Wrestling - C&C Wanted

Wrestling has finally started for us. We have scheduled a ton of tournaments and league matches this season. January figures to be a very busy month for us as we wrestling 2 times a week at least.

On to the images, let me know what you think. These were shot with a 1d classic, SS was 1/250th, iso was 400 and flash was on camera. Processed in LR.

I would rather shoot off camera flash with wrestling, but the referees are getting tougher on setting up lights in our gyms. I'll shoot off camera in our home gym and the images should be better. I am also thinking of getting a bracket to get the flash off the camera when I cannot setup additional lighting. I only have speed lights, no AB's or anything like that.

1.

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I think you did a fine job with all the captures. Nice and tight images, action, intensity and with two eyes (or more) in every image. The white balance on #4 needs to be warmed up but other than that, they're great. Your current flash is working well and the light fall off is giving good separation from the background.

I like them.

Phil

4 definitely needs to be warmed up a bit.

Thanks for the feedback. Are you seeing/noticing any banding in the images?

Scott

I'm not seeing banding on my monitor.

I think that you need to have both the wrestlers complate bodies in the frame, this is telling a story and in wrestling it takes the complete body to do the move, not like in football or hockey where there are many players reacting at once in a large area, there are only two and using every inch of there bodies to make or react to a move... IMO

I understand what you are saying, but limbs are cut off in wrestling all the time. I think these portray the story very well as you see the moves being run by each kid. And you can understand what each kid is doing.

But I can certainly respect your point here.

FWIW,

Overall, really good. The off camera flash works in every shot, but it's maybe a bit too bright as they look like flash shots.

These obviously are shot pretty wide open and DOF is shallow. #1 doesn't work for me for that reason. Yup, got the facial expression, but almost the entire rest of the photo is OOF. Kid's Mom may like it, but you asked for C&C. My point is to be aware of the difference between that and the rest of the set.

Not a big fan of wrestlers looking directly at the camera. It makes it look posed. As a HS and college wrestler, I can guarantee I never looked at a camera during a match. Another suggestion from the point of a wrestler, no one (especially the loser) wants to see the face of defeat under someone else's butt. I want to see my kid's face winning, because it could be anyone else's butt.:p

Sorry, but I have to agree on the crops being a tad close, at least in a couple cases. #3 is the best shot, and backed out just a hair, it would be better. In some of the more elongated positions, like 4 or 7, it works, but 4 would benefit from the rest of the top wrestlers front foot.