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Archive 2014 · Utah Gymnastics: First Home Meet

  
 
Russ Isabella
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p.1 #1 · p.1 #1 · Utah Gymnastics: First Home Meet


Shot Utah's season opener last night. A 4-team blur of activity and, unfortunately, one of Utah's best and most dependable performers tore her Achilles during warm-ups prior to the meet. Put a damper on the evening for Utah. For a variety of reasons, I opted to keep it as simple as possible and for action used only the 35L and 70-200 f/2.8L IS II (35 for vault, bars and on second camera for floor; 70-200 for beam and on primary camera for floor). The convenience of the zoom is unquestionable and it's nice not to have to worry too much about cutting off limbs while shooting floor, but it also doesn't seem to have that 'wow' quality that the 200 f/1.8 lens provides. Everything's a tradeoff...

Here are 15 images from the 1,700+ I shot. (And here is a somewhat different set posted on Utah's website.) As always, your C&C is welcome and appreciated.


1. Announced attendance of 14,910
http://www.russisabellaphotography.com/Gymnastics2014/GYMQUAD2.JPG


2.
http://www.russisabellaphotography.com/Gymnastics2014/GYMQUAD11.JPG


3.
http://www.russisabellaphotography.com/Gymnastics2014/GYMQUAD5.JPG


4.
http://www.russisabellaphotography.com/Gymnastics2014/GYMQUAD13.JPG


5.
http://www.russisabellaphotography.com/Gymnastics2014/GYMQUAD4.JPG


6.
http://www.russisabellaphotography.com/Gymnastics2014/GYMQUAD1.JPG


7.
http://www.russisabellaphotography.com/Gymnastics2014/GYMQUAD7.JPG


8.
http://www.russisabellaphotography.com/Gymnastics2014/GYMQUAD8.JPG


9.
http://www.russisabellaphotography.com/Gymnastics2014/GYMQUAD3.JPG


10.
http://www.russisabellaphotography.com/Gymnastics2014/GYMQUAD12.JPG


11.
http://www.russisabellaphotography.com/Gymnastics2014/GYMQUAD6.JPG


12.
http://www.russisabellaphotography.com/Gymnastics2014/GYMQUAD15.JPG


13.
http://www.russisabellaphotography.com/Gymnastics2014/GYMQUAD9.JPG


14.
http://www.russisabellaphotography.com/Gymnastics2014/GYMQUAD10.JPG


15.
http://www.russisabellaphotography.com/Gymnastics2014/GYMQUAD14.JPG




Jan 12, 2014 at 04:24 PM
Matt OHarver
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p.1 #2 · p.1 #2 · Utah Gymnastics: First Home Meet


Great stuff as usual Russ. I really like 1, 6, 7, 15.


Jan 12, 2014 at 04:32 PM
danmc
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p.1 #3 · p.1 #3 · Utah Gymnastics: First Home Meet


! nice


Jan 12, 2014 at 05:57 PM
BillyHurst
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p.1 #4 · p.1 #4 · Utah Gymnastics: First Home Meet


Very solid as always Russ. 3,5,6,7 and 11 are favs.
Billy-



Jan 12, 2014 at 08:04 PM
BobnJake
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p.1 #5 · p.1 #5 · Utah Gymnastics: First Home Meet


Opened up Sports Forum, Nice surprise, there's Russ and Gymnastics. It's that time of the year!!!!

Favorites, #7, #10, sorry to hear about the injury



Jan 12, 2014 at 08:12 PM
scorpio1
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p.1 #6 · p.1 #6 · Utah Gymnastics: First Home Meet


Great set Russ. #1 is very impressive!


Jan 12, 2014 at 10:51 PM
Russ Isabella
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p.1 #7 · p.1 #7 · Utah Gymnastics: First Home Meet


Thanks for the feedback, Matt.

Dan: Shot any more gymnastics lately?

Billy: Thaks--appreciate the picks.

Thanks, Bob. Yeah, the injury was a downer. Not only a blow to the team, but as I'm sure you know, these athletes work so hard and basically devote their lives to the sport, so it was a sad night, especially for the people closest to the team.

Thanks, Ed!

Just posted these and a bunch more photos on my blog.



Jan 12, 2014 at 11:08 PM
Paulthelefty
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p.1 #8 · p.1 #8 · Utah Gymnastics: First Home Meet


Gotta love it when you get a free "fill card" in #15... really makes her face light up and makes the shot!

Great stuff, as usual!

Paul



Jan 13, 2014 at 12:24 AM
lhryshko
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p.1 #9 · p.1 #9 · Utah Gymnastics: First Home Meet


#1. Amazing venue and unreal fan support. Must feel like the Olympics for these gymnasts.

#2. Against my better judgement, I will confess that I am not a great fan of #2 or #5 from your previous post (intrasquad meet). Different, interesting, but..................I don't know why they don't work for me. They just seem awkward. Focus Locus, who is extremely gym savvy, sees great merit in this vantage point but I don't get them. Kudos for continually looking for something unique and different though.

