Canon Professional Network - Bill Frakes: Olympian Ideal

Bill Frakes is a World Press Gold Medal winner and one of the mainstays of Sports Illustrated’s formidable team of staff photographers. John McDermott asks him about his life and work.

Why do you think you developed into ‘a visual person’?

I grew up in a small town in western Nebraska. It’s beautiful country, but it is a beauty you have to learn to extract. The land is open and quiet; you have a lot of time to think without distraction. My mother, who is a wonderful teacher and an excellent artist, worked with me constantly, explaining shapes, shadows, textures, color and how they all interact.
Growing up where and when I did, there was a complete absence of fear. As a result my heart and mind are open. Being able to fall in love constantly with the landscape is a very valuable thing for a photographer.

University of Nebraska soccer team honor a teammate who was killed by a random gunshot. She wore Number 3.

You were a business and law student. How did you make the transition into photojournalism?

To me they go hand in hand. It’s all intellectual communication, bringing information to someone to explain your point of view. It’s about shaping your presentation to bring into sharp relief the information you want to convey to someone else for their edification, be it in visual or verbal form.

What influence have your family and childhood had on you?

My wife Paige’s outlook on life plays a huge role in how I relate to things. She is a very calming, zen-like influence.
My parents had the biggest influence on me. My mother taught me art, my work ethic and, possibly most importantly, how to get the most out of any situation. My father taught me how to laugh, to enjoy irony and to appreciate history and other cultures. Helen Swanson, my third grade teacher, shaped the way I look at books.

Any special mentors who've influenced you?

Cornelius Keyes, my professor at Arizona State University, made me understand quality control. He drove us hard. But when I was finished with his classes I knew what needed to be done, and realised that I should never be satisfied with any effort.
Gary Mason, my professor at the University of Kansas, showed me how to use emotion to communicate. A very gentle sou,l he encouraged me to try to use my work to evoke positive change and to make people smile with my images.

Joe Elbert, now the assistant managing editor for photography at the Washington Post, was my editor at the Miami Herald. He taught me how to think less literally. He made it really fun. And emphasised that this is not a job, it’s a life. He has always been on the cutting edge and a leader in the medium.

Gene Miller and Edwin Pope. Great writers who gave generously of their time and knowledge to mould me into a responsible journalist and not just an image maker.

Eddie Storin. assistant managing editor for sports at the Miami Herald. He too taught me to be a journalist, to see the bigger picture and to never let up, to always try to tell the story with my photographs, and not to simply go for the ‘best’ image.

Heinz Kluetmeier. One of the legendary sports photographers. Heinz took me under his wing and explained technique, gave me opportunities, and showed me how things work on the international stage.

Steve Fine. My editor at Sports Illustrated who gives me the support and freedom to do the work I want to do. His knowledge of sports is encyclopedic and proves constantly useful.

Miami Heat's Eddie Jones jumping over the first row of fans chasing a loose ball.

Today you are one of the top sports photographers in the world, doing award-winning work for magazines and advertisers. But before that you were a staff photographer for a big daily newspaper, the Miami Herald, where you won many important national honours. How important was that experience in your development?

It was extremely important. Working closely with such a talented staff of not only photographers, but also great writers and editors, led me to think differently, more seriously. When you are a photojournalist you have to be creative on demand, not just when the muse strikes, but also when what you are covering happens. And you seldom have any control over that.

My time at the Herald taught me to think about the story and about what is important to show the readers, not just what looks good. But you always hope you can marry the two.

I have been lucky to work on three publications: the Herald, Sports Illustrated and, briefly, the Topeka Capital Journal when I was in my last semester at the University of Kansas. Each staff was loaded with talent. Each brought me into contact with terrific editors. Each has been instrumental in my development. The same thing was true in school. I had great teachers and terrific classmates. Being around all of these talented folks is a constant education.

How did you get started at Sports Illustrated?

It was pretty simple really, Heinz Kluetmeier, who was director of photography at the time, noticed my work at the Miami Herald and called me to start shooting freelance assignments. Eventually he offered me a contract to shoot regularly for the magazine. Current director of photography Steve Fine brought me on to the staff.

Churchill Downs - eventual winner Barbaro ridden by Edgar Prado, blue cap, surges to the front as the pack passes the twin spires during the Kentucky Derby.

Why do you think you gravitated toward sports? Do you have a favourite sport?

It’s not so much about sports for me as about having a chance to photograph a different aspect of life. It’s motion and emotion. People are attracted to sports and motivated by them, and I have things I want to say. It’s a great audience for me.

As far as having a favorite sport, I love track and field - athletics as the rest of the world calls it. It’s competition in its purest form. I also like the fact that that men and women enjoy an equal stage - in most sports that’s not the case.

