On a distant reef 16,000km from Paris, surfer Gabriel Medina has given Olympic viewers one of the most memorable images of the Games yet, with an airborne celebration so well poised it looked too good to be true.
The Brazilian took off a thundering wave at Teahupo’o in Tahiti on Monday, emerging from a barrelling section before soaring into the air and appearing to settle on a Pacific cloud, pointing to the sky with biblical serenity, his movements mirrored precisely by his surfboard.
It’s like Ansel Adams being this iconic photographer. Right place, right time, nothing special.
It sounds like you just don’t understand how hard photography was in the 1920s. Cameras were heavy, even the film was heavy. Carrying it all the way there is already an accomplishment. Plus, the film plates were glass and could break on the way back, ruining a photo.
He only had like 50 shots on a trip. He spent days or weeks setting up the exact timing and location for a specific shot. You have to get it right the first time and you can’t see the end result until you develop the picture. It’s like saying, “Anyone can shoot a basketball. LeBron James isn’t anything special.” Technically true, but obviously meaningless.
I understand Yosemite. The subject was beautiful. Given the opportunity, so many others could easily have filled an Adams void.