Shot this during the tryouts for testjumpers in Vikersund this weekend. Vikersundbakken is Norways largest skijumping-hill, and this weekend they hosted a World Cup competiton. This chap flew 183 meters, HOPING for a spot among the runners. Gotta love this sport... I decided to buy a new lens when I can afford one, because I think this photo got a bit ruined from noise and the sharpness of my lens. But I did the best I could with the terrible lighting conditions and equipment that I had. And it was FUN!!!! Next year I'll be there with a card and a better lens.
Post prossessing:
RAW, fixed exposure and contrast.
Opened in CS3
Layer with soft light and a high pass filter.
Layer with soft light.
Merge down.
Crop.
Scaled down.
Interesting story behind this photo. I didn't get my hands on one of those photographer cards that grants acces to whereever you want, so I had to find my own spot. Climbing up a small snowy cliff, sneaking past the TV transmitter trailers or something like that (very off limit for the likes of me), up a new cliff (this one was almost pure ice), then I found my location. Cowered in mud and snow and scratched by ice and rocks I thought I had reached this place unnoticed, only to discover 6 guards staring stupidly at me from the other side of the hill. But they let me be, probably because of my equipment. Earlier that day one of the guards asked me what newspaper I came from. I should've made something up...
I HOPE I get an average over 6!!!
PS: Don't mind my grammar and typos =)
Statistics
Place: 41 out of 128 Avg (all users): 5.7817 Avg (commenters): 7.0000 Avg (participants): 5.7111 Avg (non-participants): 5.8144 Views since voting: 1070 Views during voting: 231 Votes: 142 Comments: 10 Favorites: 0
Greetings from Critique Club... I apologize for the wait.
Actually, I am glad you had to wait... I wasnt a member of CC back when this was voted on, and I am happy I get the chance to critique it. I really like the image... it captures incredible action, and considering what you had to do to get to this location, its sure to be a photo you remember forever. Your shutter speed and DOF are ideal, as this is a difficult shot to get in focus with all of the movement going on.
It is difficult to critique a good photo, but I will do what I can. Some of my criticisms you likely had no control over, so take them for what they are worth. First, the skiiers head is cut by the background. If you were in a position to ensure that the skiier is completed backed by the snow, or completely backed by the sky, you wouldnt have that separation. But, this is a difficult shot as it is, so there is likely no control over that. Second, the snow in the foreground has either a shadow or dirt, or other markings in it. Not sure how legal it would have been to clone them out, but that may improve the shot a bit.
Overall, a great shot. I didnt vote on it, but I would have given this a 7 if I did. Most of the voters did rate this above average, so even though you didnt achieve the 6+ you set out for, I hope your still happy with the image.
I hope I never have to do anything like this! Great motion blur in the background and I like the composition as well. I think it would be a little stronger without the black points along the bottom right.
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