Every sport has different visual possibilities and each time the game is played unique things happen. And while each sport has its moments and attractions, on the first Saturday in May, Churchill Downs in Louisville, Kentucky, is the only place in the world I want to be, shooting the Kentucky Derby.

Ski jumping at the 1994 Winter Olympics in Lillehammer, Norway.

As well known as you are for your work at the Olympics, you are perhaps even more renowned for your creative use of multiple remote camera setups at major events. Tell us how that developed for you and where you think it might go in the future.

I’m very technical and I enjoy planning and preparation. Pre-visualisation is fun for me. All of these things come into play when doing multiple remote camera work. Doing remotes the way I do them simply requires a lot of work. It also demands a desire and a commitment to excellence that goes beyond simple seeing. You have to think things through well in advance.

The planning for the Marion Jones image taken with a strip camera at the Sydney Olympics, to cite one particularly successful example, started almost two years before.

It’s a long story, but it illustrates my point on different levels. My friend David Callow volunteered to be my assistant at the Sydney Olympics. He is one of the best sports photographers in Australia and certainly could have got an assignment to photograph the games on his own. In fact, he had just covered the games in Atlanta. But he knew that the two of us working together could have a lot of fun and do some special things. So he asked me if I wanted his help.

I couldn’t find a strip camera that I liked. I told David what I wanted to do and asked him if he thought he could design one. He didn’t hesitate. I told him I’d find a way to pay for the camera. That started us down the path. He had a lot of ideas, and I had a few. By the time we got to Sydney we had working prototypes of the camera.

The next step involved getting the camera in the position we wanted. Joe Traver, in charge of photo operations, made some suggestions. Paul Matthews, the photo manager for track and field stepped up and helped some more, facilitating the exact placement we needed for the camera.

Marion Jones (right), USA wins the 100m gold medal at the Sydney Olympics.

Then we ran into an obstacle we didn’t anticipate: the television rail camera that ran alongside the runners. It obscured our view. So we had to find the guy running it, explain what we were trying to do, and ask for his help. The camera operator, himself a top visual professional, looked at what we were doing, and figured out a way to help us while still doing exactly what he needed to do for his audience.

We didn’t know what would happen in the race, only that whatever happened it would be hopefully one of the most memorable images of the games. And we knew we needed to cover it as thoroughly and imaginatively as possible.

We got the strip camera in place early. We ran tests. We thought about what we needed to change and how to do that. I also put 27 other cameras in various spots at the finish line. The whole setup took about 12 hours. We placed cameras high, low, tight, wide and medium, and of course we blanketed the finish. I didn’t want to leave anything to chance.

When we had everything in place I took my spot head on in Marion’s lane, tracking her with a 400mm f/2.8 as she approached the finish line. Complicating this process was the need to also cover a dozen other races that night.

When it came time for the women’s 100m, Marion ran away from the field. The cameras all delivered images that were ultimately considered for publication, but the strip camera was the one. Nobody else had anything like it. And that’s what I wanted, and I wasn’t going to stop pushing until I had it.

I have a couple of new things in the works. Using technology to make the same images over and over again is a waste. Curiosity, disobedience and pride require that the envelope be pushed.

Travelling’s more challenging than it has ever been and I’ve heard people say that you might be the biggest individual owner of Canon equipment anywhere. In any case, there’s no question that you work, and therefore travel, with a lot of gear. Can you talk about how you deal with it? Any tips?

Owner? Probably not. User? Maybe. As a staff photographer the magazine supplies me with some of the gear I use, while some of it I own. In any case, many of the assignments I do involve the use of multiple remote cameras. That means moving a lot of cameras, lenses and support equipment.

Traveling with gear presents the same issues for everyone - mine are just amplified. In today’s environment you have to be prepared to have every single piece of equipment you used inspected every time you travel. That means packing and shipping the gear in simple, strong, well-padded and easy-to-operate cases.

You have to plan each journey. What needs to be at the shooting destination and when does it need to be with you? What’s the minimum amount of gear you need to be able to function if everything else gets lost? When you know the answer to that question you know what you have to have as carry-on baggage. Or if that’s simply not possible, what has to be shipped and how far in advance that you can confirm its arrival at your destination with enough time to ship again? Or do you try to rent at the location if the first shipment is lost or detained?

Tennessee Titans’ Justin McCareins gets sandwiched on a hit by Mike Caldwell and Jarrod Cooper of Carolina Panthers.

For example, for an American football game I try to take a backpack or roller case on board the aircraft that contains a laptop, three bodies, cards, a wide angle, an EF400mm f/2.8L IS USM lens, an extender, batteries and a monopod. I use more than that normally to properly cover a game, but if my checked baggage doesn’t make it, I can still get the job done.

