The Story of Schoonerfest 2014

I love boats, specifically, older sail boats and tall ships.  I can only attribute this fascination with them from growing up in waterfront Salem and hanging out in the Marine Hall at the Peabody Essex Museum in my youth, because we never owned a boat and nobody in our family ever had one.  Well, my uncle Arthur had one, but I only remember ever playing in it with all the cousins at the holidays as it was drydocked in his driveway over winter.  Growing up, I even marched in a drum and bugle corps based in Salem that was named after the flagship of Governor Winthrop’s fleet, the Arbella.  We had nautically themed uniforms, our logo was a tall ship, and the sound of our color guard’s flags crackling in the breeze sounded just like a sail.  I love that sound, even today.   Now, I can watch Horatio Hornblower over and over without getting board (really, who couldn’t, thanks to Ioan Gruffudd.  Am I right, ladies?), and on a beautiful day, there is really only one place I ever want to be, and that is at the waterfront, or the beach, and wish I didn’t have to work so much so I could do that more! 

So having said that, I am enormously jealous of my friend and famous maritime photographer Leighton O’Connor, who has merged his passion for yachting and his talents as a photographer into his core business.  Yesterday he took 15 photographers on a photo safari to shoot the main event of Gloucester Schoonerfest 2014, the Mayor’s Cup Race, and I was extremely grateful to be invited to go.  Because I shoot primarily in the studio or events, I don’t really have the lenses to capture sporting events, but I try not to get discouraged, because every story has a different perspective.  Lens selection really sets the stage, doesn’t it.  I was not ever going to be able the more ‘intimate’ stories of the day, so I had to stand back and think of the bigger story.  When you look at Leighton’s images taken with his trusty 100-400mm lens and his keen eye, he was really able to capture the story of the teamwork and excitement of the crew, the details of the boats themselves, stolen moments of a crew member sitting in the bowsprit net tending to a sail… they’re awesome!  Have a look! http://www.leightonphoto.com/Live/SchoonerFest/

Thanks for a magical day Leighton!

Here are a few of mine, more coming.  As you can see, not so intimate, but they do tell the story of an awesome day!