Softball and Baseball

People viewing this photo can feel the pain of the collision and experience the emotion of the umpire's call. Great job of using a fast shutter speed to capture the peak action as well as communicating the resolution to the conflict at home plate. The finished image would possibly be improved a bit by cropping out some of the dead space on left and right, but it is still a worthy entry in the top ten for this contest.

This is a perfect example of peak action frozen in time. From a creative standpoint, you have captured the unresolved conflict of the catch as well as the emotion on this young players face as he stretches to make the catch. I also agree with your decision to present this shot in greyscale. Technically, the photo is well done with the choice of a suitably fast shutter speed yet you still maintained enough depth of field to keep all of the relevant elements in the photo in sharp focus. All of the above reasons propelled this photo to the number one place for me over a very competitive top ten field of entries!

This is a great capture of a "down in the dirt" slide at home plate. The fast shutter speed combined with shallow depth of field really emphasizes the action between runner and fielder but what is probably the best part of this photo for me is the capture of the runner's facial expression. A worthy entry in the top ten for this contest.

The overall lighting combined with the weathered texture of the ball and just the right amount of depth of field helps instill a sense of sports nostalgia for your viewers. The appropriate copping and use of the principles of rule of thirds also helped propel this photo into a Highly Commended ranking and very nearly a top ten finish.

This is an excellent example of a great capture of peak action and the conflict between runner and fielder. I appreciate your choice of cropping just enough to focus on the action yet you kept the edge of the base on the left as a goal for the runner. This photo was a contender for a top ten finish and certainly worthy of a Highly Commended ranking.

Through your choice of a faster shutter speed, you did a great job of capturing the peak action and unresolved conflict in this shot. Great use of cropping to make sure the action at the plate is the main focus of the viewer. Certainly worthy of a top ten finish!

As a general rule of thumb, most photographers try to capture the "ball" in action photos of ball sports. This image is the perfect example of why that rule doesn't always have to be followed. The strong diagonal lines of the body are continued out of the frame by the eye-line which must lead to the ball in flight while the angle of the bat offers a perfect counter balance to those lines. Technically speaking, you have a perfect balance of a fast shutter speed and just enough depth of field to keep a cluttered background from overpowering the image while maintaining sharpness of the entire player. The cropping is certainly appropriate and I agree with your decision to present this in greyscale. Overall, you have captured an incredible image of a "well hit ball" that has earned you a top ten finish as well as consideration for number one!

Your effective use of minimum depth of field is a powerful tool in this image that helps redirect the viewer's attention back to the main subject of this photo, which happens to be the player's eyes. The glove and cap provide enough environmental cues so there is no mistake this is a baseball player, but as previously mentioned, they are just far enough out of the depth of field that they do not take away from the eyes. Certainly worthy of a top ten finish and as a contender for number one.

The clever use of the equipment (ball and glove) as an out-of-focus frame for this portrait of a softball player helped propel this image into the top ten for this contest. The background might be a little cluttered, but you made great use of a fill light in this backlit portrait to help your subject stand out!

This is a very well thought out composite image. I appreciate the use of different light sources on the various layers that really brings out the texture on the well worn glove as well as the balls. This photo is certainly worthy of a Highly Commended ranking and nearly finished in the top ten for this contest.

Great angle and sense of timing with this capture. You also did a great job of cropping and "burning/dodging" to emphasize the main subject as well as the interaction of player and ball through his eye-line. The depth of field as well as lighting does a great job of giving the elusion of the third dimension. This was a solid entry in my top ten and a contender for number one.

You used a perfect combination of fast shutter speed and shallow depth of field to capture the throw from this "colorful" young player. Your appropriate use of cropping as well as following the principles of rule of thirds helped propel this image into the judge's top ten for this contest.

You have captured some of the body contortions that many athletes (especially baseball and softball pitchers) experience as they play their respective sports. You have achieved good "stop-action" with a reasonably fast shutter speed. The impact of the slightly distracting background might have been decreased with slightly less depth of field but this is still an overall striking image that is worthy of a "Highly Commended" ranking and was close to a top-ten finish in this contest.

This is an incredible capture of a beautiful day for baseball. Your choice of layered framing keeps the viewer's interest in the photo while the other elements of field, fans and sky evoke a sense of baseball nostalgia. I can almost hear the song "Take Me Out to the Ball Game" by Frank Sinatra & Gene Kelly when I look at this photo. Great submission of a photo worthy of a top ten finish!