In the first of our new spotlight series highlighting our News, Sports and Entertainment contributors, we got the chance to speak to James Moy, who runs an award-winning photography agency specialising in Formula One coverage and the automotive arena.
Moy and his team’s images are regularly featured in international publications and news outlets, and it’s easy to see why with their innovative and imaginative style of photography.
Some of Moy’s clients have included Lamborghini, Porsche, Sahara Force India F1 Team, Motorsport Vision Ltd, Coca Cola amongst countless advertising agencies, PR companies and editorial publishers.
Read on and gain a fascinating insight to the world of F1 and motorsports photography.
LG: You’ve been photographing Formula One for over 15 years, can you tell us a little bit about yourself and how you got into this area of photography?
JM: It’s actually nearer to 25 years now! I always knew, even as a teenager, that I wanted to combine my two passions of cars and photography. My father was a keen photographer and gave me the buzz of watching motorsport too.
I started off in Rally photography on a very amateur level, selling some prints to drivers, and after many years of hard work now attend every Formula One race with my own photo agency supplying images to the F1 Teams and the Sponsors.
Race winner Max Verstappen celebrates in parc ferme. Formula 1 World Championship. Yas Marina Circuit, Abu Dhabi. 26th Nov, 2023.
LG: What was your first job within the photography industry?
JM: I was employed by a photo agency who specialised in Motorsport. They gave me a job at the bottom of the ladder in the darkroom processing films. But all I really wanted to do was get out on event and start photographing, so I pretty quickly made my way up the ladder covering British junior formulas every weekend before photographing my first F1 race in 1999.
I learnt a great deal from this agency about acquiring clients and working with some of the biggest brands in the sport to provide photography for their promotion, PR and advertising.
LG: Can you talk about a time when you had to negotiate for access to a location or event for a shoot?
JM: This is almost a daily occurrence to be honest. We have great access at F1 races and can work trackside close to the action. However, I am always looking for a new angle or position, and negotiating access to private property, building or terraces to get a unique angle is also part of the job!
Circuit atmosphere - fans in the grandstand. Mexican Grand Prix, 30th October 2022.
LG: Where is your favourite location to shoot and how much preparation does it take to shoot there?
JM: Monaco would be my obvious answer. The unique layout of the circuit as it winds through the Principality, past glamorous shops and hotels is something very special for a photographer. We are incredibly close to the speed and the action, and it produces some great images.
To prepare, I tend to walk the track in the days before the GP. I look at new angles and the trackside sponsor branding. It is also a good chance to check the position of the sun and shadows so that I make the most of the on-track time in the coming days.
LG: How did you choose Alamy to supply your images to?
JM: I had a long-term relationship with PA (Press Association) over many years and enjoyed supplying them with F1 images. When the two companies, PA and Alamy, combined it was a very easy choice to continue the relationship.
Alamy is able to get images published in outlets that I can’t, so it works very well for both parties.
Monaco Grand Prix, Monte Carlo, 28th May 2016.
LG: How do you get your images onto Alamy so quickly? Do you do it yourself or do you have a team of people that help?
JM: We are 4 photographers at every race, and we also employ a digital editor who is based in the UK. He works on our time zone wherever we are in the world and assists with the editing of the images and distribution to the clients.
The speed of delivery now is very important with such demand for ‘live’ images in social media. We now send images directly from the camera via a 5G network direct to our editor and they are then published just a couple of minutes after they were taken!
LG: What has been the most challenging event you have covered?
JM: The 24 Hours of Le Mans race is always a gruelling event.
Everyone thinks that you have to stay awake for the 24 hours but in reality it is much harder than that, I usually wake at about 7am on race day, and I won’t see my bed again until 11pm the following day after the race celebrations and photos have been delivered, so actually more than 40 hours awake!!
It is also usually hot, dusty, and logistically hard to get around, but fantastic for atmospheric photos!
Audi mechanics watch the action and catch some sleep. Le Mans 24 Hour Race. Le Mans, France, 22nd June 2013
LG: What do you think is the best way to get your photos noticed by the media?
JM: Firstly, you need to tell a story with your images. We are recording sporting history, one-off events, that will never happen again, so there must be an element of story telling within your images. Finding dramatic compositions, or unique angles always helps too, but essentially it is the subject in front of you that will create the image with impact.
We hope you enjoyed what we hope to be the first of many compelling behind the scenes insights with our News, Sports and Entertainment contributors. You can explore all of James Moy’s Alamy collection here, and follow his Instagram account here.
