Sports Portraits
RM_Photo

Sports Portraits

May 2025

Entry 22577099
4th
1
203
Crowd
winner

2,448 Images entered

Entry 22573527
222nd
132
Expert
winner

Congratulations on the winning image! Great focus. Great context. Interesting position with the ball. Full of character & great connection with viewer ...&photographer. Excellent lighting. Looks like a very well planned shoot. Beautiful work totally on point for advertising. Super congratulations again - great work not easy to achieve & demonstrates true skill!

Entry 22585952
2nd
57
Entry 22628733
1073rd
69
Entry 22662965
44th
92
Entry 22664715
647th
40
Entry 22839824
5th
28
Entry 22960944
1255th
17
Entry 23304082
10th
15

Meet the expert judge

Entry 23454077
89th
30
Entry 23478893
52nd
27
Entry 23486325
92nd
39
Entry 23489775
243rd
1
27

1,225 Photographers

Entry 24048840
1683rd
4

This would have been an absolutely amazing image ....if the front subject was in focus. The settings look ok, might be worth moving the aperture up a little to 3.5. Perhaps a monopod might help a little too if not using already for this kind of image. Potentially a little wider frame may increase the impact as will add a natural frame around the red & black colours. Might be nice to include their feet too. If shooting raw can bring out the the front subject a little in the editing process to really make him pop. Excellent effort though!

Entry 24142032
9th
25

70,301 Ratings

Entry 24025297
1152nd
6

Love this - very cool! The one aspect which is a bit bothersome to me is that the bottom of the ball & fingers are cut off. Maybe an artistic decision & a little subjective. Potentially would be tempted to move the light around a little so there's a little less shadow on the subject's face. Personally I feel this level of shadow is better suited to a a more masculine gritty subject but again potentially a little subjective. If it were an advertising image (which it does have the feeling of), either as full stadium or an empty stadium in the background would be preferable but appreciate timing allowed for this shoot was probably a key aspect. Or is the image cut onto a backdrop? V well done if so. Potentially could remove the light box reflections to create greater connection between the subject & viewer. Overall an excellent image - very well done!!

Entry 24114518
1887th
1

Would have loved to commend this image! But oh nooooo the focus just isn't there I'm afraid. The eyes & face & whole body should all be in sharp focus at f/11. Not sure what's happened. The loghting needs a little correction too - it's mainly focussed on the chest & arm area - ideally needs to be a bit higher on the face. A little more negatve space above would be preferable too. Excellent starting effort though! Please do keep practicing a little more & enter another one :)

Entry 24153293
271st
23
Entry 24153314
1212th
8

Oh noooooooo! The focus just isn't there :((( But it is an absolutely epic photo in all other respects. The facial expressions on the subjects are all fantastic! So rare to get in a group. But the focus... Would've like a little more negative space around the subjects too. Have another go at practising focus under pressure in fast moving situations :)

Entry 24180847
655th
7
Entry 24182162
1224th
8
Entry 24190476
432nd
33
Entry 24191060
197th
38

Brief

See more contest details

We're used to sports photography showing action on the field of play, but here we're focussing on portraiture of sportspeople. For an interesting challenge, see if someone you know, or a local team, will pose for photos fresh from the field of play - the sweat and exhaustion of the game still on them. Or explore taking a portrait style image of someone whilst they're engaged in their sport, or with their sports equipment.

Entry 22573277
2341st
41
Entry 22573620
968th
84
Entry 22573673
510th
9
Entry 22575052
305th
1
61
Entry 22575290
1682nd
5
Entry 22575371
335th
125
Entry 22577098
49th
22
Entry 22580919
47th
25
Entry 22585950
137th
50
Entry 22589471
2272nd
3
Entry 22590784
489th
22
Entry 22613976
1115th
7
Entry 22633357
460th
14
Entry 22662966
66th
35

This is super super super cool! Love the colour palette. Love the poses. Love the positions of the players with each other & the feeling that they are really a team. I’m struggling to put this image in the top ten though due to a slight lack of focus / would have been up there if the focus was sharper on the subjects. Would’ve been nice for the player with eyes closed to have his eyes open - face swapping is good for groups of this size. Otherwise absolutely fantastic image!!

Entry 22698170
38th
10
Entry 22698368
684th
27

I love everything about the subjects in this image. Expressions, engaged energy, body position, synchronicity of stripey socks. Composition is wonderful! Would’ve like the focus a bit sharper. Also find the bag in the bottom left a bit distracting. Excellent interaction with subjects though & great image overall. Looking forward to seeing more of your work.

