Wrestling photography?

Thank you to those here who helped me before this shoot earlier this month -- you know who you are!

Comparing my pic below, what could I do to improve, and what was this other photographer doing better, that you can see? I was using Nikon D50, onboard flash backed down a little as fill, 50mm 1.8.

example of my pics
http://www.flickr.com/photos/16979186@N0...

a recent set I saw on a BB: great shots
http://tech-fall.com/2008HS/07Ironman2.h...

THANKS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Actually I like yours better because yours looks real where as theirs reminds me of fake faces in the background pretending to be watching a fight!! Also the black and the white person look so great together in photography!! Yous is great, have fun!!

His photos obviously have a lot more homoerotic undertones.

There are two things that make or break a sports picture: peak action (or a key moment) and backgrounds.

And in your case, that open classroom door with the hideous florescent lighting absolutely kills the shot. The action is OK, but nothing can overcome that background.

The other set is OK, but the dead-on flash doesn't help things.

Besides keeping an eye on your backgrounds (and try shooting from higher up to clean them up), pay attention to faces - wrestling, more so than many, is a sport where expressions are just as key as guys twisting themselves into weird positions.

Lighting in gyms is tough, too, but that can be overcome with as little as a couple of Nikon SB-28s (or similar); getting away from the on-camera flash can help immensely.

I prefer yours but I'd lower my angle and try to get more detail and expression in the faces... unless it is a graphic body shape you're after the face and the eyes are usually the key part of a people image!

BTW GOOD use of your flash, nice and subtle with no secondary highlights - well done.

Pay attention to angles and backgrounds. The door does little for the shot.

If you look at Tony's shots they're carefully staged so that there's nothing but crowd in the background.

In yours, there's a highly distracting doorway and a standing person.

All you have to do is move slightly so you're always facing the seats and your photos will be as good as his.

Hope this helps.

I will grade you 7 on 10 as compared to the other ones. You have the right idea. Photography has to do with that 1-second take and cannot be reproduced everrrrrrr. Use the dept of field . The audience distracts too much on these other pics. Not that good. Sorry.
Prefer your pic but , when you do take a pic, get a little sweat and pain in there.