Have camera, will travel with the pros
Firefighter Turns to Television Photography

Mark Bowden (RTVF ’83) totes a 32-pound television camera four or five hours a day and walks five or six miles—much like a foot soldier in training. His goal is to get a shot of one of the champion golfers, such as Tiger Woods, and get it at an angle, probably within 10 feet, to show the intensity and agony that goes along with the pressure of competition. And, he does this without making a sound. “You don’t want to disturb a guy hitting an $800- grand shot.”

He’s been hit by golf balls a few times, fallen while running after golfers a few times, and stepped on stage to receive Emmy Awards for golf photography a few times.

Mark Bowden (RTVF ’83), the “photographer of champions,” says, unabashedly, “When I show up with my television cameras, the players know they’re not playing for second.”

Bowden, who has garnered a 22-year career as a cameraman for all the prestigious golf tournaments, spent the first part of 2005 in Honolulu shooting the Sony Open, having just finished the Mercedes Championship in Kalalua, Maui. He checked in with his wife, Nancy, at their home in Yorba Linda, Calif., before going on to Torrey Pines near San Diego and the Bob Hope PGA Tournament in Palm Springs. Then it was back to Hawaii for the Champion Skins Game, which featured golf champion veterans Nicklaus, Palmer, Stadler and Watson.

He followed Jack Nicklaus that summer to the British Open on the Old Course at St. Andrews, shooting for ABC Sports. He said it was undoubtedly the highlight of his photography career.

“That’s when he made his farewell stroll across one of the most beautiful courses in the world,” Bowden said. “Jack is, to me, the greatest golfer in history. It was a big thrill to follow him and watch him drop those putts. The Scots have adopted him as their ‘favorite son.’”

He said it was capturing special moments like these that brought him his five Emmys, the most recent in 2005 for CBS Sports coverage of the Masters. “I freelance now for all the major networks and the sports channels – ABC, CBS, NBC, ESPN, the Golf Channel. But I started as a firefighter for the Orange County Fire Department for five years while practicing still photography on the side.

“Then in 1980 I went to CSUF for a theatre production class that taught television. I got connected with Dr. Larry Ward (RTVF), who said, ‘You’re pretty good at this,’ and helped me get in at Channel 56 shooting Titan baseball and other sports.” From there he was hired by ABC to shoot the 1984 Olympics in Los Angeles.

“I had just finished that job and a former classmate who was a bigwig with ESPN called and asked if I’d be interested in doing sports for them,” Bowden said. “Of course, I said yes – and that’s the beginning of my story.”

Bowden now has a full 42-week-a-year job as a cameraman with all the major stations covering all the major golf tournaments. He fills in remaining weeks with lesser tournaments or other sports events. He has been recognized for his work with five Emmys – two for the Olympics, one for auto racing and two for golf.

Now, Bowden, 46, and his wife are planning for his retirement at age 55. They recently moved from their Yorba Linda home to Star, Idaho. Why Idaho? His wife’s family is there, it’s a beautiful state, and there’s a good-sized airport.

So, Bowden intends to chase the pros for a few more years, capturing the strokes that make headline news or the rare hole-in-one or the putt that sends the ball leisurely winding toward the hole and curls around the lip before giving in.