Geoff Dale
America's Cup
In 2021 I took on an assignment that was different to anything I had ever done before. Using a 110-year-old camera – an Auto Graflex Revolving Back 4” x 5”- to photpogrtaph the breakneck America’s Cup action on the Waitemata Harbour in Auckland, New Zealand.
I was inspired by a guy called Joshua Paul, who has been photographing Formula One cars with a Graflex camera.
The speeds of the foiling mono-hulls posed a challenge for the antique technology of the Graflex system. My four decades as a press photographer paid off with careful planning of each shot, I offset the disadvantages of operating heavy equipment and the slow process of changing film to achieve success.
With the Graflex I had just one exposure to tell the best story every time the boats came past, whereas the guys alongside me were shooting 20 frames a second.
