the SG Development and HK China Dragons teams (basically the SG and HK national teams). Besides knowing some of the boys on both teams, that match between the two felt like a clash between my past (HK) and my present (SG). In the past I would have definitely wanted Hong Kong to win, but now I’m not so sure. In the end it was a cracking match, ultimately only being decided in extra-time.
From enemies on the field…
To mates off it.
[Fair warning: please skip to the next section if you’re not familiar with camera gear.] One of my secondary objectives this tournament was to test the Fujifilm 100-400mm lens, and to see whether it was worth that extra size, weight and bulk over the 70-300mm. It’s been a decision I’ve been mulling over for a long time, and getting my hands on a 100-400mm for the first time revealed a lot, but arguably raised even more questions. Regarding the lens itself, in short, I am very impressed. While the AF system is not perfect (as much as I love my Fujifilm cameras, they are admittedly not optimised for sports photography), I found my success rate to be fairly high, and the image quality to be outstanding, even at 400mm. Having used the 70-300mm last year, which felt not terrible but not super impressive either, I think if my only goal was the best sports photography lens, the 100-400mm would be a no-brainer. Few considerations though. First is that I have upgraded camera bodies since then, so it’s hard to determine what performance difference was attributable to the different lenses vs the improved performance of the X-T5 vs the older X-T3. Moreover, there is a question of whether the 70-300mm is good enough - the 100-400mm weighs more than twice as much and occupies significantly more space in my camera bag. Bringing that lens around is a major commitment, rather than just something I can integrate into my existing set-up. Lastly, since sports photography is only a part of my photography repertoire, and I spend a lot of time travelling and hiking where every gram counts, I started seriously weighing up the merits of the 70-300mm. In the end though, I ended up getting the 100-400mm. Yes it feels and weighs like a brick, but I know that I’m getting a solid piece of glass which I forsee myself using for years to come. Okay enough camera talk, back to the rugby.
One part of my job (yes, there were many parts) was to cover the youth rugby matches in the morning, before the mens’s tournament. I must say I enjoyed doing that more than i expected, in spite of the early starts. Even though the game is a little more chaotic to photograph, with 14 kids all honeypotting around the ball, there is a level of expressiveness and emotion which just comes out, making for great and dramatic photos. On a more personal note, it was just great to see so many kids out at the Padang, whether as players, ball boys and girls, or just out there with their families. I’d argue that rugby has a bit of a reputation as a dying sport in Singapore, so it was lovely to see so many kids out there, hopefully inspired to one day come and play at the SCC 7s themselves.
Palymara, the finalists from last year, were disappointingly knocked out of the cup quarter finals, but were still able to pick up the plate.
In rugby sevens, there are different trophies/competitions on day 2, depending on where you finish in the group stages, giving everyone something to play for. This gives many of the “smaller” teams something to play for, and a way for them to finish their tournaments off on a high. I was thus asked to help take photos of the prize presentations for the various winners . As important as these photos are, I’ll admit they aren’t my favourite to take. I find the most interesting photos and the ones with the most character are the unscripted ones - the ones you don’t necessarily anticipate, but the ones which you just know will be essential to the story. After the cup final, where Daveta beat Lloyd McDermott Rugby 36-17, they all embraced each other in a circle, before getting onto one knee to pray. For many of the boys from both teams, this was their first time out of their home country, and so they felt incredibly privileged to have been able to come to Singapore to play rugby. All through the weekend, the Daveta boys had played with massive smiles on their faces, soaking up and enjoying every moment of the experience with their mates. More than winning or losing, no matter at what level, that is the essence of rugby.
One of the Lloyd McDermott players graciously signing the a ball after their final against Daveta.
For someone with limited experience shooting sports photography, I am proud of my work. Despite the long hours and the scorching heat, I think I produced a series of action shots that I’m proud of, but also was able to tell the story of the event pretty well. I’m proud enough of my work that I’m willing to launch an entirely new portfolio, dedicated to sports and rugby photography. I’m sure I will be involved with photography at the SCC 7s for many years to come, and I’m very much looking forward to it. In the meantime, with the rugby season starting, I sense I will be in front of the camera more than behind it. Even still, I hope to continue to cover matches I’m not playing in, and to continue to improve.
Until next year.
