Tiger Woods Goes Off on Photographer

[daverhaas]

I missed the coverage of the tournament this past weekend where Tiger's swing

was disrupted by a photographer shooting during the back swing, but have been

following the ensuing media spin...

 

As a golfer and a photographer - I can kind of see both trains of thought - That

the pro golfer should be able to block out the noise of a DSLR or at a minimum

expect that someone would take a photo during their swing. And that of Tiger

saying that the photographer should know better than to shoot during the swing...

 

My favorite was that a caller to a local radio show suggested that the

photographer could flip a switch or a setting on the camera to silence both the

mirror and the shutter.

 

 

My questions are

 

1. Was it a pro photographer or someone in the gallery with a DSLR?

 

2. Was the photographer that close to the area where Tiger was playing or were

they a fair distance away with a long lens?

 

3. Has anyone on this forum experienced a similar situation?

 

I'm debating going to a couple of the PGA events that we are hosting this summer

and am looking for any input on this.

 

Dave

[evan_goulet]

<a href="http://youtube.com/watch?v=9p-gg1o0GGg"> Here's</a> the footage. It must have been pretty apparent because you hear the marshals yell.<P>When it is dead quiet on the tee during a pro-golfers swing, that DSLR shutter must be like a car crash in terms of noise. Particularly if it is on burst mode. I have seen the photogs pretty close to the tee, right behind the golfer teeing off. With Tiger's popularity, he has to deal with it more than most. How many times have we seen him stop and back off the ball on the tee because of similar incidents. I am surprised he has waited this long to react. <P>I always thought it was common courtesy among photographers to wait until impact or just after to pull the trigger. Maybe it was an itchy trigger finger?<P>As for if it was an amateur... it pretty much had to be a pro photographer as spectators are not allowed to have cameras after the practice rounds.

[ronald_moravec1]

Leica Camera is the key.

 

There were soundproof enclosures called blimps for noisy cameras at one time. I have not seen them in years in use or for sale but they were for use in quiet places like courtrooms and movie sets.

 

The guy should have have had his body and camera forcebly ejected. The gallery is supposed to be quiet for a reason.

[dave_hoffmann]

When you get credentials for a golf tournament, rules are given that each photographer signs. One of them is to not shoot during the backswing. All photographers know to wait until the ball is impacted.

[kevin_b5]

Dave is right. If I recall, not only do the rules clearly state there is no shooting during a backswing, but photographers are not to use lenses under 300mm. The public is not allowed cameras at all and I've seen them confiscated at past events.

 

Its not easy getting credentials either. Often times, freelancers aren't allowed... you must be shooting for a publication of some sort. My guess is this photogs name will now be placed on a black list and his days of shooting PGA events are over.

[ellis_vener_photography]

Jacobson Instruments Soundblimps for SLR type cameras are are still made and sold.

[ron_laxton]

Yeah rules are rules, but Tiger blaming the photog for him being so off on his swing? Spare me. It wasn't like the ball moved. I love watching Tiger play, but this is ridiculous. And yes, I golf. Reminds me of the idiot golfer who killed the hawk in Florida because it screeched while he was taping a TV show. Prima donna.

[2yellowdogs]

Sorry, Ron, couldn't disagree more. In addition to photography, I've been a golfer for 25

years. This is serious business. Maybe no one has ever been rude enough to talk in the

middle of your swing, but it's happened to me and it's disruptive.

 

That's no big deal when you're playing with your buddies on the weekend for a buck a

hole. When you're playing for hundreds of thousands of dollars, it will tend to pi$$ you off

pretty badly. Tiger's reaction on the YouTube clip that Evan attached was pretty mild. He

didn't walk over to the offender and yell at him. He just looked angry that someone could

have been so stupid. Can't blame him at all. If I'd been the marshall on that tee, I would

have either confiscated the camera (to be returned when the shooter left the course) or

ejected him.

[daverhaas]

Thanks for the link. I checked out the video several times but could not hear whatever it was that he heard... but I could clearly hear birds chirping. It seems somewhat unusual that we would not be able to hear the camera on the audio... although the announcer clearly heard it too.

 

I did catch the announcer saying that there were a lot of of photographers there and that some of them weren't the "regulars" which to me may mean that they did give a pass to a freelancer a pass.

 

I'm somewhat surprised (maybe not though) that the photographer hasn't turned up on ESPN or the web yet telling their side of the story. If it was an accident or if the photographer was just caught up in the moment of seeing Tiger... Which again makes me believe that it wasn't one of the regular tour photographers.

 

Clearly the photographer violated the terms of their pass, and you're probably right...they won't be allowed on at a PGA tourney anytime soon. My guess is that Tiger will also be a bit lighter in the pocket book by the time this is all done.

