Four days from now is the running of the 35th annual Grandma’s Marathon, and I’ve been preparing for it.
“You’re going to run a marathon?!”
Hell no! Bleeding nipples and uncontrollably emptying my bowels into my pants due to sheer exhaustion is not my idea of fun or pleasure. However, watching a few thousand people run these risks while a New York City-ish density of people cheers them on sure as hell gets my street photography blood pumping.
This year I’m setting myself a special marathon goal — to successfully complete a marathon of medium format film consumption. One day. One 26.2 mile footrace. One Camera. 26 (or more) rolls of 220 sized film exposed.
Should be a blast. I am anticipating spending eight or more hours on my feet shooting. I can’t wait to see the face of whoever is working at my local lab come Monday when I walk in and drop a freezer bag full of exposed film for them to process. They always seem to be a little shocked if I bring three or four in at a time.
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Got any pictures to show from this?
26 rolls of 220 is a lot. I will be impressed if you pull it off. No pressure. Don’t rush shots. Let them come to you.
When in doubt turn around and shoot what’s immediately behind.
My event photography motto for years has been “Look where all the cameras are pointed, and the walk in the opposite direction to find the true soul of it.” So I got that part down.
I just shot a 5k and did three rolls over the course of 90 minutes playing a bit more conservative than normal. Definitely going to have to quicken the pace to make 26. Although I refuse to just start firing away uncontrollably. It’ll be fun, even if I don’t make it.
Nice Eddy. I’d totally use my 4×5 if I weren’t wanting to do color. $$$. I did do about 18 sheets of black & white with my 4×5 the last time I shot this race in 2008.
My record for marathon pictures is 50 sheets of 4×5 at the boston marathon, I borrowed a couple peoples holders, had a friend to swap shot holders for fresh, dressed up in a trenchcoat with fedora rocking a crown graphic with a big norman flash gun. I jumped the fence at the finish line and evaded securtiy guards for a good hour and a half, I told everybody I was a photographer for the daily planet.