End it has...

... and I have taken a couple of days to adjust back to a more normal routine, let the event sink in, and to process the remaining shots I took whilst there.

Firstly, thanks to Wibmbledon Blogger, without whom this blog wouldn't happen at all. Nor would it be anywhere as interesting or informative. Erudition, wit, know your collective place at the point of his nib! Or should that be fingers, as I doubt he wrote his posts longhand...

This year at Wimbledon has been as enjoyable as any other. Hard work, for sure, but good to do nevertheless. Due to the generosity and skills of my good friend e0e I have been able to take advantage of some borrowed time and get out to photograph the goings on. So, a heartfelt thanks to him too, as without the personal photo aspect this event might well lose a little of its lustre to me.

Andy, with whom I have worked for the whole time I have been at IBM, deserves more than just a mention. He has been a good friend and mentor, and always manages to get the best out of me regardless of the situation. His knowledge and abilities are fundamental to the continued success of the project, imho. And my career.

Hmm, where's Kanye West when you need him?! Sufficed to say, the team that I work with here are exceptional, and that is one of the critical factors in making the twenty one long days at the Championships good ones. Sometimes I feel extremely lucky to do the job I do.

And thank you to you, whomever you are, for reading :)

A few photos to post. Some from the doubles match between Kournikova/Hingis and Austin/Rinaldi-Stunkel, played out in the fading light of Saturday evening on Court 18. Much has been made of the return of Kournikova and Hingis, though personally I didn't get the fuss. Years ago, and if I could find the file I would post it, I took a shot of Kournikova on Court 18, whilst perilously balanced on a wall and clinging to the ply screen with one arm whilst a security guard tugged at one of my feet imploring me in hushed tones to get down. Kournikova stared into the lens, I hit the shutter release, and within an hour (things were a little slower back then), the photo was on the official website, the first image taken with a digital camera to be used so.

This time round my vantage point was secure, and I could stay there unchallenged. Kournikova played with the strength and skill of a blade of grass. Hingis was more convincing, striking the ball with an enthusiasm and power her partner so obviously lacked. The photos I took are ordinary... though I will note that the last shot in the set has a strange secondary light source. I can only think it is from a TV light, or at a stretch reflected light from a window underneath my spot on the roof. Anyway, the light could only have been on very briefly, so, strange that I caught one shot (in a burst of three)...



























The remaining photos I shot on the last morning of the event. The water feature finally gave up its bright logo in the early sunlight. I toured the southside courts with Andy, grabbing a couple of seat shots on Court 2, the columns of the new Court 3, sundries... and then it was back to work. The final push, in every sense...


















I have learnt a lot again. There are things I can improve on as regards the photos; better observation of horizontals, faster anticipation, settings settings settings, processing of the images... the list goes on. Still, I hope you have enjoyed the imagery, nay, this blog!

And now I am home. Sitting here wondering if it all happened. The courts are silent again. The memories of the tournament are already smudging into an amorphous purple and soft-focused blob, juggernaut Wimbledon disappearing into the distance, and though I have not grown any fonder of the actual game of tennis, I can already feel the rhythmic rally of longing for next year's event.

I hope I am there...

Stroll on

So. It ends.

On the BBC, Sue Barker's final piece to camera as she reviewed the last two weeks, was a simple "I'm missing it already". Then the credits rolled to the sound of Frank Sinatra singing Too Marvellous for Words over a montage of memorable images from this year's event.

I, too, have had my own, personal soundtrack to this year's Championships - the aptly named Demon Days. It's been on an almost continuous loop and has accompanied me through each and every journey to and from the AELTC. And some of those journeys were in excess of three hours each way, as there were precious few direct trains to Wimbledon. Instead, the connecting services would take me to exotic places like Woking and Surbiton. And, I think, Narnia and quite possibly the Lost City of Atlantis.

So, as I look back on the last two weeks of the whole Wimbledon experience, I think the enduring image will be the commute to and from the grounds. That's rather tragic, isn't it? It could have been the magic of being at the centre of such a global event...or rubbing shoulders with the rich and famous...it might, just might, have been the tennis. But the commute? Some might read that and argue that I didn't deserve a shiny piece of laminate that entitled me to by-pass the queues and saunter in through the gates each morning.

But - and here's the thing - everything went well. Really well. My role during Wimbledon fortnight was to ensure the internal coverage was just right for IBM.

And IBM made sure that was an easy job.

Now in its 21st year, the IBM/AELTC (mixed doubles?) match is well established. The service provided is without equal and has been faultless this year. The IBM SEER smartphone app has taken the world by storm - the first augmented reality application that actually delivers real-time results.

I will write one final post in a few days, to include some of the more unusual statistics for this year (ie number of strawberries eaten and amount of Pimms quaffed), but for now, some thanks where thanks are due.

Firstly, to gypsum. Yet again, the quality of his prose is matched only by the quality of his photos (he's getting quite good at this photo malarky, isn't he?). And please remember - this blog and all the work he puts into it, is in addition to the work he gets paid to do - and which in itself sees him busy until midnight most nights.

I have to also thank 2-D, Noodle, Murdoc and Russel for keeping me sane on long journeys in over-crowded and over-heated trains. Thanks also to SJ, Chris and Jo, for understanding that working at (and commuting to) Wimbledon leads to a disjointed family life, at least for a couple of weeks.

Finally, thanks have to be given to the IBM Team who have done what they do so well...yet again.

And in doing so, made my first Championship a stroll in the park.

Photos from No.1 Court...

... not exactly hot off the press, but as I said in my earlier post, things have been pretty hectic. We have just finished doing the main photos for the official site, and there is now a lull which I am going to try and fill with posting some of the photos I took yesterday. I may well get interrupted...














































































It was a fantastic experience photographing the match between Kristyna Pliskova and Yulia Putintseva. As I took up my position in the photographers' pit I wondered briefly why all the other snappers were wearing hats. Five minutes later I felt like I had been on slow roast for several hours, and then I understood the importance of a hat! Nevertheless I survived, even during the scrum that was the cup shoot. Great fun to do.

I will post more photos from yesterday either later tonight, or tomorrow. Now though, a Thai meal beckons, celebration for the team reaching the end of another momentous tournament!