Utah now has strung together two strong games in succession, today defeating Washington State 49-6. An absolutely gorgeous day at 4,600 feet, though the very bright sun posed some challenges, as should be evident. From just over 1,000 shots, here are 10. Once again I'm trying to show some variety, and would appreciate feedback regarding what works and what does not. Full gallery (56 images) here.
I like the set. 4- I haven't seen a punt from this perspective and like that shot even though punts aren't big plays unless it was blocked or flubbed.
5- looks like a blocked field goal. Great timing and angle
6- odd way to hold the ball if he had control and scored. I see in this shot a fight for the light. The subject is in the shadows and the fans brighter. Great shot, but I don't think it came out as well as it should have. You can't pose it so it is what it is, but I wish the player stood out more.
Thanks, Andy. You're right about what #5 looks like but I don't know if anyone got a hand on it, though the try was short, so maybe. 6 represents the very worst of the way the sun was hitting the stadium. The exact opposite--light on player, background in shade--would have been perfect. He's far enough into the end zone that he's getting rid of the ball after scoring. #10 is an earlier shot in the sequence of this touchdown run, so at least I had even light for part of it. I appreciate your comments.
They look great. Nice variety as you were going for. The only thing that I think is missing is a crowd shot, but perhaps there are some in the larger gallery.
Great job. Awesome pics.
#1, 2 & 10 strike me the most Russ. Can't decide on #4, it might be the 15mm look. Think I understand what was desired here which you did very well. It would be interesting to see it flattened out as a comparison. In all love the variety and the action is definitely RI Classic
Russ: What I enjoy about your posts is that you tell a story. So many sports photogs (myself included) just take some action pics.
#1 Shows the emotion, excitement and tradition of the game
#2 Solid shot, great eyes
#3 Classic QB pose
#4 New Perspective, great stadium shot without being a stadium shot
#5 Special Teams love shot… plus big man athleticism
#6 Tough lighting but displays the emotion of the game
#7 Great action
#8 More to a football game than ugly linebackers
#9 Documentary Shot: Proof that holding doesn’t happen in high level college football
#10 Excellent action - busy background
I would say you had a great day at the stadium! I know one thing for sure I am packing my 15mm in my bag right now! Thanks Russ. When YOU decide to offer a course on sports photography at Utah, hold me a spot!
Ed: Thank you. Yeah, I just wasn't feeling the crowd for some reason, so I definitely neglected it with my take from this game.
Thanks, Chris.
Bret, yes, the light was very harsh and a lot of the shooting was into it. On the one hand, that was a great thing because it was a warm and beautiful day. As for shooting, not so much. Thanks for your comments.
Hey Carl, you're right, and I know that after yesterday's game beyond all doubt. But last year we thought that about Colorado and they came into Salt Lake for the last regular-season game and denied Utah a spot in the Pac-12 championship game. You've got to beat the teams you're supposed to beat, but with Utah this year, we can't take that for granted! Thanks.
Haha, thanks, Matt. Here's a corrected version of #4. I don't know that this will make much of a difference with perception of the image, and it (either way) seems impossible to rotate to a point where it doesn't still look like it's off. I appreciate the feedback.
Ben Amato wrote:
Russ: What I enjoy about your posts is that you tell a story. So many sports photogs (myself included) just take some action pics.
#1 Shows the emotion, excitement and tradition of the game
#2 Solid shot, great eyes
#3 Classic QB pose
#4 New Perspective, great stadium shot without being a stadium shot
#5 Special Teams love shot… plus big man athleticism
#6 Tough lighting but displays the emotion of the game
#7 Great action
#8 More to a football game than ugly linebackers
#9 Documentary Shot: Proof that holding doesn’t happen in high level college football
#10 Excellent action - busy background
I would say you had a great day at the stadium! I know one thing for sure I am packing my 15mm in my bag right now! Thanks Russ. When YOU decide to offer a course on sports photography at Utah, hold me a spot!
Hey, Ben, thanks man! I really appreciate your image-by-image feedback. Here's my take:
1. Such an obvious shot that it's damn hard to really nail it. I'll keep working on this one.
2. Yeah, the eyes do it for me as well. It's not popping like I wish it was, but I think it's unique, and while it's not obvious from the photo, he was just about to break this for a long touchdown run.
3. I guess this is considered a stock shot, but I'm still a sucker for having the kind of access that allows for it.
4. I shoot from the end zone a lot, but it's not often that the play is happening just a few feet away. This was a spontaneous decision and I was thinking Utah might come after the kick. Had to fumble into my bag on my butt to get the fish out of its pouch and swap lenses between 3rd and 4th downs. Glad I got the shot and it is different, but maybe a 24-70 could have done it better. Hard to say.
5. Washington State's unis are so flipping ugly, and to my eye that's the only thing that hurts this shot that I otherwise think is pretty cool.
6. Lots of shadow recovery to give this shot a chance, but as you say, emotion coming from everywhere.
7. This shot isn't very exciting, but it actually tells the complete story of the game, with Utah dominating, Washington State failing to put up much of a fight, and the Wazzou QB being harassed throughout.
8. As long as the cheerleaders keep showing up, I'll keep doing my best to capture some of their activities. I'm not crazy about this shot, but I do love what the 400 f/2.8 + 1.4x has done to the background.
9. I love this shot, and if not for the overall dulling effect of the sun (and those blasted Wazzou unis), it'd become the first thing anyone would see on my website. To my eye, the action is unique and the intensity is high.
10. This was a shot I was very happy to get, another breakaway touchdown jaunt.
Thanks again, Ben. And I'll let you know about that sports photography course.
Russ, your photography speaks for itself as usual. I can't add much to it so I'm going to drift off topic if I may...Can you believe the ARMS on #15!?!? Jeeze, what a freak of nature!
I'm not a huge sports fan so this may sound stupid but I often wonder how the new generation of athletes, with their state of the art conditioning, would stack up against the older generation of Butkus, Unitias etc. who were great in their time but some of them weren't great physical specimens and some of them even smoked.
Thanks, Marty. Good question. I have to believe there are current-generation athletes who could match up with some of the icons from the past, and possibly have the edge given their virtual life-long training and preparation. But I think the big difference today s that you have incredibly well-trained and talented athletes across the board, so the level of ability as a whole is much higher. What seems to separate teams these days is depth--do they have incredible talent 3-deep at each position, or just 2?
As for the arms, here are a couple of photos of him during pre-game reps a couple of weeks ago--pretty amazing:
killer set I like the variety a ton. I think the shot in your gallery of the two girls with the 21st Bday list is priceless!
Only thing I could add is maybe nice to see an image like Image # 6713430, in the mix. Great action great coverage, always nice to see the emotion after the play. Again this from a newb...
Manny: Many thanks for taking the time to look through the full gallery. I appreciate your comments about the two images you mention. I went out of my way to get the poster image along with the names of the two girls holding it. And I see what you are saying about what the celebration image would add to the set. Thought I'd go ahead and add the birthday shot since it's kind of fun. (She got the first two items on her list, not sure about the last, don't think the third happened.) Thanks again for your feedback.
But last year we thought that about Colorado and they came into Salt Lake for the last regular-season game and denied Utah a spot in the Pac-12 championship game. You've got to beat the teams you're supposed to beat, but with Utah this year, we can't take that for granted! Thanks.
