by Mayukh Ghosh

Harry Martin (Sydney Morning Herald)
Bobby Barnes (The Courier Mail)
Ron Lovitt (The Age)
All ran out of film.

The Brisbane Test was approaching a thrilling climax and there were these three hapless photographers.
It is often said that Lovitt and Martin tossed a coin to hold fire to the seventh delivery of that Wes Hall over.

A good story but never verified.

Despite that, it is still a good story.
When Hall began that final over, Lovitt realised that he had shot his 24 frames for the day.
However, in his bag there was a double dark slide which could be fed into the back of his Speed Graphic camera.
He had used it earlier in the day to get a picture of the Queensland governor.
But, rather foolishly, he failed to mark the side with which he took that picture.

He had no other option but to leave it to his luck.
He took this photograph and then, amidst the euphoria, raced back to his office.
He wasted no time in processing the 24 negatives and the double dark slide.

Eureka!
It took him a few moments to realise what he had captured.
But then he understood that he had just taken a photograph which would single-handedly change his career graph.

That Victor Trumper picture by George Beldam.
Herbert Fishwick's amazing photograph showing a Wally Hammond cover-drive in 1928.
Dennis Oulds' iconic photograph showing all eleven Englishmen surrounding the last Australian batsman at The Oval in 1968.
Jeff Thomson in full cry at Lord's in 1975 by Patrick Eagar.
And perhaps those two pictures of Jonty Rhodes from the early 1990s ( V.V. Krishnan and Adrian Murrell)
There are a few more.

But the sheer drama involved, perhaps, makes Lovitt's effort that much more remarkable.

Dec 14, 1960.