Thank you to everyone who was able to attend the Day At The Ballpark with Allen’s Camera, Sony, and the Trenton Thunder. It was a pleasure spending the day with everyone and trying out the latest Sony cameras and lenses as well as shooting a live professional baseball game.
We were all overwhelmed with the quality and quantity of images we saw tagged on social media as well as the submissions for the photo contest. Along with Sony Artisan Patrick Murphy-Racey we found it very difficult in picking a top 3 and the discussions became in-depth and philosophic of what it takes to make quality sports images.
However; we can only have a top 3 and not a top 300, and in looking at the collection of images sent in for submission we should all feel like winners and like all creators we can build from our experiences and move forward towards a goal of having “the shot”.
Michael F: In sports, we are always looking for the peak moment of action, and in this image, we see the pitcher almost getting hit by the ball coming off the bat. While this happens in baseball, it is not common. Further, to actually capture it with the ball still in front of the player is pretty rare. Add to that the sharp focus, crop, and overall toning of the image by the photographer, you get a prize winning image.
Dexter - There were two versions of the same play and while they were very close, they depicted different moments. In this one, the 1st baseman has the ball in hit mitt, but there is no way to move the mitt to the runner’s hand in time. In baseball, split seconds count and this low angle image shot from 3rd (I’m guessing) really shows how close this play was. In addition, we have an umpire concentrating hard on watching it all unfold and this reaction to the play also adds value to the photo.
Michael S: Baseball is all about timing, extremely methodical. Not just a pitcher throws to a batter and they try to make a hit every play, it is controlled motion, batting stances, and pitchers windups. In this image the photographer overcame obstacles such as the netting behind home plate, but also anticipated when the pitcher’s left leg would be high enough to be over the umpire while still framing in the left handed batter. With the Pitchers eyes focused straight ahead, those who view this image will forever ponder the outcome making this as timeless as baseball itself.
