Jeff Cable Describes What it Takes to Keep Up with Insane Sochi Photo Deadlines

Want to know what it takes to photograph the Olympic Games these days? Well, according to Jeff Cable it takes the kind of speed that most photographers can only dream of, because when it comes to the Internet age, people want their photos and they want them NOW.

In a fascinating post on his blog, Cable explains just how much things have changed over the past few years and offers you his workflow as an example of how to keep up.

When I first shot the Olympics, my contract allowed me 12 hours to go through the photos and get them back to the team. When I photographed the Summer Olympics in London, my deadline was shortened to 2 hours…

Now, with the ever-increasing immediacy of the Internet age, they want me posting images at each break. So that means that, when the buzzer sounds at the end of the first period of hockey, I have 14 minutes to download my photos (I shoot full RAW), go through them, edit, resize them and upload to Team USA. And I need to do this so that I am ready to start shooting again at the start of the next period. No pressure!

Yeah, no pressure right? So how does Cable achieve these feats of inhuman speed? By using the best equipment around. Only the fastest memory cards, fastest card readers and fastest computers will do… because a few seconds slower might mean the difference between getting that crucial shot and missing it because you’re still getting ready for the period that just started.

Cable elaborates on exactly what equipment he uses and even breaks down his workflow point by point for you over on his blog, so don’t miss the opportunity to go and read that. And once you do, you’ll have to let us know what your answer is to his closing question… “Now, after reading that, how many of you still want to try this? :)”

Crazy fast deadlines and workflow [Jeff Cable Photography]

Image credits: Photographs by Jeff Cable and used with permission