The first modern sports photograph and the latest
Scanning the New York Times this morning (online - I hardly ever pick up a hard copy of the Times. Which means that, more often than not, I'm scanning headlines instead of reading articles. Totally changed my habits. When I was very young I used to get the comics section, spread it out on the floor and practically lay on top of the paper reading them. The paper seemed enormous to me then. And also, a time apart - based on my dad's example. He'd sit and read the paper in his chair before breakfast or dinner and he was gone behind it. It seemed like such a nice little wall between him and the racket going on around him. Anyway...), I came across this picture.
Its a shot of Queen Quedith Earth Harrison moments after finishing second in the women's 400-meter hurdles at the Olympic Trials for track and field. Although this photo seems to depict the "agony of defeat" she's actually very happy with her finish. She has just come from behind, deftly avoided a fallen competitor in her lane and qualified - becoming one of the youngest competitors on the US team.
It's a very emotional shot. Something I love about sports photography. It's eminently possible and easy to capture the essence of the thing, the story, the inner thoughts and emotions written right across the face and sewn into the body language. Winning and losing, trying your hardest and succeeding, trying your hardest and coming up short, giving up, seeing hope fade, witnessing the improbable happen, making the unbelievable believable. What we're experiencing or watching has to with some of life's largest lessons - hope, faith, and determination. In real life, it's harder to see these play out. You don't necessarily know what trials and tribulations people go through, how they approach them, how they pick themselves back up and keep going. In sports, all of this can take place during the course of one meet, one tour, one trial, one game.
Morris Berman, a sports photographer for the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, is considered the genitor of this type of shot. In 1964, he captured the now famous image of Y.A. Tittle - legendary New York Giants quarterback - kneeling, battered and bruised in the end zone, after being hammered by John Baker of the Steelers. The ball was picked off by the Steelers who returned it for a touchdown, giving them the momentum to ultimately claim the win. This image was not chosen by the photography editors at the Post-Gazette to run in the paper accompanying the story on the game. Instead they chose an action shot of Tittle in the midst of being taken down by Baker right after the ball has left his hand. That's what sports stories of the time demanded - the action. Berman's non-published image ending up winning awards and notoriety for the way it depicted Tittle's story, the game's story, beyond just the action. Sports photography has not been the same since.
Its a shot of Queen Quedith Earth Harrison moments after finishing second in the women's 400-meter hurdles at the Olympic Trials for track and field. Although this photo seems to depict the "agony of defeat" she's actually very happy with her finish. She has just come from behind, deftly avoided a fallen competitor in her lane and qualified - becoming one of the youngest competitors on the US team.
It's a very emotional shot. Something I love about sports photography. It's eminently possible and easy to capture the essence of the thing, the story, the inner thoughts and emotions written right across the face and sewn into the body language. Winning and losing, trying your hardest and succeeding, trying your hardest and coming up short, giving up, seeing hope fade, witnessing the improbable happen, making the unbelievable believable. What we're experiencing or watching has to with some of life's largest lessons - hope, faith, and determination. In real life, it's harder to see these play out. You don't necessarily know what trials and tribulations people go through, how they approach them, how they pick themselves back up and keep going. In sports, all of this can take place during the course of one meet, one tour, one trial, one game.
Morris Berman, a sports photographer for the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, is considered the genitor of this type of shot. In 1964, he captured the now famous image of Y.A. Tittle - legendary New York Giants quarterback - kneeling, battered and bruised in the end zone, after being hammered by John Baker of the Steelers. The ball was picked off by the Steelers who returned it for a touchdown, giving them the momentum to ultimately claim the win. This image was not chosen by the photography editors at the Post-Gazette to run in the paper accompanying the story on the game. Instead they chose an action shot of Tittle in the midst of being taken down by Baker right after the ball has left his hand. That's what sports stories of the time demanded - the action. Berman's non-published image ending up winning awards and notoriety for the way it depicted Tittle's story, the game's story, beyond just the action. Sports photography has not been the same since.
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