Shooting pre-season team camps is fun! There's a sense of excitement in the air as teams look forward to the new season, all the equipment is shiny and new and incoming riders to a team start to build bonds with their new teammates. They can also be a hectic affair, cramming a week's worth of shooting into a couple of days, whilst working around a teams busy training schedule and other sponsor commitments. One of the essential parts of the shoot are the portraits for that cycling tradition of rider cards. The A5 postcards that riders will sign for fans around the paddock at races throughout the season.
With usually around 15 riders to shoot in a couple of hours it's almost like a conveyor belt of riders coming through the makeshift studio in a hotel room or foyer with a few minutes with each to capture a picture they'll been looking at all season long. Some riders love having their picture taken and for some that couldn't be further from the truth.
Over the years Emma has become one of my favourite to shoot. She knows what she likes and what she doesn't and after just a few test shots really warms up to the process where we can capture something that reflects her personality.
Below is a few frames from her shoot at the Bigla-Katusha team camp in 2020 just a few weeks before the season came crashing down due to the Covid-19 pandemic.