That leads to another question: as busy as you are and working the way that you do, you are producing a tremendous volume of images. How do you edit and keep track of everything and make sure that your images are secure?

Every image I take is downloaded to a computer. Then I burn multiple DVDs, each image ends up on at least three different DVDs. One copy goes to the end user; the other two copies are filed in separate locations.

Then I edit the take. I use Apple’s Aperture for that. I keyword, caption and do minor corrections in that program.

Next I move my loose selects either to a hard drive array or an x-serve, x-raid, depending on the images.

Finally, I edit the loose selects down to the critical images. These are uploaded to Photoshelter, an online archiving service providing additional redundant backup in different locations. Photoshelter also powers my website.

If you’re doing the math you can see that what I consider my best images are stored in multiple locations and the best of them are online for easy retrieval no matter where I am in the world.

You were an established professional well before digital photography became, first, an option and, later on, the primary way most of us now work. How was the transition for you? Easy? Were you an early or a late adopter? If it has made you a better photographer can you describe how?

Digital and film both have advantages. You need to consider what you want to achieve and select the proper tool and the proper palette.

I was both an early and a late adopter of digital. I first used a digital camera in 1988 at the Kentucky Derby, so I think that puts me in the early group. Then I kept track of developments in digital photography and did a lot of tests through the years. But the quality wasn’t sufficient for me to switch to digital for daily work until 2002. So in that sense I guess I was a late convert.

The first couple of months of using digital cameras for the bulk of my work were difficult. Making the images wasn’t a problem; handling them post-shoot was the issue. And it still is really.

I shoot a lot of images. That takes a certain amount of computer power to process the work. And a lot of storage space, both on DVD and hard drive.

Film? I think that in incredible, glowing, brilliant light it still has an advantage. In bad light the pendulum swings completely in the opposite direction. Digital allows me to make good images in available light where it was just not possible to do so on film. It’s a texture thing as well - a certain tactile sensation. Having both available is perfect.

Being able to preview is very useful and dangerous at the same time. Knowing what you have can allow the freedom to move on, or can give you the conceit of thinking you have what you need so you move on too soon. With film you couldn’t afford to quit but with digital you do.

Valley City, OH hosts an annual frog jumping contest. Spawned by Mark Twain's Celebrated Jumping Frog of Calaveras County the contest attracts 400-500 contestants annually.

What’s the best assignment you’ve ever had?

I've had some incredible opportunities to see the world, meet wonderful people and witness history up close. I've literally had the best seat in the house for the past 25 years.

It's impossible to pick one best assignment. While covering sports I’ve been to both summer and winter Olympic Games, the Super Bowl, Wimbledon, the Tour de France, the Little League baseball World Series, the Final Four (college basketball), Cheyenne Frontier Days, the Indianapolis 500, Aussie Rules football and Rugby Union grand finals, six-man American football in Nebraska and done portrait sessions with the best athletes in the world. I've been all over the world covering various types of news and features - everything from presidential campaigns to riots, famine, war and natural disasters.

This is the world's greatest vicarious profession. I get to be whomever I want to be for as long as I need to be. The access is incredible. And I get to watch and record it all. I am able to share my vision and others’ lives with millions of people. What could be better than that?

Baseball legend Ted Williams poses with Boston Red Sox cap and bat.

I especially love photographing my wife, Paige. If I was restricted to making photographs of just one subject, it would be her.

The best thing I do with a camera is make images of people for them. If you have skills you should use them to make people happy.

What’s an assignment you haven’t done yet but would most like to, a dream job, if you will?

I'd like to do a significant campaign in support of cancer research, pro bono. There's great work being done all around and I’d like to bring the full force of my creative abilities to help increase awareness.

As a commission, I would like to spend a year photographing sports at a grass roots level. Kids, amateurs, people playing the games simply for the love of it. Sports as life, and life as sports.

Women's rugby with a difference.

Is there one lens you love more than any other?

The EF85mm f/1.2L USM is a wonderful lens. I love working with it. But the two lenses I depend on most are the EF16-35mm f/2.8L USM and the EF400mm f/2.8L IS USM.

Most photographers have a collection of photo books. Yours is said to be exceptional. Tell us about some of your favourite photo books.

I have somewhere in the neighborhood of 1,200 books. It’s tough to pick a single favorite or even a top ten.

Minimata by W Eugene Smith is a treasure. Jean Loup Seiff’s The Time Shall Pass Like Rain, and Rare Creatures by Howard Shatz are two I love to look at over and over. I have to mention Jim Nachtwey's epic work Inferno.

How have these or other photographers influenced you?

The first photography book I spent time with was by W Eugene Smith. I checked it out of the public library when I was 16. What good fortune! Possibly the greatest photojournalist ever and that was my introduction to the industry. What an intellect! He was a huge a force in terms of technique, style, composition and content.

