We experienced our first ever polo match yesterday, and I have to admit, I enjoyed it more than I expected. Not only that, but my vocabulary grew a bit as well. For example, I now know what a chukker is and when it is OK to divot stomp. And polo ponies, by the way, are not ponies at all, they are highly trained, very agile horses.
I also learned it is hard to photograph this fast-moving sport. The action must be shot with a very fast telephoto lens, and a high shutter speed and ISO setting. Even then, the success rate is very low.
The Sport of Kings is great fun to watch and a challenge to photograph; I look forward to many more matches this season at Sarasota Polo at Lakewood Ranch. I say this, to be honest, because polo matches are all the excuse the spectators need to party up and down the sidelines. And it’s been this way since the 6th Century when some king in ancient Persia invented the game. It’s called the sport of Kings for a reason.
