What a great category here, we really had some hard decisions to make. Readers (and athletes) in this area are lucky to have a lot of great visual coverage.
First place has it all, a beautiful clean background the athleticism and emotion in missing that home run. It had a verbal reaction from all judges the second we saw it.
For second place we've all tried for that dusty slide shot but this one is exactly what we're aiming for when we do. The focus is pin sharp on his face, mouth closed as he avoids eating the swarm of dust. Third place was the winner in a category full of out at base attempts. Seeing the mitt fly in this moment really made it stand out and we liked the low angle.
We really liked the action of the alternate soccer goal but it couldn't hold up to other photos without a crop. The distraction background of colors diverts from the action and there's no reason it shouldn't have been croped tight to players (and would have placed) we also really wanted to like the hit by throw, and when viewed as a thumbnail we did but in real size it was just off. The focus is just off, it's just too pixelated, to really make it a stunning action photo.
Judges:
Sarah Gordon/The Day, Peter Huoppi/The Day, Dana Jensen/The Day
Judges Comments
What a great category here, we really had some hard decisions to make. Readers (and athletes) in this area are lucky to have a lot of great visual coverage. First place has it all, a beautiful clean background the athleticism and emotion in missing that home run. It had a verbal reaction from all judges the second we saw it. For second place we've all tried for that dusty slide shot but this one is exactly what we're aiming for when we do. The focus is pin sharp on his face, mouth closed as he avoids eating the swarm of dust. Third place was the winner in a category full of out at base attempts. Seeing the mitt fly in this moment really made it stand out and we liked the low angle. We really liked the action of the alternate soccer goal but it couldn't hold up to other photos without a crop. The distraction background of colors diverts from the action and there's no reason it shouldn't have been croped tight to players (and would have placed) we also really wanted to like the hit by throw, and when viewed as a thumbnail we did but in real size it was just off. The focus is just off, it's just too pixelated, to really make it a stunning action photo.