Camera Operator - Live TV, Sports, Events (Studio & OB)
A 4:15am alarm was set for a 7:30am call at Luton Town for their relegation battle against promotion chasing Leeds United.
Being based in the East Midlands, I am lucky in that most jobs are reachable within 2.5 hours (ish) so I am often booked for southern games for Sky, as well as other closer matches. Nottingham Forest is my closest Premier League team, which is 40 minutes door-to-door. I was lucky enough to do a Sky game at Mansfield Town last year, which is a 4 minute drive!
I've worked on the football for the past 3 seasons now and started off with 5 games in my first, 30 games last and more than 30 this one (so far).
I started off by doing camera 50 (Sky's technical camera), which is used for post-match analysis, then the high behind camera (as it sounds, it's behind the goal from some kind of lofty vantage point), to doing an 18-yard camera, which is a wide(ish) shot and used for VAR offside decisions. Both the high behind and 18-yard camera are sometimes cut live - often for the build up for a corner, or a free-kick outside the box. They give the viewers a sense of geography, formation, tactics etc. More recently I have done camera 7, which is Sky's main interview camera - I will come to this in a minute. Camera 7 is positioned pitch side on the 6 yard line and is responsible for replay coverage when the ball is In play, and relevant close ups when the ball is dead. It is often used for goal kicks, keeper head-to-toe in shot. It is, also, the main interview camera. At Luton v Leeds, this was no different.
I arrived at 7:15, nice and early and caught up with my colleagues. The nature of sport OBs is that, generally, you don't work with the same crew each week, so it's always good to catch up with people I haven't seen for a few weeks. The topic of conversation usually revolves around what we've been up to.
As this was a 12:30 kick off (live on Sky), the cameras were rigged the day before. FACS was at 7:45 and is the time where we have to talk to the director to check that we have tally, programme sound and a return, as well as any specific instructions. It was big news that the Leeds keeper had been dropped, so it was instructed for one of the reverse cameras to try and find him on the bench. As with all TV, there's a story to be told. This, as well as Luton struggling and Leeds gunning for promotion, was the story of the day.
I spoke with the director and then had 2 further drops (camera positions, for those not familiar with OBs). Drop 1 was the superflash (a quick interview with a player/s straight after the final whistle on the pitch). I buzzed through to the vision engineers to ask them to repatch. As the lens on my camera was a Canon CJ25 for the match, I was given a HJ14 lens for the superflash. This is one of the widest lenses available and enables the operator to fit multiple people in shot at close range. Lens swapped, position checked, it was then time for drop 2 - the tunnel for teams out. The tunnel at Luton is long and narrow and it was my job to stand in there and get the players coming down, which then cuts to the steadicam on the pitch to bring them out. Drop 2 FACS'd, it was then drop 3 - interview room. This is where I get an interview with both managers pre and post-match. Drop 3 FACS'd, it was then time for breakfast. The club provided sausage, eggs, bacon, beans, hash browns, tea, coffee etc.
Breakfast done and a quick check with the floor manager to see what time I am needed for the interviews and all the other bits and bobs.
11:15 - the Leeds team arrives and a quick interview (3 questions) with one of their players (decided that this was to be done in the tunnel with a GV of the something interesting in the background. I decided it was looking down the tunnel with a Luton logo, to give us some geography.
11:30 - interview with the Leeds manager for the world
11:35 - interview with the Luton manager (this was to be a live insert into Sky's football programme, down the line to their studio in Osterley.
11:40 - interview with the Luton manager for the world and then repatch for the tunnel.
12:15 - be ready in the tunnel for internal teams out
12:25 - teams out and repatch for match position kick off.
As soon as I had finished in the tunnel, it's my responsibility to get to my match position before kick-off, so it's all a bit hectic.
1:15 - half time and a chance to collect my thoughts, have a drink, and take my jumper off as I am officially boiling
1:30 - 2nd half kicks off
2:15 - it's 1-1, a very tight game, and so the director informs me to stay in position until the end, just in case there's a Luton winner - Luton are attacking the end I am at.
The match ends 1-1, so it's time to to buzz through to vision, get my camera repatched to superflash, swap lenses and then get on the pitch for the interview. I had 2 riggers helping me with my trailing cable, making sure the Leeds players didn't trip on it as the made their way off the pitch. 2 other people brought a stand up Sky background onto the pitch and then the Floor Manager corralled 2 Luton players for the interview. I was with a reporter and sound engineer, who plugged the mic into the back of my camera. It was hard to hear anything as 10,000 people chanted something derogatory towards me and my employer, so I was led by the reporter and his mic, offering a single on each player where I thought appropriate.
Flash interview done, it was time to repatch to drop 3 - interview room - for both managers to give their thoughts on the game. Daniel Farke was buoyant, despite dropping 2 points and allowing Burnley to go top. Matt Bloomfield, Luton's manager was also in an upbeat mood, shaking everyone's hand as he left, including mine. The football fraternity, really are friendly, smiles and waves all round.
Cleared by the director, it was then time to pack up and head back to the truck with my kit. The rule of thumb is generally we're on the road 3 hours after kick off. Sure enough, it was 3:30pm and we were clear, truck packed up by the camera crew. A 2 hour drive back home meant that it was a 13 hour round trip.
I'm doing it all again this weekend, and I wouldn't have it any other way.
