Q&A with Freelance Sports Photojournalist Tim Clayton
October 06, 2021
Image Credit: Tim Clayton
Tim Clayton is a multi-award winning sports photographer and photojournalist who found his calling at an early age. His career took off quickly and he's never looked back, every day appreciating the fact his passion aligns with his work.
Tim has lived in five countries and has attended nearly all of the world's major sporting events, including the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games held this year. His passion for the sports he covers and his knowledge of each one is evident in his work. Tim's images are a testament to this because they give the viewer a unique glimpse into a sport like no other. Often quirky and artistic, his photos are timed with delicate perfection and precision, capturing a snapshot of the unseen elements of a sport.
His photography style is influenced by Eamonn McCabe and Chris Smith, who both produced their own sports photography books. Tim worshipped these books and studied the images within, bringing forth his creative ambition and drive.
Today, Tim has published two books of his own work and has surely inspired many budding sports photographers that, in turn, will become leaders in the field.
Tim is going to share more about what drives his passion, where his journey began, his ambitions for the future, and the art of capturing the perfect sporting moment on camera. Read on for more.
Image Credit: Tim Clayton
Firstly, to set the scene for readers we should start by asking, what led you down the career path of sports photography and photojournalism?
I started when I was 16. After leaving school I managed to get a job in the darkroom of the Yorkshire Evening Post in Leeds mixing the chemicals and the coffee. I soon became hooked and very quickly realised I wanted to be a sports photographer. It was a lucky break for me, my parents had died when I was young and my dad was a sports journalist. It just so happened the job interviewer worked with my dad, and he took pity on me and gave me the job. I remember my first wage was £22.47 (GBP) a week.
Image Credit: Tim Clayton
It's impressive that you found your true calling at such an early age. Who were your first photographic influences and how did you develop your photographic style?
I consider myself extremely lucky to have found my way into photography as I did. Call it luck, the photo gods, the spirits of my family, I don't know, but I was very fortunate. The amazing thing was, I knew within such a short period of time, days even, that it was my calling. I think everyone is blessed with a skill at something they love and I think I am very fortunate to have found mine.
Once I started developing an interest and a skill at sports photography my first major influences were Eamonn McCabe and Chris Smith. Both were incredible sports photographers and worked for British Sunday broadsheets: McCabe worked for the Observer and Chris Smith for the Sunday Times. I would wake up early every Sunday morning and rush out and buy both papers to drool over the images they had published that day. I would hero worship their work. Both produced books which I bought and studied like they were the sports photographers bible, to me they were.
McCabe was my favourite at the time but Chris Smith was much more the artistic photographer of the two and as my work developed I discovered I was more influenced by Chris Smith. I can definitely see his influence in my work. Funnily enough, I have lived in five different countries now and each time I have managed to rebuy both books.
Image Credit: Tim Clayton
You obviously have a passion for sports. When you have some of the best seats in the world, how do you manage to stay focused on the photography element of sports you are passionate about?
I do love it with a passion, in many ways it is pure escapism, nothing else matters when you are in the zone of shooting. I sometimes find I become very emotional when shooting and tears have rolled down my face many times when I have witnessed great sporting moments and achievements by many athletes. The adrenalin of the sporting occasion helps you to stay focused. The biggest problem you have is 'chimping': looking at the back of your camera at the wrong moment or editing on the computer while an event is in progress, causing you to miss a moment.
At the recent Olympic Games in Tokyo I made a conscious effort to shoot more and edit less and I feel my strategy proved to be a good one as upon reflection I felt I had a very good shoot and wasn't cursing myself as often as I normally do.
Image Credit: Time Clayton
The empty stands in your images definitely highlight how unique the Olympic Games in 2021 were compared to previous years. Are there any career goals you still wish to achieve or sporting events you would love to cover that you haven't already?
I think I am now much more appreciative of being at any event and am now able to enjoy the moments we are privileged to witness and capture as a sports photographer. The Tokyo games, on reflection, as hard as it was to firstly get there, and then function, were brilliant despite everything. I would want to continue shooting the Olympics as long as I can, it's the greatest show on earth! Now Australia has the games again in 2032 I now have another goal to aim for, photo gods willing!
One event I haven't covered yet which I think about every year is the Tour de France and at some point I can see myself sitting in a French field or by the roadside in a French village as the peloton breezes past in a few seconds before enjoying the delights of French wine and cheese for a few hours. It's a nice thought!
Image Credit: Tim Clayton
That does sound great! Like a professional athlete, what do you do to help stay calm under the most intense moments?
I think as you become more experienced at shooting big events you tend to slip into a 'zone' of concentration where everything appears to slow down, you react quicker and are completely aware of what is going on at any given moment. Sometimes it takes a while to get in that zone, but when you do it feels like you are not going to miss an image.
I am also a big fan of the Louis Pasteur quote "Chance favours the prepared mind" - by preparing yourself with knowledge of whom and what you are shooting you can definitely increase the chances of chance helping you along the way.
Image Credit: Tim Clayton
We have seen that your main camera for sports is the 1DX II along with a range of Canon L glass. Is there a lens you particularly enjoy shooting with that might not be considered a typical sporting lens? And do you think you might make the jump to mirrorless in the near future?
Unfortunately, freelancers like myself were hit hard by the pandemic and I was exceptionally fortunate to have Getty Images representing my work. They still managed to make some really good monthly sales which kept us afloat. I have colleagues who rely more on shifts/assignments than owning the copyright of their images and having an agency represent their work. They were hit particularly hard and received absolutely no help from the government in some countries.
I had put aside funds to upgrade my camera but the pandemic made me cautious so I held back in purchasing the Canon 1DX MK III. This seems to have worked in my favour as colleagues I know who used the new Canon R3 at the Olympics are simply raving about it! I am still asking various colleagues for opinions but at the moment it looks like I am leaning towards a Canon R3 towards the end of the year.
As far as lenses go I am not a fan of zooms. They are of inferior quality, give you more to think about and I have feet. I have three amazing lenses which I love. My favourite is a 25-year-old Canon 200mm F1.8. It is razor pin sharp, can still outshoot a modern canon lens and wide open produces a beautiful mottled background which you just don't get with the 'jam jar' 70-200mm zoom. The 135mm F2 is light and excellent and the Canon 85mm F1.4 is incredible. I understand the news value of zooms, but really, if you are spending 6000-10000 Dollars/Euros/Pounds on a new body, why would you want to fit a jam jar zoom in front of it when you have these brilliant fast sharp lenses available? I also use a 500mm F4 as my long piece of glass which was modified by an 'old time' lens expert in Montpellier in France so I simply shoot wide open at F4 with the aperture basically disconnected. It now holds focus brilliantly and is sharp and fast.
I am really looking forward to trying the new lens range on the mirrorless cameras, but really I am extremely happy with my lenses.
Image Credit: Tim Clayton
Do you have any other tips about your preparation for an event and what’s your advice to someone starting out in sports photography on how to achieve better results?
It is probably obvious but first and foremost you have to know the sport you are shooting. I remember one of my early assignments for the Sydney Morning Herald was shooting the Australian Baseball League. I had never shot baseball in my life and I think it took me a whole season to learn how to shoot the game.
If you have a blinkered view of just following one or two sports you are doomed. You have to love sport, every sport, understand the sport, and then and only then can you begin to prepare and anticipate the moments that will produce great pictures in each and every sport, whether action or artistic. Really, that is the ultimate beauty of being a sports photographer who loves sport!
Image Credit: Tim Clayton
A massive thanks to Tim Clayton for taking the time to give us that brilliant insight and share his story. To check out more of Tim’s brilliant work, head to these pages: