Insights from Eight-time Team USA Photographer Jeff Cable: What is it like to be a photographer at the Olympic Games?
July 18th, 2024
If you’re anything like me, you’ve wondered what it would be like to photograph teams of athletes at the Olympics. Every two years, for a little over two weeks, photographers and videographers from around the world converge and grant us a fascinating peek into the competitions.
Between his preparations and other ongoing photography projects, we caught up with Zenfolio Ambassador Jeff Cable, who is about to head to Paris for his eighth Olympic Games as an Official Team USA Photographer. Read on for an inside look at the preparation and experience of this amazing opportunity.
Preparing for the Olympics:
How far ahead do you start your preparations?
The accreditation process starts about two years before the Olympics commences. There is an application process that I am now used to. I usually hear back from the USOPC within six months of application. Once approved, there are many steps to ensure I am ready to head to Paris. I have contract negotiations with the team, housing requests, and other logistical details.
What goes into your preparations for photographing the Olympics?
Like the athletes I have to prepare mentally and physically. I walk 7 to 10 miles every day to stay in shape. There is a lot of moving around at the Olympics! I also have to mentally prepare for the stress and long hours and days ahead.
When do you find out what events you’ll cover, and how does your assignment shape your planning and preparation?
For the Summer Olympics, I am always shooting for USA Water Polo as my primary sport, so I have their schedule in my calendar months before I leave for the Olympics. For all the other sports I cover at the Games, it may be an hour-by-hour decision depending on travel time and other obligations. I like to cover as many sports as possible, but sometimes, the travel time prohibits me from photographing everything I want.
What kind of gear do you pack?
I usually pack three bags. One large suitcase for clothing (much more for the Winter Olympics), and two bags for camera gear. I have one Think Tank roller and one Think Tank backpack filled with gear. I typically take three Canon camera bodies, a whole assortment of Canon lenses, lots of ProGrade Digital memory cards, a MacBook Pro, Monopods, Crucial Portable SSDs, a DataColor calibrator, a Wacom tablet and many other accessories. I was given the opportunity to shoot with the new Canon R1 and R5II cameras before they were announced, and can not wait to put the Canon R1 to use in Paris.
Tell us more about your Sponsors.
I am lucky to have many sponsors. The two biggest are Canon (which helps with cameras and lenses) and Apple (which provides me with Mac equipment). ProGrade Digital will be providing me with many memory cards. Crucial has provided a bunch of the new x10 portable SSDs. CameraBits has given me additional licenses of Photo Mechanic for each of my Macs. Tiffen has gotten me UV filters for all my lenses. And, of course, Zenfolio helps me show off all my images on my website!
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During the Olympics:
Describe a day in the life of an Olympic photographer and some of the challenges.
Being an Olympic photographer is both exhilarating and exhausting at the same time. I know that I am lucky to be there (for my 8th Olympics) and that countless people would kill to take my spot. But the pace and the pressure to deliver images within a 15-minute deadline is not for the faint of heart. A typical day goes from 9 am to 2 am with almost no downtime. I want to shoot a ton, but I also try to blog at least once a day. That takes a lot of time!
What is it like behind the scenes in the media/photographer spaces?
When we photograph the Olympics, there is a ton of politics involved. There are very specific rules, shooting locations, time constraints, and logistical limitations that challenge us every day. Most of us all get along really well, and help each other out, but there are times when the competitive nature of the event can get to us.
This will be your eighth Olympics. What are some of your favorite memories/moments from the past?
Every Olympics has its highlights and lowlights, and I really don’t think of any one memory as better than others. I take each Olympics as a “once-in-a-lifetime opportunity” and am just happy to be there. I am looking forward to the Olympics without COVID restrictions once again. This will be the first time since the 2018 Winter Olympics in Korea that we will (hopefully) be back to normal.
What is something you hope to capture this year?
I am really hoping to capture some cool images during the Opening Ceremony. For the first time, it will not be in a stadium. Instead they will be floating the teams down the Seine River on barges. (Read Jeff’s blog about this here.) I know that the shooting locations are going to be VERY restricted, but I am hoping for something really unique. I also want to capture some sporting images with classic Paris locations in the background.
How do you organize all the images you take?
I use Photo Mechanic to cull through the images from each event, and I do this immediately after I am done shooting. I then retouch those in Adobe Photoshop and deliver them to Team USA.
I try to go through all the images at the end of every day and eliminate the duplicates and rejects so I have only the “good stuff” on my Mac. Then, I back up onto the Crucial x10 SSDs in numerous locations. Once all that is done, I upload to my Zenfolio page and write a blog post. Some days, I capture 8,000 images or more, so keeping up with this organization is imperative.
Ready for an insider look at the Paris Olympic Games?
For a behind the scenes look and amazing images of the Summer 2024 Olympic Games in Paris this July 26 to August 11, follow Jeff’s blog, Instagram, and online portfolio website. We’re excited to be sharing some of our favorite images from Jeff’s captures on our Instagram feed, too!
