Weekly Photo Contest (16 April - 23 April) Topic - Sports/Athletics

Rules:

1. You may enter only one photo.

2. Please do not comment on photos until after the judging has taken place.

3. The contest runs for exactly one week, starting NOW! (see time/date stamp at the start of this thread)

4. At the end of the week, The Judge (last weeks winner) will choose a 1st, 2nd, and 3rd place photo, providing as much feedback as possible. (Judge has 24 hours to make decision)

5. The 1st place Winner will start a new thread with the topic/theme of their choice, and act as the Judge for that contest.
(Winner has 48 hours to create new theme)

Topic : Sports and Athletics

Let's see your sports shots! I know some of you may not have sports shots per se, so I've broadened the topic to include any type of athletic activity.

Things that are (generally) found in a good/great sports photograph:

1. Captures peak action
2. Subject matter in focus, blurred background (in most cases)
3. Captures athlete's face/facial expression
4. Proper exposure, framing, etc.

"Sports photography refers to the genre of photography that covers all types of sports. In the majority of cases, professional sports photography is a branch of photojournalism, while amateur sports photography, such as photos of children playing association football, is a branch of vernacular photography."

Good luck!

An example of sports photography (one of my personal favorite shots): http://img508.imageshack.us/img508/1213/slidingintohome.jpg

Hey guys! Contest is closed, great submissions from all who participated, should have results up by tomorrow night!

Awesome submissions from all you guys and gals! Some very impressive stuff here.

Alright, here's the breakdown (keep in mind, this is the first photo contest I've judged!)

Razeus: Truly excellent photograph, I like the way the ropes frame the fighter, as well as the overall composition of the photo. The facial expression, body language, and lighting are all spot on and make for a really nice shot!

Keebler: Love the boy's facial expression and pose. I think this could be a much more effective shot if he was dribbling/shooting the ball.

flosseR: First of all, what on earth is this sport? It looks to me like a deer of some sort pulling someone on skis, never seen anything like it! Great capture here, I like the crowd's expressions, and the action of the deer(?) The snow being kicked up is a nice touch (the orange netting in the background is ever so slightly distracting.)

Macrumormonger: So awesome that you got a shot of David Beckham! I see what you were trying to do here, but it just doesn't do it for me. Some complaints I have about this shot: not tight on subject matter, iffy framing/composition, and no real sports action captured. This shot has a lot of potential, but a few things need to be tweaked!

ipodtoucher: Really great shot here. In focus, captures peak sports action, subject in focus/blurred background, really emotive facial expressions. Love it!

coachingguy: Nice capture! I know how hard it is shooting in low light situations (gyms are a real pain, you did a great job.) Nice job getting peak action here. One thing I would change: get tighter in on the players, the focus should be on the players, not the crowd!

dakduel: Very nice, the hurdler's body language and facial expression are great. I like the pattern formed by the hurdles, adds a subtle yet pleasing element to this photo. One thing I would change: the hurdler/hurdle in foreground seems to be a bit soft/out of focus, not really a big deal, just kind of a pet peeve.

Chappers: Cute! Great depth of field, body language and general composition.

zildjansg: Really really nice shot, what kind of lens are you shooting with? Captures peak action perfectly, everything about this picture screams "pro." The only thing I would change about this shot is the guy blurred in the background, other than that, perfect shot.

JDDavis: Awesome! Love the way the light plays off the back of the climber's back and the rocks. Black and white sports photography, when used correctly, can be incredibly effective. This is a perfect example.

Indydenny: Nice angle! Love his facial expression and the water being kicked up around his board. Great job!

luminosity: Sweet shot, I like the juxtaposition between the orange and white jerseys. Subject matter is sharp and in focus, captures peak action and blurs unnecessary information: all the makings of a nice sports shot.

OllyCH: Very cool, I love car photos! Nice panning technique (what shutter speed did you use?,) at first I wasn't really sure about how I felt about the framing/composition, but the more I look at it, the more it grows on me. Nicely done.

Radam: Simple yet elegant shot. Nice framing and action capture. One thing I would suggest: skateboarding shots like this are a dime a dozen, think outside the box! You'll find that your photography will benefit tenfold if you try to get shots you've never attempted before.

Keleko: Stunning capture. This silhouette is beyond effective, it's very visually appealing. The sun set, colors, and clouds all come together to make this a very unique and impressive photo.

acearchie: Pretty much the same stuff I said for OllyCH: love the blurred background. This shot really captures the speed at which the car is going, impressive!

bob118: Tack sharp photo! Excellent body language and action capture. For some reason, pitcher shots really appeal to me, and this is no exception! Great bokeh.

iharvest: Love it, took me a minute to figure out exactly what was happening here. Normally I'm not a fan of a sports photo that makes me think, but this does that, and I still really like it!

The winners:

3rd place: JDDavis
2nd place: Razeus
1st place: ziljansg

Great job everyone! Can't wait to see more of your work in upcoming contests!

Congratulations to ziljansg. You've got 48 hours to get a new contest up (if not it will be on to Razeus).

Cheers