Game over

Amazing shot. Beautiful.

 

I would just like point something out. I'm pretty sure the ref isn't holding the boxer back. He's counting "3" out of 10 for the knock out count.

 

Amazing shot, great in Sepia. Love the psychological lines all pointing at the downed fighter, and his slight turn away from his opponent.

Congratulations Tomm!!!!

Truly an excellent photo!

Without doubt one of the strongest "Photography of the week" so far.

Peter

This shot just captures the atmoshphere down to a tee, and the sepia just makes the shot even more fired up. i love the use of a wide angle lens there so much better than telephoto

Im surprised at Lucas Griegos description of boxing as the sweetest science when he describes having to clean blood spots off his camera lens and elbows when photographing these events. Is that why boxing photos work better in b&w because the viewer is shielded from the full horror of the violence being perpetrated? This is clearly a great photo, but I find depressing the fact that so many people have lavished praise on it without raising a moral objection to the subject matter. Lucas remarks that boxers train like animals. Sadly, in the ring they also behave like animals and sometimes even die like animals. My friend Tony likened the crowds bloodlust to what youd expect at a Roman gladiatorial contest. If this photograph depicted one man dispatching another by thrusting a sword through his opponents throat would the praise heaped upon this image have been so enthusiastic? When does violence cease to be beautiful?

 

I recognise this forum is not the place for a debate on the morality of blood sports. But placing a picture like this on such a pedestal could be regarded as a celebration of violence. War photos may be justified as a salutary lesson in highlighting the brutality of conflict. During the Vietnam war such images speeded the conclusion of the conflict by fuelling anti-war sentiments in America. Similarly, an image of a mauled fox or a bruised and bloodied boxer (in colour) could have a similar effect. But this photo does not highlight the brutality of boxing, it masks the cruelty through dynamic composition, chocolate-sepia tones and dramatic, almost balletic poses from the combatants. These elements appeal so strongly to our aesthetic senses that we filter out the pain and wanton violence that this sport represents. We cant see the prone boxers face. We cant feel his pain. And fortunately, there are no blood spots on the lens to spoil the view

The photo is amazing and beautiful and the subject does nothing to detract from the technical and compositional brilliance of this shot.

 

Likening this situation to a gladiatorial contest is just a figure of speech. The gladiators of ancient Rome did not have a choice to participate or not to- boxers do! They are like any other sportspeople- they love the game which is why they are in it.

 

And as evidenced by the resounding praise above (which I fully and totally echo) one can appreciate a shot like this while we may not appreciate a similar shot of a sword plunging into another human being precisely for the same reason- this is a sport, a game- while that is not- and the two are not comparable. And not everything is a moral issue.

 

One of the best shots I've seen on photo.net and definitely a most deserving POW. Well done Tomm.

If there was a photo of the year ,then this should be it.

In my opinion one of the 3 best photos on the whole site.

Congrats Tomm.

Your uniformed missive shows that have never spent much time in or around the ring. Boxing is a sport whose integrity depends on sportsmanship, artistry and discipline. Whether or not boxing fits into a neat little PC category for you to be able to deal with is a seperate issue from whether or not this shot works.

 

It works well in black and white for the many reasons stated above - your welcome to scan up the thread and take a look for yourself. As for ill informed comments on something you seem to know very little about save it for some other place.

It's a photo of a boxing match, Trevor... not A Challenge To Civilization As We Know It.

 

With so many other things to worry about - short skirts, life on Mars, Catholics, Doomsday - why get your knickers in a knot about a couple of pugs sluggin' it out?

 

The similarity between Norweigan fisticuffs with smoke machines substituting for cigarettes compared to the obscene carnage of Viet Nam escapes me (and, I suspect, many others).

 

Good on you for being against violence, mate, but I think you overstate your case.

"...A Challenge To Civilization As We Know It..."

 

Hmm, Mr. Dummett, you've obviously missed a few choice Mike Tyson soundbites. And earbites, for that matter.

 

:-)

 

Words fail me. This pic is totally iconic.

Just adding to the chorus. This is beauty found in ugliness. Bravo.

Phantastic sport picture. Could'nt have done it better. Congratulation!

Excellent in B&W brings more depth and meaning, as you said a little chaotic in color, if only they had also band chandeliers !

Great one Tomm. Congrats!

For the sake of discussion, what would be sacrificed if we included more of the announcer on the right and the referee on the left?

 

The referee's role in this image is in question partly because we see so little of him. Include me in the group that thinks he's on 'three' out of ten.

I think it's the very anonymity of the ref that's the clincher here. It takes one's imagination out of the frame, making the pic more interesting.

Fantastic picture Tomm! It really is "the right place at the right time".

