Down for The Count

[cwesnidge]

Wrestling....does The Black and White do it any justice??? also what about the angle?? and positioning??? i normally shoot basketball for a living




Exposure: 0.017 sec (1/60)
Aperture: f/5.6
Focal Length: 200 mm
ISO Speed: 800
Exposure Bias: +1/3 EV
Flash: Auto, Fired, Return detected

[ARKreations]

I'm by no means an expert and am just starting to shoot wrestling, myself - so please take my opinion at face value...

It's a very intersting shot that does capture the intensity of the moment. But every time I come back to it, my eyes are consistently drawn to the stark white mouthpiece, thus detracting from the rest of the shot. For my tastes, I might also prefer to see a little more of the lower arm as the hand and elbow appear disconnected. Otherwise, it's a great sharp and clear capture.

[Jim Bryant]

Nice shot and good angle! I grew up shooting B & W, and think color takes away the dramatic impact of the photo, but for some reason, we live in a color world. For me, my editors and clients seems to prefer the color, so I go with what sells. The angle, at mat level, is the only way to shoot wrestling. Gets kind of hectic when you're shooting at a tournament when there are two or three mats set up with action on all. I normally try to use two camera bodies, one equipped with a 24-70mm and another with a 70-200mm, that way I have all my focal length covered. When I shoot, I try to get story telling shots of most of the matches, the winning, loosing, happiness, you know the thrill of victory, the agony of defeat. Guess it's the newspaper sports shooting aspect drilled into my head. I try to get vertical shots of take downs and escapes and then zoom closer, filling the frame to get pinning combos and closer action. Sometimes the ref in the photo will also tell an important moment in the action. Be careful....when you're near the mat you start to develop a six sense to know when to drop the camera from your eye and either duck or move. I once had two heavy weights land on top of me. I hurt the better part of a week. Here's some images that might give you an idea. I shot these at 320 sec. at 2.8 with an ISO 1000.

[vcorne00]

The shot lacks dynamism to me. I say that because from my perspective (as a martial artist) the expressions fail to capture the effort of the moment. When two fighters are locked in a hold the intensity of concentration and effort is amazing; that's not what I see in this shot. I think the theme for the shot is right; the stand-off shots are as powerful as the ones capturing a throw for instance but the devil is in the detail I think.
Vincent
http://www.flickr.com/photos/26816965@N02/