I'm Shooting The 2014 Austin X Games!!

A little over a month ago I saw the Austin X Games announcement and music lineup, and thought it would be an amazing event to shoot. Extreme sports, e-sports, and a ridiculous music lineup - it was a no-brainer. Being the X Games, I was 99% sure there was no way that I would get approved. This is basically just one step down from the Olympics! My outlet, SensibleReason.com, applied for three total press passes - one for myself and two for the other photographers on the team. ESPN emailed us directly asking about our publication, our current X Games coverage, and our planned coverage. We responded with an in-depth email linking to our preview coverage, and explained our plans for more coverage leading up to the event. Fast forward to yesterday, and I receive the following email from ESPN:

Greetings,

Your application for press credentials to cover X Games Austin 2014 has been approved for the events held June 5-8, 2014 in Austin, Tx. Your credential approval will permit you to cover events at the Circuit of the Americas and downtown venue. 

As we get closer to the event, you will receive a detailed e-mail that will include information on when and where to pick up credentials, media center hours and more. Please be sure to look out for this e-mail, as it will be very important for you to follow these guidelines with an increase in security and restrictions. 

Thank you and we look forwarding to seeing you at X Games Austin 2014!

I honestly think my heart stopped for a good 30 seconds while I processed what I just read. I quickly messaged the other two photographers letting them know, and they of course were equally excited. We didn't just get approved, we all three got approved with media passes, which means we will be able to provide way better coverage since we can spread out (the games are huge this year!).

So now the question is this - how do we provide the best possible coverage? Check my gear list and rough plan below for the answer!

STEP 1 - GEAR

Having the right gear is essential, especially at a massive multi-day event like this. Extra batteries, plenty of memory cards, zoom lenses the size of continents, a comfy backpack - all of these are necessary in getting the 'perfect shot' at an event like this. Your lens selection also plays a huge role - it determines not only the type of shots you're able to get, but also how heavy your backpack is for the long, 12+ hour days. Here's a photo of the gear I plan to bring (mostly the same gear I used for shooting Ultimate Music Experience this past March).

(click to enlarge)

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Gear List
- Brand new Canon 70D (I have been absolutely loving this thing so far)
- Canon 60D (girlfriend's)
- GoPro Hero3 Black (using this only for photos since video is strictly prohibited this year)
- Canon 430 EX II Flash
- Yongnuo 565 EX Flash
- Canon 70-200 f2.8 II IS (renting this lens again...it's amazing!)
- Canon 24-105L f4
- Canon 85mm f1.8 (love this lens)
- Tamron 17-50mm f2.8 (this is my go to lens for concerts and events)
- Tokina 11-16mm f2.8 (awesome wide angle lens, great in low light, focuses quickly)
- 2x Yongnuo wireless flash triggers (you never know when you might need to use a flash wirelessly!)

- 64gb of SD storage (1x 32gb, 2x 16gb)
- ThinkTank Memory Card Wallet (between the two of us we have almost filled this thing up already...)
- InFocus camera strap (this allows the camera to stay by your side, as opposed to in front of you)
- XShot extendable pole (I will be using this with the GoPro)
- Shutter release cord (for long exposures, using camera on a monopod held up, etc.)
- Ear plugs (absolutely necessary)
- Mini portable memory card reader (for dumping pics once I get back to my laptop)
- Extra batteries (we have 6 total batteries, and 2 chargers, and an inverter so we can charge in the car as a last resort)

- Lowpro Flipside AW 400 backpack (this is truly the ultimate festival backpack - super comfy, incredibly sturdy, holds everything I need, and best of all it opens from the side facing your back, so all your gear is safe throughout the day)

STEP 2 - HAVE A PLAN

The X Games this year are absolutely massive. Spanning 4 days, at multiple different venues, with hundreds of athletes, tons of big music acts, local bands, e-sports, etc...this is going to be a busy event. I'm confident that our three photographers will provide ample coverage though, mainly because we will have a plan! To better understand the scale, first check out the full schedule, and then the map below:

There's a lot going!

This year the games are hosted at Circuit Of The Americas

As of now, our rough plan is to all spread out and cover the action and music during the day. Although everything is relatively close, we still don't want to be walking across the entire venue without a clear plan. This year the games and music directly overlap, so we will have to have photographers at each event/venue. Also, the e-sport category (competitive gaming/MLG) is being heavily focused on, and will need direct coverage as well. With three photographers we can focus two people on the sports, and one on the music. At night once the sports are over, and the main music acts are playing (Flaming Lips, Kanye, Pretty Lights), we will all three be shooting the music. One thing I'm excited about is having 4 days to shoot and get everything figured out. The first day can basically be warm up and getting our bearings, and (hopefully) we will have stuff figured out by the time we set foot on the track on day 2. As the event gets closer we will definitely get a plan on paper, and an actual printed schedule using the awesome X Games Schedule Builder on their website (this is incredibly useful). We are also considering bringing walkie-talkies since cellphones are practically worthless in crowded areas like this.

Anyways, I wanted to give you all a small peak into the planning and prep that goes into shooting an event this size! Some people might think it all just comes together magically, but in reality we have been putting time into this for almost two months now. This will easily be the biggest event our team has covered this year, and we couldn't be more excited to be bringing you coverage! Stay tuned to this blog, and SensibleReason.com for all our X Games news and updates. Thanks for reading!