 

The first glance I had at the picture on the homepage of photo.net, made me think "what year was this picture taken? 40's?" ... then I saw "EOS 1D" :)

 

Your additional comments give also an additional idea on how ephemerous that moment was and also the circumstances around (smoke, etc). Great shot! Thanks for sharing it!

No doubt - an awesome picture...and a near-perfect decisive moment .

But I think it is missing one element that keeps it from that upper echelon of great boxing photographs (I am trying my best to hold my tongue on Mr.Hopkins comments...obviously no relation to Bernard)I think the picture is missing a face; either that of the victorious boxer or of his opponent. Something that shows us the the "thrill of victory or the agony of defeat" or what have you.

I do believe it does work better being of two unanimous boxers as opposed to known figures because of this.I can't stop thinking that it was too bad the photographer was not at the other end of the shot shooting towards his position or at least having the upright boxer a little more square to the camera (if it would be possible to shoot through the ropes with the WA)Anyways, I guess we don't need to recreate the famous Ali-Liston picture. It is great the way it is..and the fact is that Tomm probably got the best pic possible from his position.

Whose faces are important? The four official participants are all there in whole or in part, but none of them have faces. It's OK that the only faces belong to ringside observers, but just as our attention is drawn to the boxers by capturing the dynamic poses (reposes?), I'd like to see more of the gestures of both the announcer, who is easily missed, and the referee, whose actions need more than a hand and a foot to be understood. Given how close both the announcer and referee are to the boxers, it seems a shame not to have included just a bit more of each without sacrificing the impact of the combatants.

This is probably one of the best shots I've ever seen in boxing. I like the way you're drawn right into the ring via the ropes. I'm not sure if I like the ref's hand holding the boxer back.

It is more dramatic in the sepia than in color...that's for sure. Thanks.

lovely, shot. an excellent decision to go grayscale and a great job at that. congrats to the photographer. it's very beautiful and it's all there!!!!

Trevor may have overstated his case. but please, don't tell me he doesn't make any sense. yes, boxing involves good bit of sportsmanship, discipline and artistry. i've even heard boxing compared to ballet in the sense of grace and the skill it takes to shine. yes, there are more rules and regulations. yes, it has been tamed down quite a bit. yes, there are less and less casualties now. yes it's not a mere dog-fight, or a cock-fight. but, honestly, how can one in good conscience derive pleasure out of the sight of a man getting knocked out and falling flat on the ground like a dead tree in the forest? maybe i am uninformed, but the mere scene of a crowd cheering two fellows knocking the hell out of each other is not far from barbaric to me, personally, let alone exploitative. and given that there is a good bit of money at stake sometimes, though not always, behind all of these, it's more than a sport or art for that matter. ofcourse, that's just me and your mileage may vary.

First off, very nice photo indeed. The frame is nicely filled, the action element is splendid and it plain looks good.

 

I've shot many boxing matches, which may distinguish me from the people who don't like boxing on principle, but which may provide some basis for my thoughts. What doesn't work for me particularly well is the obvious atypical setup of the whole match. The ring looks lower than a regulation ring, and there don't seem to be the requisite number of people who line the ring in a match. Instead we see an announcer (?), a man with his hand casually placed on the ring, and the (we now learn) fake smoke. While I have no doubt that the match itself was real, the whole event does look like what it was: a corporate enterprise for the amusement of car dealers. Anyone who has been to the real thing will not mistake the faces around the ring for actual fans and participants.

 

As far as the angle, it's great. The photographer was in the right spot, or was lucky to be in the right spot, and got the shot. It's as simple as that. I wish that it had not been duotoned. The color version is more real. I always feel when I see modern boxing pics shot on TriX that the photographer is trying for the SpeedGraphic "look". It's not a sin to acknowledge that this is today, not the 1940's, and color is the means of visual communication that today we understand best. The decolorization to me adds to the unreality of a photo of what is a very real sport.

 

Having said all that, after the bland choices of the past few months, I am glad that PN chose a real photograph that depended on skill, timing, and control over equipment like this one. Congratulations on an excellent photo.

In response to the fact this is not realistic for a boxing match I have to say that most Hollywood movies are not very realistic either if you ask people with some expert knowledge (Rocky, Red October etc.) I guess it's all about imagination and that's why I feel bw really adds to this one. As a professional sports photographer myself I guess this image crosses the line from sports to entertainment. But does it really matter?

Tomm, in answer to your question: No, it doesn't really matter. It's a great photo that has

also provoked deep-felt and emotional response. That's always a sign that the photo

really communicates and is one in which you can and should be proud. - Maria

I like the monochrome version better. It makes it more a point in time than feeling like you're in reality, right here, right now. I think the downed fighter's lanky legs really help to make this image. It gives a tremendous sense of depth. I like the way the audience is included very subtly, and how distorted the lines are, like it's the downed fighter dreaming over and over again of being knocked out...