Didn’t make the cut

I did not have a clue that I had captured the image above until I downloaded the camera card to my computer and started my image review. This pitcher was doing his warmup throws and had a nice wind up and throw routine so I fired a few series of him doing just that. Had I tried to get this shot, the odds were slim to none. Conversely, if you fire enough, sooner or later you will generally get something cool.

Shooting sports harkens back to a boy’s childhood vision pretending he was shooting a tommy-gun. Instead of holding the trigger back, one holds the shutter button down and lets the camera eat. As a net result, a good sports shoot results in substantially more images that will ever see the printed page or an electronic display. Far be it from the behavior patterns of most anal retentive photographers to cast off the unpublished images. We help keep the big-ol’-hard-drive folks in business.

The first base runner, reacting to a pick-off attempt by the pitcher is where he needs to be. We can’t say the same thing for the ball and the first baseman.

Generally speaking, except for forums like this, the photographer is not the final authority as to what will go to print or electronic display –  the editors make that ultimate decision. They make their choices on what will best mesh with the story and how it fits in their own criteria. I have no problem with that system. They have their jobs and I have mine, and all is well.

Click on the players to see more sports pictures at Corndancer dot-com.

There are a lot procedures to select published images. Most of them start with a group of “picks,” meaning these images have possibilities. Editors, art directors, and the like narrow down the picks to become the choice. That leaves some pretty cool shots languishing in the shadow of ignominy. Along those lines, we invite you to check out the Corndancer Photo of the Week at Corndancer dot-com where you will find more previously unpublished sports images from yours truly.

All of our images today are rescued from the ignominy closet. It’s not that these images are better or worse that those which were chosen. The chosen few fit the criteria of the time best. Now, all they need is a smattering of coolness.

This was close to perfect bunt. It quickly hit the ground with enough roll to cause a moment of hesitation between the catcher and the pitcher.

A long-armed, long-legged first baseman is worth his weight in Apple Stock. So is a fast base runner.

Six feet high.

‘I got it,’ says the guy in the middle and then the action picked up.

He made the shot. Had the defensive guy been a second sooner, he wouldn’t have.

A jump shot perfectly foiled. The defender has all ball at the moment of release.

See more of our sports pictures that did not make the cut in our “Did not make the cut” gallery with 32 sports shots.

Thanks for looking,

Joe Dempsey

Weekly Grist for the Eyes and Mind
http://www.joedempseycommunications.com/
http://www.joedempseyphoto.com/
http://www.corndancer.com/joephoto/photohome.html