Judges Comments

First place: This was a clear winner from a very strong pool of images this month. Our judge that deals the most in sports photo was thrilled at the movement, the peak action and the crop on this spectacular shot. Great work getting the emotion on faces, everything is in here, including the ball. This shot is clean and would have been something different if subjects were millimeters off. Second place: We had two images submitted from the same moment with slightly different angles. What set this one apart was lighting and the crop. From the perspective of peak action, being closer to the action in the frame meant we could immediately see the tension between players, with the ball right between them. Nice job filling the frame and bringing viewers right where we want them to look. Third place: This is a great peak action moment with a lot of emotion in the face. It’s another image that is done very well, timed right and photographed with the expertise we are looking for. The depth of field is deep enough that we get a clear look at both players, the ball is in the shot, not cut off and in a good place, the mud is apparent, flying everywhere. It’s a great moment at the right angle with a photographer who knew what they were doing. Honorable mention: We had a few entries with this movement, but none did this so well. You filled the frame, but have a nice sense of balance in the image. The photo has sharp focus and a nice blurred crowd as the background. It’s clean, it’s timed well, and the image is cropped right. He is off the ground, making the peak action better, and his opposing team is in the background on the players heels. Great work. Category notes: There were lots of really solid sports action submitted this month. We loved seeing really great moments from high school through professional athletics. This category took some time to judge as we really had some great contenders. Main things like sharp focus, decisive moment and cropping were ultimately what set best images apart.