And on the seventh day...

I was caught!

I took a telephoto lens into the Australian Open six times in my back 
pack, and on the seventh time the checker asked me if I had any other 
lenses with me! I had to put it into the cloakroom -er, cloak shed -  
for the day. I was so irritated I did not spend a cent at the venue that 
day, which would have cost them all of $20.

I appreciate that Getty Images has the copyright on all pictures, but I 
was surrounded every day by people with video cameras, which you are not 
allowed to have at all, and cameras the size of a cigarette pack with 
lenses the equivalent of about a 500mm lens! You are allowed to have a 
lens up to 200mm. I bought one specially for the Open a few years ago, 
and it is quite adequate for pictures around the grounds, but I went mad 
and bought Rod Laver Arena tickets for the second week, and the seats I 
got you need a telescope just to see the court!

Getty Images themselves are quite reasonable. I rang them a couple of 
years ago and asked if they objected to my putting a page of pictures in 
our tennis club newsletter. (I was showing that you should not be facing 
the court while serving.) They had no problem with that.

I always enjoy the first week, and I only bought centre court tickets 
this week because I thought a girl from my club was a ball girl on 
centre court. But in the second week she was on Court 2. Buying three 
tickets resulted from a rush of blood to the brain 8>).

Which brings to mind the conundrum -  how do you actually get centre 
court tickets anywhere near the court? I have known a few people who 
line up all night to get tickets on the opening day, and are at the head 
of the line. They always get tickets up the back! Do the public ever get 
a chance to buy tickets near the court?

Anyway, I will probably go again next year during the first week. There 
is a lot of great tennis up untl the second Monday, after which it dies 
back dramatically in the second week. Interestingly, the later it gets 
the more packed the centre court gets, even though the price rises 
dramatically. ³Packed² means it is bloody hard to get in and out of your 
seat between games, and a lot of people just sit in their seats all day!

Sorry, my French is not up to writing all this in French!

-- 
my URL,
http://members.ozemail.com.au/~mcardle