Photographing a photographer – Interview with Monique Limbos
There’s a lot of controversy about who’s
the author of ”A picture is worth a thousand words” quote, but I guess we can
all agree that the person who said that was so right.
Still, Monique Limbos’ pictures are worth
more than just a thousand words, because they manage to convey all the
happiness and all the drama that happens during a snooker match. They capture
the true essence of what’s going on the green baize, the thrill, the sadness,
the grimace, the joy, the “tear in the eye”, the triumphant look, the losing
look, the competitive animal inside the player.
Many of us had the chance to actually feel
like we were there, inside the arena, taking part of the snooker show, as we
clicked on her pictures. Many of us felt like we were inside the press
conference room at the Crucible as we were listening to her uploaded files on
Sound Cloud. Many of us are using her pictures to write out articles, to share
our thoughts about a simple match or an entire tournament.
We’ve got used to see Monique almost hiding
behind that huge and heavy camera of hers; maybe even have taken for granted
her contribution to this beloved cue sport, never asking who’s really behind
that camera and what her story is.
Today, you have the chance to know the
person Monique Limbos as I try to “photograph” her in this article. The
close-up reveals her early passion for photography, her very interesting
encounter with snooker, her journey through a “world ruled by men” and her incredible
devotion not just to photography, but also to people.
When
photography meets snooker
Photography was a very early discovery for
Monique, but it soon evolved into something that has changed her life. As for
her encounter with the cue sport that we all love and cherish, it happened back
in 2004 when snooker came knocking at her door during a rainy day in Greece. The
rest is history.
Monique recalls how it all started …
“When I was 10, I had a very serious
accident that limited my activities for several years, so my family offered me
a Kodak Instamatic 100. That was in the spring of 1965. I fell in love with
photography there and then.”
“Later, in high school, I had a teacher who
was passionate about photography and organised free workshops, on his own
initiative. That's how I learned the basics about how a camera works and how to
“construct” an interesting image.”
“More recently, when my children became
grown-ups and I had more time for myself, I followed proper training during the
weekends and started to work in the lab and in the darkroom as well.”
“I now have my own darkroom and still love
to work with black & white films that I can process myself from beginning
to end.”
“About three years ago, certain
circumstances in life made me take a important decision. I retired from my job
as an IT Expert, working for an International Organisation, in order to become
a snooker photographer full time.”
Although for many years, photography
remained just a hobby and not the major path in her life, something changed
when snooker became part of the equation.
And for Monique it was all about equations
as her academic background is actually one where numbers, perimeters and angles
mix perfectly.
“My main training in university was maths
and especially geometry. I'm just in love with it, angles, physics of the
balls, the lot.”
“It's not just snooker, it's all forms of
billiard games. Three-cushion billiards fascinates me, always has. That's what
was played in the “cafés” when I was a kid.
“I discovered snooker later, around 2004. I
was in Athens
and the weather was just awful. I'm not a television addict, but I was really
bored and switched it on. The Welsh Open was under way. I got hooked.”
However, it was not until 2007 when
photography and snooker actually met and became a team. Being a snooker fan for
some time now, Monique embraced the possibility of watching the “snooker show”
live, so she travelled from Belgium
to Poland
to see the masters of the green baize in action.
“My first event was in Warsaw, were John
Higgins, Mark Selby, Graeme Dott, Steve Davis and four Polish amateurs were
playing in what proved to be the “prototype” of the World Series.”, Monique
remembers fondly
“I brought my camera, snapped around, loved
the experience and loved the result.”
“A few months later I asked Matchroom Sport
if it was OK for me to come and take pictures at the Premier League. It was in Grimsby and Ronnie was
playing. I was already a moderator on his website.”
“They accepted and their official
photographer briefed me very kindly, about what to do and not to do, and how to
move around in a professional snooker event. I will never be able to thank them
enough for giving me the opportunity.”
A
Rocket fan
One of the things I really admire in a
person is their ability to know when to hit the switch button from being
subjective to being objective. And being a snooker fan, with being a fan of a
certain player often get mixed, the result not being a very pretty one.
With Monique that’s not the case, for
although she’s the moderator of Ronnie O’Sullivan’s official website, you won’t
detect any rude or out of place comments made from her by addressing one of the
“Rocket’s” opponents. She’s above all a snooker fan, so she acknowledges the
tremendous work the players do, their talent and passion.
A few months after becoming a member of
O’Sullivan’s website she was asked if she could offer assistance.