 

By the way, as a golfer... A constant noise such as cars going by, planes flying overhead, etc... doesn't cause the same amount of twitch as an unexpected one (such as a camera firing).

 

Dave

[mark newcombe www.mcnphoto]

I've been looking but can't find the switch, must be a canon thing. I play hockey so golf just ruins a walk in my books.

[dave_hoffmann]

>> I did catch the announcer saying that there were a lot of of photographers there and that some of them weren't the "regulars" which to me may mean that they did give a pass to a freelancer a pass.

 

I heard that too, and thought it was a lame statement. Every tournament is in a different city. The local newspapers have their photographers covering the action as well. There are hundreds of credentialed photographers out on the course -- most of which are NOT regulars. Announcers probably pay very little attention to the lowly photographers anyway. So I'd be surprised if they knew who the regulars were.

 

@Ron Laxton: I also disagree with your statement. Before each player shoots, marshalls hold up signs and everyone is stone quiet. Any noise that occurs during a backswing can really screw up your swing. Cellphones are to be turned off, or sometimes not allowed on the course at all -- you should see how the crowd and players come down on someone who not only brings one in, but starts to ring during play.

[craig_shearman1]

Sorry I can't agree with the majority but I think golfers come across as prima donnas on this issue. I understand the principle of a disruption at a critical moment. But is the crowd required to go stone cold when a basketball player makes a free throw? When a pitcher winds up or a batter swings? When the quarterback is about to throw a pass? Hundreds of thousands of dollars can be riding on each of these moments also. If a car going by or a bird chirping is acceptable, what's so different about a camera? If the issue is an unexpected sound, then it's just a matter of what is common practice -- if the golfer routinely heard the brip-brip-brip of a hundred shutters on ever backswing, then it would blend into the background with everything else. What really ticks me off are athletes, actors, musicians, etc., who beg for publicity and their picture in the paper while they're on their way up, but once they become a celebrity think they have the right to start being offended by the presence of the very same reporters and photographers they were so glad to make use of along the way. (As you might guess, I spent 15 years as a reporter/editor/photographer.)

[dave_hoffmann]

>> Sorry I can't agree with the majority but I think golfers come across as prima donnas on this issue. I understand the principle of a disruption at a critical moment. But is the crowd required to go stone cold when a basketball player makes a free throw? When a pitcher winds up or a batter swings? When the quarterback is about to throw a pass? Hundreds of thousands of dollars can be riding on each of these moments also.

 

This may not be the answer, but, the quiet sports (golf, tennis and bowling) if you notice are where an individual enters a tournament on their own (as long as they have their PGA card, etc) or are invited. They are not part of a team that each player has a salary, which can grow based on how good the team is and how large of a crowd they bring in. These tournaments have prize money, and it is awarded to how well they do. A football player is getting paid whether they win or not. Not so with these "quiet" sports. These "prima donnas" as you call them PAY to enter these tournaments. Pay for their transportation to/from events, pay their caddies, etc. Other team sports, it's the owner of the team that pays all these other expenses.

 

The PGA or LPGA and the like allows spectators to watch these events, and can dicate whatever rules they want. So, this may shed some light on to why some sports allow yelling/screaming and some do not.

[ron_laxton]

All well and good. The worst part of this story hasn't been told here. It was Tiger's comments on the next hole about (paraphrased here, don't go flaming for accuracy)"the next guy who shoots during my effn back swing will get his effn neck broken" And didn't Tiger's caddy toss a camera in a water hazard a few years ago? If Tiger were smart, he'd pay someone to stand behind him at the driving range and fire burst after burst while Tiger hits balls off the tee. Next time it wouldn't disturb him so badly. Good thing it wasn't a woman with allergies sneezing. No telling what he'd do for that.

[ron_laxton]

From the sportshooters web site:

 

http://www.sportsshooter.com/message_display.html?tid=28817 And you can get the link to Tiger's outburst about breaking necks.

[joshua_croft]

I can defiantly see where tiger is coming from here. This does come up at least a few times a year with tiger alone, and a few times each tournament. I watch as much golf as I can when its broadcast, and its not at all uncommon for a shutter to go off at the wrong time. I can recall at least a few other times when tiger has gone off on people for the same thing. Can you really blame his reaction to something that has been an ongoing problem? Especially during the biggest tournament of the year, and one as prestigious as the masters?

In addition, as a golfer, I can attest to the fact that it is a sport that takes extreme concentration. Attempting to make perfect contact with a 4 inch wide club, on a two inch ball, at 120 miles an hour, where a single millimeter could be the difference between a perfect drive, and a lost ball....is extremely hard. Even though it was unprofessional and bad form, I probably would have reacted the in the same way, even if I wasn't playing for golf's greatest title.

[stwrtertbsratbs5]

Craig - you clearly know absolutely nothing about golf. But that doesn't stop you from having an opinion.