Plenty of people in the sailing world are “doing what they love for a living,” but Daniela Coen and Allen Clark - perhaps more than anyone we’ve met - epitomize what that’s all about. As the owner/operators of PhotoBoat.com, this couple travels to regattas up and down the East Coast and beyond, and if you’ve sailed in a regatta in this area recently, you’ve probably seen them zipping around on their 11.5-foot RIBs, maneuvering into position for the best shot, standing up and strapped into a kiteboarding harness that’s tethered to the bow eye.
“We attach to the harness with a carabiner and lean back,” says Allen. “It’s kind of like using a tripod. With the steering and throttle in one hand and the camera in the other, we can zoom around by ourselves and photograph all the boats without using another driver. I think we’re the only ones doing it on the East Coast.”
“We met while working as sailing instructors at John Kantor’s Longshore Sailing School in Westport, CT. Allen started there in 1995 and I started in ’97, while we were in high school,” says Daniela, a Georgetown University graduate; Allen earned his degree at UConn. “After college, Daniela ran the school for a few years,” says Allen, who also worked at the Boat Locker in Westport. “JK sent me to work at the Bitter End Yacht Club for a winter,” Daniela recalls. “Allen came to visit and we met the people that were running Yacht Shots BVI. They’re great people, and we thought it was a neat business. “I worked for Yacht Shots for six months in Tortola, where Guy Clothier taught me that technique,” Allen explains. “We wanted to stay in the sailing industry because that’s our passion, and that’s why we started PhotoBoat.”Several racers have expressed their appreciation for Daniela & Allen’s ability to capture dramatic images without getting in the way or creating a big wake, and other yachting photographers have admired their technique. In fact, after seeing Allen at work on a breezy day at Block Island Race Week in 2007, pro shooter Dave Dunigan (who’s not easily impressed) remarked, “That guy’s my hero!”
Daniela and Allen currently reside in Norwalk although she says, “We kind of live everywhere!” In 2006, they cruised from Connecticut to Key West and back on their Gulfstar 37, which they named PhotoBoat.com. “We’re shameless marketers,” she laughs. “We figured we’d get a liveaboard sailboat that’s big enough to use as an office, so we could go from regatta to regatta and not have to pay for hotels,” Allen explains. “We had one dinghy on davits and towed the other, going on the outside to New Jersey, through the C & D Canal into the Chesapeake to Norfolk, and the Inland Waterway pretty much all the way down. We lived on a mooring for three months in Key West Harbor, shot Race Week and became friends with all the charter schooner captains. We photographed a lot of vacationers, and since we had “PhotoBoat” on the side of our boat people knew where to find their photos. On the way back, we photographed Charleston Race Week and the Annapolis NOOD.”
With so many concurrent regattas, choosing which to shoot is a continual challenge, says Daniela. “Our business is dependent on weather – not only sunshine, but wind. That will often define what we’re gonna shoot, which means we sometimes have to wait until the last minute. We actually drove from the Annapolis NOOD to Rye, NY because the forecast for the American YC Spring Series looked so much better. It was worth it because it turned out to be a really dramatic day, but we didn’t have enough photos from Annapolis so we woke up early the next day and drove back down!”
Daniela and Allen’s fine art prints, produced in limited edition runs of 15, have been shown at the Cate Charles Gallery in Stonington, CT, Kennedy Studios in Fairfield, CT, Larchmont Art in Larchmont, NY and Finn Gallery in St. Petersburg, FL. “The neat thing about photography is that there are so many directions you can go with it,” says Daniela. PhotoBoat’s client list includes SAILFAST, Annapolis Performance Sailing, Atlantis Weather Gear, Reichel- Pugh Yacht Design, Doyle Sails, UK-Halsey Sailmakers and Z Sails and their work has appeared in several publications, including innumerable images in the one you’re reading.
“We also coach sailing at the Stanwich School in Greenwich, CT,” says Daniela. “We do it every afternoon in the fall…it works nicely with our schedule and it’s fun to hang out with kids.” When time permits, Daniela & Allen love to go for a blast on a Laser or Hobie Cat, especially when it’s really windy. They provide photography for the Greenwich, CT-based 12 Metre Yacht Development Foundation (12mydf.com) and serve on their Community Development Committee. “Scott MacLeod hired us to maintain America II,” says Allen. “We both have Master Captain’s licenses and we used to run 12 Metre charters, but now we don’t have much time.” Daniela adds, “We support what they’re doing to get kids on board to learn about 12 Metres.”
“At the start of the Bermuda Race this year, I ended up nine miles offshore in the dinghy,” Allen recalls. “It was choppy and wasn’t very comfortable…and I was checking my gas, but it was definitely worth it because all the boats were jumping over the waves on a close reach.” Daniela & Allen say that photographing a shipboard wedding in Key West was perhaps their most challenging job to date, but one look at the bride’s beaming face as she steers the schooner and is kissed by the groom says they nailed the assignment. Their photos are available at thephotoboat.com, where you’ll find a link to their entertaining blog, thephotoboat.blogspot.com.