#3 Love this. My favorite by far even without complete face. Exemplifies the difficulty of this sport.

#s 6 10 and 11 are other favorites.

So sorry to hear about Kassandra. What a horrible thing to happen at the first meet.

Best wishes,

Larry



Jan 13, 2014 at 01:21 AM
schlotz
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p.1 #10 · p.1 #10 · Utah Gymnastics: First Home Meet


The 70-200 worked pretty good, Russ. Got to agree though, there is something magical about what the 200 1.8 brings to a party. It would be interesting to see a set that included some from it for comparison? Without a question the "other" capture for the night is #6, great grab

Each are a joy to review and in total provides the personal feel of being right there.

...and it will get even better guys, wait for it!

Matt



Jan 13, 2014 at 08:28 AM
Aqualung
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p.1 #11 · p.1 #11 · Utah Gymnastics: First Home Meet


Outstanding Russ...bummer about the girl's injury...

Chris



Jan 13, 2014 at 09:12 AM
Russ Isabella
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p.1 #12 · p.1 #12 · Utah Gymnastics: First Home Meet


Thanks, Paul!

Larry: Many thanks for your comments. I hear what you are saying about #2 (and 5 from the last post). I definitely am plagued by the desire to find something 'different' (I've been doing this for enough years that so much of what I capture seems repetitive), and I think that a sense of "you've never seen it from this angle" is driving my selection of a shot like #2. That and the eyes. Could be it's a unique angle for good reason, as your comments would suggest. But I've had a few like this that I've been drawn to, for whatever reason. I think you've got a pretty good eye for this stuff, so I appreciate you sharing your take on it. And thanks for the rest of your comments.

Thanks, Matt. With your prompting I've put together a single, simple comparison (posted below). One thing worth noting is that with the zoom, I'm striving for full-body compositions. Not sure why other than that it's possible and one reason for using the zoom is to avoid the problems associated with the tighter view. So this comparison is full-body vs. tight upper body. Maybe an unfair comparison, but I do think it's relevant because it's not simply a matter of what the lens is capable of--how I'm using it also plays into the equation.

Chris: Thanks for your comment. Nice to see your high school gymnastics set.

http://www.russisabellaphotography.com/Gymnastics2014/200Comp.jpg



Jan 13, 2014 at 11:23 AM
pjbuehner
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p.1 #13 · p.1 #13 · Utah Gymnastics: First Home Meet


Outstanding set. #1 is such a fantastic shot to set the scene. Impressive venue.

7,10,14, and 15 jump out at me but they are all impressive.

Cheers,
Peter



Jan 13, 2014 at 05:42 PM
Focus Locus
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p.1 #14 · p.1 #14 · Utah Gymnastics: First Home Meet


lhryshko wrote:
Focus Locus, who is extremely gym savvy, sees great merit in this vantage point but I don't get them.



Finding nuanced shot opportunities to help Xcel gymnasts look "excellent" is the appeal. For a collegiate level gymnast who wouldn't even be competing in the program were he or she not capable of executing a skill that would yield a better photo, no, I agree, these shots can be cut when compared to other shots more consistent with what we expect.

However, we simply can't get straight legs, pointed toes, big air, or graceful lines out of awkward, untrained, ungainly, but still courageously competing kids... who only participate in the sport on a very part time basis. Xcel gymnasts are similar to what you might encounter at the local recreation and parks department program, where gymnastics is merely a three day a week substitute for PE, not a three+ hour a day training regimen following the structure of the JR Olympic program.

We have all seen great gymnastics photos... not just as gymnastics photographers, not just as photographers, not just as parents... but as people in the public at large. Those media promogulated photos of Olympic events have conditioned our minds and expectations of what the sport "should" look like. And the young minds of recreational gymnasts are just as conditioned. So are the minds of their parents... and those are the minds my photos must ultimately please (in order to be paid for the work).

So when Russ busts out with a frame that I always miss because I am conditioned to shoot the aerial, not the moment before the aerial, I think oh yeah... this is the moment where the gymnast hasn't fudged it up yet. This still frame adequately documents the COURAGE to TRY, not the dismal failure that followed.

Most televised gymnastics meets are podium events, where the apparatus is elevated about a meter or so above the actual floor. So getting down low, as Russ does at beam, gives the subconsciously conditioned mind a mirror match of the "look" that we are all accustomed to seeing in the magazines (because those images are of podium events).

Bottom line... making awkward kids look like Olympians, capturing their courage, finding clean frames of preparation when there are no usable frames of their performance... that is my duty as a photographer of the everyday kid who is not really a gymnast, but who is just as dutifully and boldly taking that risk on the beam anyway.



Jan 14, 2014 at 12:32 PM
lhryshko
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p.1 #15 · p.1 #15 · Utah Gymnastics: First Home Meet


Beautiful and thoughtful answer, Focus.

Thank you!



Jan 14, 2014 at 01:20 PM
chrisbergmann
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p.1 #16 · p.1 #16 · Utah Gymnastics: First Home Meet


Great set thanks for sharing


Jan 20, 2014 at 04:54 PM





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