THREE BOXING AMIGOS

It isn't every day that a photographer has the opportunity to photograph a boxer, especially three of them. And if you're expecting gritty, sweaty, bare-chested guys with popping muscles, missing teeth, and over-sized shorts, you're absolutely right, all except the missing teeth. And they couldn't have been nicer.

My first order of business was to set up the studio with the goal of getting a variety of different shots for their personal and professional boxing portfolios. By the time I had all the lighting adjusted and my camera ready to fire the guys had suited up and were ready to go. Although the lighting setup was adjusted here and there, I primarily utilized two 4 x 6 soft boxes, with the main light elevated and positioned in a 40 degree angle to the subjects while the second light was placed to the side and slightly behind the boxers. The background was a black paper backdrop and two large black "V" foam panels on each side of the subjects eliminated stray light although a small white foam reflector provided subdued illumination to the lower body. The occasional use of a hair light gave some separation and I deliberately positioned the soft boxes and hair light so that feathering lent a more edgy look to the subjects. Leaving ladders and lighting equipment visible in many of the shots was deliberate. My camera was a Canon 1D Mark IIN with a 24-70mm lens set at f/11, ISO 100, at 1/250 sec, utilizing Norman power packs and light heads. Post-processing was achieved primarily with presets and Photoshop CS2 Shadow/Highlight adjustments and Channel Mixer, as well as simulated-HDR effects.

I started with a couple of the guys to get the camera and lighting adjusted and then immediately began working with one, then the other, and finally the three together. While I chose to present them in a low-key framework, I periodically shifted the lighting from moderate to strongly subdued to heighten the visual and psychological tension. The shoot comprised different fighting stances and relaxed postures as well as contemplative and combat poses. I closed the session by putting the three pro boxers together for a group pose. 

Happily, I have been invited to do a longer shoot with other boxers at their workout facility, apparently a traditional boxing gym in every sense of the words: dark and dingy and accentuated with lots of spit and snot, glistening sweat, splatters of blood, and rancid b.o. permeating the air. I can't wait.