Peter Spurrier obituary

There is a well-known photograph by Peter Spurrier, who has died aged 77, that shows a rowing eight passing a half-timbered boathouse on its way to win the Head of the Charles regatta in Boston, Massachusetts. The picture, taken in 2009, perfectly captures the rhythm and grace of a crew at work during a snowstorm, and shows why Pete was regarded as the master of rowing photography.

The sport is challenging to film because the whole caboodle moves from A to B over long distances – from multilane, 2,000-metre courses at international regattas to more than four miles in the case of the Oxford-Cambridge Boat Race and head-of-the-river time trials. Thus there is usually only one chance of shooting a masterpiece.

Pete’s’s sixth sense told him where to be – and when to be there – to capture the blood, sweat and glory of the sport the world over. He made magic during the dawn-to-dusk hours he spent beside lakes, rivers and seas in all weathers.

Picking the spot, whether in a set piece or a paparazzi moment, was as crucial as calculating exposure or shutter speed. He often stole a lead on agency photographers who would turn up on Olympic finals days, but was always willing to show the ropes to young newcomers. His portfolio adorned magazines and newspapers across the world, and he was seen by many as the dean of rowing photographers.

Peter was born in London, the eldest son of Donald Spurrier, an engineer, and Beryl (nee Thomas), an accounts manager at a shoe polish factory. He began taking snaps in his teens and learned to row at Staveley Road secondary modern school in Chiswick before progressing to Quintin Boat Club on the nearby Thames. He was then apprenticed to a firm of industrial instrument makers before working as an