I’ve learned from all at Sports Illustrated - each one has tremendous gifts. But Walter and Heinz are two I’ve admired since I was very young.

I started subscribing to Sports Illustrated when I was seven and though I didn’t know it at the time, my vision of sports was formed through the lens of Walter Looss. His look defined the style that is Sports Illustrated. I also give huge credit to Neil Leifer, Mark Kaufman, and John Zimmerman.

Heinz brought technique, innovation and drive. He is extremely generous with his time and knowledge. He has spent hours working through problems with me. His production abilities are fantastic. He does more things well than anyone else working in sport. It’s pretty cool to have one of your heroes as a close friend.

I don’t know that I learned a lot from Jean Loup Seiff, but his work has given me countless hours of pleasure.

I devote a lot of time to looking at other photographers’ work. I always have. It’s one of the bonuses of having your vocation and hobby being the same. The list of photographers influencing me changes daily. There is a lot of good work being done and I’m always looking.

I spend a lot of time talking to Todd Korol, who works in Calgary in Canada, about images. We trade web links and keep on top of what’s going on out there. Having that exchange of information and enthusiasm may be my most valuable photographic influence. It’s the same with Ted Kirk.

Jason Burfield, a computer expert, worked with me as an assistant for years. We stay in close touch. His views on photography and technology are enlightening and fun.

I get a lot from the kids as well. There are some very good younger photographers that are expanding the limits of seeing and being. Trent Parke, Melissa Lyttle, Matt Mallams and Peter Yang are all people to keep your eye on.

Firefighter Derrick Lopez had more than just a game on his mind while playing stickball in Spanish Harlem on the first anniversary of the World Trade Center disaster.

You’ve done some wonderful work shooting in Cuba. What was it like to work there?

I‘ve lived much of my adult life in Miami. The geo-political influence of the Cuban revolution on the Caribbean basin is impossible to ignore no matter what your take on it is, especially if you live in Miami.

Many of my closest friends are Cuban-Americans. I’ve spent thousands of hours listening to them talk about Cuba so I needed to see and experience it for myself. I’ve been to Cuba on assignment a number of times. The Cuban people are wonderful. The light is fantastic. It is truly a photographer’s paradise.

Have you had any profoundly life-changing experiences you’d care to talk about?

It sounds like a cliché but when my daughter was born everything changed. She makes everything wonderful. I think I see things differently now as well. I know I am more fun when she is around.
Marrying Paige was the best thing that I have ever done. It is such a treat to watch her with our daughter, Havana. She brings love and balance to my world.

If you weren’t a photographer what would you want you be?

A blues musician, but only if I could be a really good one.

You’re also known as someone who contributes a lot to your profession by speaking and teaching. Can you talk about the importance of those things to you?

Now more than ever it is important for photojournalists to bring the world’s events to the population in a pure, honest and open way and to foster communication and understanding.

Technology has made it easier to properly expose photographs, but it cannot help photographers to expose what is in their hearts, eyes, minds and souls.

I teach because I enjoy photography and photographers. I want to give something back, and I want to help others learn to bring the world home to those who can’t go and witness it for themselves, but who need desperately to understand and be able to relate to what’s there.

If you could have the design engineers at Canon build something just for you what would it be?

I would like to be able to tightly control the latitude of the image. Having the ability to reach deep into shadows to pull out detail is great in many instances, but it also creates problems. Average exposures often lead to average images. You have to be able to go for it and sometimes digital provides too much information and detail. Using strobes to capture high action can be a real problem in arenas where you have no control over ambient light or background.
I want to be able to go into a menu and dial up or down the amount of latitude I want.

You now work in both journalism and advertising. Do you work in a similar way in both fields or are there differences?

Often advertisers want me to create something that looks editorial, something very real and totally believable. Because I do so much editorial work I’m very aware of the little things that bring a sense of realism to the production. Clients trust my knowledge of the subject matter and rely on me to cast and produce shots that look natural and perfectly real, images that are credible and believable.

When I am doing advertising I have total control over the image. With editorial subject matter I only have control over my cameras, everything else depends on what's happening in front of me. Those things being said I can often increase my chances by creative use of remotes that provide different perspective and also backup.

A final word?

Lately I’ve been reading a lot of post on various message boards about the state of still photography, particularly in journalistic applications - people rushing to defend it, seers hurrying to predict its demise.

It's a lovely way to communicate and it’s a true, universal language, understood by everyone, everywhere. I've directed music videos, written stories to accompany my images, produced multi-media slide shows incorporating music and natural sound along with still images and I enjoy doing them all. Each has its strengths, but for me, the still photograph still speaks with the most clarity and longevity. It just does.