Since then she’s been doing a terrific job
taking care of the place were Ronnie’s fans and sometimes enemies meet, although
not everyone understands the common sense concept.
“Sometimes it's difficult to find the right
balance between allowing people to express their views and make sure that due
respect is given to Ronnie's opponents.”
“It's a player's official site, but it's
also a fan site. Understandably some of them are a bit biased.
“And then Ronnie has his haters, as well as
his lovers. There is no need to be a member to comment on the main page of the
site. After defeats or ... well, some controversy ... I've sometimes spend long
nights moderating or deleting inappropriate posts.”, says Monique.
On the road
It’s not a
secret that snooker likes travelling, especially if we take a good look at the
recently ended season. And with snooker travel players, referees and
photographers.
More than one
player has expressed their concerns about having a too packed season with so many tournaments being staged all around the world.
But for Monique travelling is fun and is
something she has in her blood. The snooker caravan is her favourite transport
vehicle and she’s preparing to actually travel outside the continent this
season.
“I'm a traveller", says Monique with a smile
on her face.
“I'm always ready to prepare my bags – it
doesn't take me long – and be on the road. So I've no problem with it. My only
regret is that last season was so busy that I couldn't take the time to visit
the places where we stayed properly. I like to combine some “tourism” with my
snooker whenever possible.”
“I will be in Shanghai next September. I'm really looking
forward to it.”
For those not fortunate enough to go at the
Crucible this year, but follow Monique on FaceBook, you could see that during
this year’s World Championship Mark Jones (snooker player Hannah Jones’ father)
took some pretty interesting pictures of Monique and her sophisticated
equipment.
Makes you wonder how she manages to carry
that heavy camera from country to country, from venue to venue and work in an
environment that’s mostly dominated by men.
But for Monique, there’s something she’s
done all her life, and to quote one of Frank Sinatra songs “and may I say, not
in shy way”, her only concern being to do her job properly.
Monique confesses that: “I've always been
in professions dominated by men. IT is even worse than sport photography in
that respect actually.”
“But I never had any problem with anyone as
a photographer.”
“Indeed, equipment is seriously heavy. I'm
probably stronger than I look and there is always at least one gallant man in
each train.” she happily concludes.
“Developing”
the photographer
To conclude this article, I’ve chosen to
develop the latest four clichés of this beautiful film that Monique was so kind
to share with us, by using some questions. Let’s see what she got to say about
her most memorable snooker moments and about how she likes to spend her, often
very little, free time.
1. Until now, what was your favourite
snooker event?
“That's a hard one! I love taking pictures
in the Premier League. The atmosphere is friendly and relaxed, and it was my
first real experience of pro snooker as a photographer, and a very good one.”
“But the World Championship is special. The
tension is just incredible for 17 days, it's running high on emotions from
start to finish. And I love Sheffield.”
2. What was your most wonderful v. most
terrible experience as a snooker photographer?
“Not so much as a photographer, but as a
media person, the most terrible experience was to be there, in the media room,
when the Higgins-NOTW scandal came out.”
“The last semi-final was still under way
and we were asked to keep it quiet. But everyone was in shock.”
“People like Steve Davis, Janie Watkins and
Clive Everton were profoundly saddened and worried for the future of the sport.
How not to be when snooker is relying so much on betting companies for its
sponsoring and its integrity is so seriously challenged?”
“Also, a lot of us were concerned about
Graeme Dott's reaction. He was still playing, knowing nothing of the scandal
involving his management.”
“I can't really choose the most wonderful
one. There were many. Being alone in the spare commentary box and taking
pictures when Steve Davis beat John Higgins at the WC in 2010, the tension was
almost unbearable, everyone in the Crucible was living it with Steve. “
“Being on the floor when the players were
introduced for the last session of the 2011 World Championship final. The
atmosphere was just incredible.”
“Ronnie's happiness and emotion when
cradling his son and the trophy after this years’ final and the little boy
ecstatic look at his father when the “confetti” were falling on them. And more
...”
3. Have you ever tried to play snooker?
“Yes. I'm crap! Still love it. My highest
break is 25 ... still don't know how I managed it.”
4. What do you like to do in your free
time?
“I love to cook, when I have time to do it
properly.”
“I love to walk, randomly, in towns, on
markets, in the woods, in harbours, along rivers, and take “candids”.
”I used to read a lot, still do, mainly
“whodunits”.
“I'm also interested in history and
archaeology. I love puzzles of all sorts, but mainly mathematical puzzles.”
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