11 amazing shots captured by underwater cameras at the Olympics
Just when we thought we'd seen every possible angle of coverage of the historic Olympics swimming events, new photos are coming to light courtesy of the L2012 Pool Cam. If you thought Michael Phelps looked good from a birds-eye view, you should see the fish-eye view.
An underwater camera inside the pool in the Aquatic Center provides the views that no other camera can get. It captures the swimmers diving in, in mid-stroke or glide, and of course those gut-wrenchingly close finishes — all from the bottom looking up.
Far from being boring these images show textures, bubbles, distortions and even clear shots of the Olympians pushing their bodies to the max. They aren't just any sports photography to show the photo finish or the moment of realization of victory or defeat — these images are more poetry or art in motion.
The unique photos, captured for Getty Images, are being broadcast to the world via the camera's twitter feed: @L2012PoolCam. Of course there is a Twitter feed for the camera — it is the "social games" after all, and frankly in this case it's a great thing.
Not only are the pictures the cam captures truly unique, the cam apparently has a very snarky sense of humor and its tweets are not to be missed. It even may have a crush on some of the swimmers as this tweet seems to indicate:
"I saw that @BeckAdlington in here again last night. She didn't notice me, though. Never does."
Don't worry. The cam still has plenty of work ahead of it with synchronized swimming and a few other events yet to come. You can view the full portfolio of the photos and catch up on the older tweets on its page here.
While you are there, you are going to want to follow the cam otherwise it is likely you'll risk hurting its feelings. It seems like a sensitive, yet creative type.
@L2012PoolCam , via DigitalTrends
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Ryan Lochte
Michael Phelps