Damien Demolder considers...
Paola Ogechi Egonu by Ronald Hoogendoorn, Netherlands, Shortlist, Pro competition, Sport, Sony World Photography Awards 2023
Most of us learn at some disappointing stage that a picture’s appeal is not directly proportional to the difficulty of taking it. Many’s the time have I expended blood, sweat and tears over the creation of a masterpiece in which no one else is particularly interested. My emotional investment in such images, and my awareness of how hard they are to record, is often rudely ignored by normal folk, who breeze by, casually assessing the picture with all the wrong criteria. I was once very proud of a sparkling product shot depicting a set of cinema lenses, only for it to gain no ground at all on my social media channels. I had to make do with the compliment of another product photographer who noted the lack of dust on the barrels – ‘Must have been a nightmare. Well done mate,’ he commented.
Sport photography is one of those genres that requires skill, experience and great timing, especially the likes of horse riding, football, cricket and athletics, where the subject moves quickly and the action can happen unexpectedly. It really is an achievement to shoot the moment the boot hits the leather for the winning goal, and to capture the ball testing the racket strings as the tennis champion whacks it down the line.
However hard those moments are to record though, a whole lot of skilful and cleverly done sports photography lacks the visual stimulation to excite anyone not interested in that sport. Cricket fans, and cricket photographers, will all appreciate a picture of a great catch but unless the image is artistically motivating, no one else will give it a second glance. I know no volleyball fans, but I suspect countless people would admire this picture by Dutch photographer Ronald Hoogendoorn. Indeed, enough people ‘who count’ enjoyed it that it was shortlisted in the sport professional’s category of this year’s Sony World Photography Awards. And it’s easy to see why – because whatever it is of, it’s a very good picture. Not only has Ronald captured a dramatic moment as Italy’s Paola Ogechi Egonu leaps at full stretch to strike the ball during a Women’s World Championship match against Brazil, the graphic qualities of the c