Entry 22698370
520th
34
Entry 22698371
486th
24

Facial expression & comp are fantastic. Agree the mud on face makes for an interesting aspect. Would have like focus sharp on the eyes! Focus seems to be on jacket. Also would’ve like a bit more light on subject’s face. Esp against the highlight of the sky. Could you have turned Dave to create a bit more light on his face? Or carry a small reflector to pop out for these kinds of images? Well done on on persuading him to pose those - it comes through in the photo he was was happy & comfortable to pose for you. Well done / nice image!

Entry 22719240
2152nd
38

Love the lighting. Love the posture. Love the facial expression. Would have liked a bit sharper focus on face. Would also have like a slightly wider frame. Bit more negative space above head & also showing a little more space below knee to add context of pose. Otherwise fantastic image!

Entry 22721079
1803rd
12
Entry 22737200
331st
1
Entry 22771034
12th
1
56
Entry 22843241
284th
10

I kinda love it!! It's a beautifully artistic image. Thje kind which would be great framed & I really hope it will be. Love the 'Brixton' i& the ring n the background - nicely positioned & great contextually. Can't quite decide if the focs being on the boxer's side is wonderfully artistic & perfect as is or would be better on the glove? The more I look at this image the more I love it. Super well done.

Entry 22964189
834th
4
Entry 23000401
161st
9
Entry 23058387
15th
54
Entry 23136938
1105th
2
Entry 23199688
860th
2
Entry 23219599
48th
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Entry 23436474
51st
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Entry 23511800
312th
12
Entry 23649739
16th
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Entry 23660483
184th
11

I love everything about this image ...apart from the lack of focus I'm afraid to say. Lighting is amazing. Composition is amazing. Set up is amazing. Story telling is amazing. I wonder if the body posture would be a little stronger with one arm straight down. Potentially standing a little forwards onnthe grey part of the floor. If the focus wass sharp on the subject's face then this would definitely have been a top ten contender. Excellent work overall! Very well put together image. Looking forward to seeing more of your work!

Entry 23719243
2387th
3

This is a pretty cool image. I like the colour grading. I like the white strips on the closest subject's top & how it ties into the the rest of the image. Unfortunately the subject's aren't in focus, otherwise it would have achieved a higher score. The body positions of the team could have been a little stronger. Would be tempted to crop out the partial subject on the right. Plus tidy up the grass in the background. Overall great effort! Please do try a reshoot of this one :)

Amazing Image!! Strong story. Caught amazing facial expressions & great point in the match! Composition is pretty much perfect!! Excellent eye for catching the moment. Slight issue on the focus I'm afraid otherwise would have scored much higher. Usually boxing matches are low light & I'm assuming this was a big factor on why your settings are where they are. Aperture needs to be at least 4-5 here. Potentially may get away with 3.5 but tricky while moving. Shutter needs to go up to 300-400. Then of course ISO needs to go up much further to compensate. Unfamiliar with the Nikon D40X & how high the ISO can cope on this model. Sony A9 can cope very well in the 6000-10000 range. Worth playing around with the settings & very much looking forward to more of your work!!

Composition great. Action great. Nody positions great. Settings look fine but the focus is a little off & subjects are a little blurry I'm afraid. If the focus was on point this would have scored higher. Potentially slightly overcooked on the contrast. Lovely work overall. Looking forward to seeing another entry with sharper focus! Well done.

Entry 23910912
35th
8
Entry 23910968
23rd
17
Entry 23951285
33rd
42
Entry 23972786
1275th
8

Gone with a commend. Would be worth experimenting with a couple of aspects with this type of portrait to improve the image. Firstly I'd be tempted to put a 2.8 aperture focus on the eyes rather than the side of head. It's the eye focus in a portrait which really makes the subject pop. OR use a higher aperture & have eyes + head in focus. Also would be tempted to make the crop a little wider to add greater context. The neck tattoo would be nice to play a larger role in this particular image & would with a wider crop. Overall great though!!

Entry 23982292
1051st
2
Entry 23996142
1086th
23
Entry 24041364
14th
26
Entry 24045038
11th
22

Very nice attempt at panning. Would have liked the closest subject in sharper focus... But the position of the riders is perfect. Nice comp. Nice backdrop - you chose s good position to stand. Super looking forward to seeing more of your work :)

Entry 24095577
62nd
82
Entry 24153330
57th
18
Entry 24180815
186th
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Entry 24187230
19th
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Entry 24189246
22nd
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Entry 24189551
42nd
1
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