As I have mentioned here, Xtreme Photo were asked by the Cocken Lodge Golf Club to photograph the first round of the Durham County Golf Partnership “Junior Golf Tour”. We were then invited along to photograph the rest of the tour…
The tour was organised by the Durham County Golf Partnership which is a joint venture between the Durham County Golf Union, the Durham Ladies County Golf Association, the North East / North West PGA, the Golf Foundation, the English Golf Union and the English Women’s Golf Association. It is aimed at young golfers between the ages of 5 and 11 and took place across four venues and five dates, during which time we took in excess of 1600 photographs of 57 kids.
I knew which photographs sold to the parents and children so for the first round of the tour I concentrated on capturing a photograph of every child on the first tee.
Tee Shot
These types of shots impressed people the most and I was glad to have been able to capture every child in a similar pose throughout the course of the tour. As the tour progressed though I wanted to capture shots around the course of chipping and putting – after all, it would be pretty boring for all to have 1600 photographs of children teeing off!
I ventured out onto the course with the first group and found positions that allowed me to capture the shots I required without having to move too far. That way I could be sure to capture a good variety of photos of every competitor. Yes, it would have been easier to have had two or three photographers covering the event, but the kids were under enough pressure playing in some tricky conditions. They became familiar with me and therefore relaxed at the site of the photographer. I don’t think that it would have been appropriate for them to have the pressure of photographers at every hole or during every swing.
Putting
Again, these shots proved popular with many parents purchasing three photographs of their child, one tee, one putting and a chipping or group photograph.
It was great to see the same faces turn up at the last game as had been there at the first. It took dedication on everyones part to play the 45 holes over the five weeks.
Whilst out on the course I also had time to capture the story of the tour. Yes, the prime concern was to take photographs that sell because we were attending for free so the on-site printing or on-line sales were a must, but we were also donating the images to the EGU and others involved in the partnership for use on their websites and in promotional material for next years tour. Here are some of those photographs, and a few of my favourites…
This photo really captured the spirit of the tour:
Pink Caddy
Everyone between the ages of 5-11 years was able to enter, boys and girls. Parents or grandparents were there to caddy!
A classic golf shot, with plenty of room for text. This could be used as a background for posters or web pages:
Tee Shot Promo
Background photo
The tour was blessed with sunshine for 42 of the 45 holes, for the last three though we weren’t so lucky as it rained VERY heavily! Thankfully the day was almost over as I wouldn’t have liked to have had a full days worth of photographs like this:
It wasn’t all easy going, strong winds proved tricky on the last day and of course there was the added hazards of water and sand:
In The Bunker
Another tricky bunker
Teamwork and concentration were all part of the game:
Teamwork
Concentration
