Balint Hamvas, the one-man show behind the popular Cyclephotos, is currently planning his 2017/18 photo album annual and using a Kickstarter to fund it. Learn more about the album and how to pre-order in this release.
TONBRIDGE, United Kingdom — Pre-sales are currently underway for the seventh annual cyclocross photo album created by cycling photographer Balint Hamvas. Now nearly a decade into his career, Hamvas professes a deep love of the mud. His annual album is a showcase of his passion for this sport.
Cyclephotos 2017/18 Photo Album Kickstarter Announcement. © Cyclephotos / Cyclocross Magazine
"I visited a Cyclocross World Cup race in the fall of 2008," said Hamvas. "I hadn’t heard of cyclocross before then, and all it took was one race to pull me in. It was love at first sight. I’ve photographed over 200 world-class races since then, and for the last seven years I’ve produced a photo annual that tells the story of the season."
Long-standing relationships with teams, riders and manufacturers allows Hamvas a wide-range of access. He leverages this unrestricted access to produce a beautiful, diverse body of work and has a keen eye for details so often missed in standard cycling photojournalism.
The 2017/2018 photo annual, like those that came before, mix Hamvas’ imagery with essays and reports produced by well-connected figures in the sport of cyclocross.
"Riders, teams, brands, journalists – they’ve all been involved in the stories shared in this book," said Hamvas. "I really value their contributions. Not only do their stories give context to my images, but they often write about topics that are not often discussed."
Cyclephotos 2017/18 Photo Album Kickstarter Announcement. © Cyclephotos / Cyclocross Magazine
Although Hamvas includes written contributions, his book largely remains a one-man show. Friends and family generously donated time during the production stage of the first five annuals. He looked toward Kickstarter two years ago and successfully reached his £17,500 goal, and the book was funded. Those that did not participate missed out. Last year’s Kickstarter effort was again successful, so Hamvas chose to utilize the crowd-funding site for a third consecutive year.
"I’m using Kickstarter again as it proved an effective strategy the last two years," said Hamvas. "The premise is simple. People pledge to buy the book as a means of pre-ordering. If enough people pledge, I’ll meet my target and the book is funded. If I can’t get enough backers, the project won’t be funded. That’s how it works with Kickstarter."
Cyclephotos 2017/18 Photo Album Kickstarter Announcement. © Cyclephotos / Cyclocross Magazine
Back this project to get your hands on the 2017/2018 album. Hamvas has promised 250 pages of high quality photos, including shots from all the major European races and the U.S. World Cups, paired with equally captivating stories.
"The book will have four main sections – one each about the World Cup, the Superprestige, the DVV Verzekeringen Trofee series and the World Championships in Valkenburg," said Hamvas. Beyond the four main chapters, a number of features will be also part of the book. Sporza reporter Renaat Schotte writes about the cyclocross scene’s most favoured training track in Lichtaart, Paul Maunder revisits Roger Hammond’s win at the World Championships in 1992 and much more.
To pre-order the 2017/2018 Cyclocross Album make a donation of £35. For £5 more, you can add your name to the book. For £250, your book will be signed by one of the 2018 Cyclocross World Champions and Hamvas will throw in a limited edition print. Hamvas anticipates a July 2018 delivery date.
The 2017/2018 Cyclocross Album Kickstarter campaign runs through 11 February.
Visit the campaign for more information or to pre-order your book: kickstarter.com/projects/cyclocross/2017-2018-cyclocross-album
Cyclephotos 2017/18 Photo Album Gallery
Cyclephotos 2017/18 Photo Album Kickstarter Announcement. © Cyclephotos / Cyclocross Magazine
