Of my many obsessions, one that has been around longer than I have been a photographer is racing, and more specifically, Formula 1. One can argue that I became a photographer so that I could take pictures of nice cars and save the $20 of having to buy a poster of said car. The aspiration to be a racing driver existed many years before I ever picked up a camera, as I raced shifter karts with hopes that I possessed a talent that made me .05 seconds quicker than anyone else on the track. However, I was fortunate to realize that I did not have what it takes, and by fortunate I mean that I was able to realize that racing should be a hobby rather than a loss leading profession. With that, I sold my shifter kart in order to buy my first digital camera.
The departure from racing to photography did little to hinder my passion for it, and my love for Formula 1 has grown to a hysterical level at times. Many have asked if there is any celebrity that I would have a hard time photographing because of starstruckness and there is only one…. Michael Schumacher.
So with all this said, this is a great weekend for race fans, for it is the Monaco Grand Prix. For me, that means waking up at 3am every morning to watch the qualifying and racing live while dressed in all red and screaming for Ferrari like they could hear me over in Europe. Do I think it’s crazy? No, I know it’s crazy. But this is passion, it’s fanaticism, it’s the reason I work my ass off on set to capture as strong of an image as possible of the athletes I photograph. Because somewhere out there a kid envy’s that player, and when he or she sees the ad I created, it drives emotion, excitement and an enthusiasm in them that makes them remember the shot.
So to the others waking up early to watch, well done, and to their wives having to endure such lunacy, I apologize.
Drive safe and Sempre Ferrari!!!!!