Team Sports Action

A striking image, shot directly into the low sunlight to cast long shadows of the footballers. Although the players are relatively small in the frame, the length of the shadows, which extend to fill the empty playing field in the foreground, do not allow them to be lost in the scene. You have done well to capture the players individually with no overlap of the near-silhouettes; the icing on the cake would have been if the ball were isolated between two players too instead of being mostly obscured. The image works well in black and white, which accentuates the use of the light and creates a great mood. Congratulations on your winning image.

I love this rather informal capture of what looks to be a well-fought game of street basketball. What I especially like is the capture of the emotion, the concentration and also the fun of the game. Some may find the spectators a distraction, but I feel they add to the atmosphere here and give a sense of the setting. Well done on your top ten placing.

What really attracts me to this image is the mood it creates. By being captured on a hazy evening, you have been able to shoot towards the sun and capture its partially obscured golden glow. The youngsters playing volleyball on the well-worn pitch on the edge of the village convey a sense of gentle camaraderie and mutual enjoyment of sport. There may be little else to do in terms of local entertainment for these young people, but friendships will be forged during this game for sure. A scene played out on a daily basis in many communities around the world, this is a lovely capture of the evening sports activity. Congratulations on your third place finish.

This is just the type of image I was hoping to see in this contest, showing a team of sporting athletes, and some dynamic sporting action. By shooting with a wide angle lens, from low to the ground, adds more of a dynamic and involves the viewer more intimately in the game than just being a casual spectator. Captured at just the right moment as the woman is high in the air just prior to the strike of the ball. Lighting is well controlled in what looks to be challenging lighting conditions looking up into the interior floodlights. Great work, well done on your top ten placing.

A superb action shot that has perfectly combined the blur of the limbs with the heads and shoulders in sharp focus, which enables us to see the emotion , the speed and physical strain of the moment of the sprint relay changeover. You have really captured what you so accurately describe as the precision amongst the chaos, and viewed like this in a still shot it is a wonder more batons are not dropped. The image works well in black and white as it allows full focus on the action of the athletes rather than be distracted by the colours of the track and clothing. Congratulations on your second place finish.

What makes this image stand out for me is the slightly unusual viewpoint, with the player in the foreground half filling the frame, but we are able to look beyond, in the same direction as the No. 6, to the key action of the rugby lineout. Where the image is especially successful is that the hoisted players are set against the plain white sky, meaning the attention fully focuses on them, rather than becoming lost by a 'busier' backdrop. Super black and white conversion too. Well done on your top ten placing.

I love this documentry shot of a rather small-scale game of football being played in an unusual setting. If anyone were unconvinced about the global love of football, they need only look at this photo to be convinced of the passion for the game. There is no obvious focal point, but I think my eye is initially drawn to the figure in the yellow vest, but then the eye wanders to explore all the individual characters, whether participating in the action or spectating. A delightful image to view, well done on your top ten placing.

A bright and bold image of colourful sails racing across the churning water. The competitors on the boats are clearly visible, so the image is just as much about the people as it is the boats. The image combines the thrill of the sport with a lovely portrayal of the sail boats, with the colours of the sails contrasting nicely with the clear blue sky. Great image, well done on your top ten placing.