As the Championships’ photographic manager, Bob Martin appreciates the finer details of the images which every day capture the essence of Wimbledon. In this series celebrating the best of the AELTC’s talent behind the lens, he nominates his Picture of the Day.
DUSTIN BROWN – FRAMED BY HIS DREADLOCKS
Some images require a lot of forethought and a calculated approach; others are the result of being ready in position and primed to capture a moment instinctively. On July 2, 2015, Dustin Brown, the German of Jamaican origin, stunned the tennis world by beating Rafael Nadal over four sets in the second round on Centre Court at Wimbledon. Brown is popular to photograph because of the eye-catching dreadlocks he has not cut since 1996 and which he ties back casually with a shoelace; but this picture taken by Eddie Keogh captures more than a player's trademark look. “People like taking photographs of Brown because his dreadlocks, backlit, make a beautiful picture,” he says. “You can hear the shutters going as soon as his hair starts flying and you imagine a lot of pictures going straight on to Instagram. But this was different.”
He’s such a lovely, bubbly personality and I think this sums up his charisma as a competitor
The opportunity came at an important stage of the match as Eddie recalls. “I was behind Brown and looking at the back of his head from a higher level - on Platform B, a unique position we have just beneath the Royal Box to one side, which allows you to shoot down the court. I knew the point was a significant one for Brown to win, and when he won it, he spun around on the spot to celebrate. As he did so, his hair made this beautiful shape all over his face. As soon as I took that picture, I knew it was a nice one. He’s such a lovely, bubbly personality and I think this sums up his charisma as a competitor. He stands out for being a bit unorthodox, a bit wild, and I think you can see that in this picture.”
In nominating this image as one he considers iconic to Wimbledon, Bob Martin comments: “As a photographer looking at someone else’s picture, what I find cool about this is to see just how brave Eddie has been to shoot so boldly to frame Dustin Brown’s head with his dreadlocks. The mottled crowd makes a good soft background to highlight the strength of emotion and visual drama.”
Technical info: This image was shot on an EOS 1DX, at a shutter speed of 1/1250th of a second with an F4 aperture using a 200-400 lens set at 200mm and a sensitivity setting of 1250 ASA.
