UFC Brisbane
As a photographer the anticipation of the first fight is overwhelming.
Having not shot a UFC before it is all a new experience. The security is tighter than any NRL game, with multiple checks throughout the day and the media pass has my photo on it. Having to show my drivers licence on two occasions to pick up my pass shows that these guys run a tight ship.
As far as being a photographer goes it was one of the more technically challenging shoots of my career.
Firstly the cage. A nightmare to shoot through it!!! Wide angle(20mm) is nearly impossible due to the fact you are around one foot from it, so you are unable to put the lens right up against the cage and shoot through the fence.
Any attempt to use it resulted in the autofocus having a meltdown and locking on to the cage not the action. The other option was to shoot manual focus, but it's not 1950 so manual focus is not my strong point!
So the best plan of attack was to shoot with the 70-200 and zoom in on the action thus minimising the effect of shooting through the cage.
Only problem with that is as the fight action moved across the cage, once again the autofocus tried to lock onto the cage in the foreground and making it a nightmare to shoot freely, as the AF would bounce between the cage and the fight action.
The other issue was the referee, as the fight heated up and a finish was near, the ref would close in on the fighters and circle the two combatants.Thus blocking a clear shot at a crucial moment in the fight.
The UFC is such a made for TV experience that TV and their cameras take priority. So being tapped on the shoulder on numerous occasions to keep my head down while shooting. It added to the challenge with the focusing difficulty and the forever circling referee.
As in anything in life if it was easy everyone would be able to do it, and the bigger the challenge the greater the satisfaction. So try harder I did.
Back in the pressroom one of the biggest names in the sport, Michael Bisping wondered in searching for food, then he was asked to leave by the security when all he wanted was a donut. It showed the no pass no access rule applied to everyone, even the greats.
Sitting cageside at the UFC is definitely a surreal experience.
The legendary ringside announcer Bruce buffer sitting only meters away looks a million dollars. In between his famous announcing duties, he has a long line of UFC fans waiting to get there picture taken with him.The card girl Kahili is as gorgeous in real life as on TV and sits right behind me as I shoot. She also is gracious with conversations in between bouts. It sure is hard to concentrate on work when the famous card girls are that close!
To my left sat a judge which changes after every fight, all of them were interesting characters and were obviously fight fans. But it was best not to start up a conversation during the fight as I wouldn't want to be the guy who distracted a judge when someone future is on the line!!!
Then being only meters away was the great Greg Jackson, coach of GSP and Jon Jones. Hearing him shout out instructions to one of his two fighters on the card was a special moment. And man that guy can coach.
Sitting that close to the fight is far more real than on the couch. You can actually feel the thud of the 4oz gloves ripping into the bare body when a punch is thrown. Much like the sound of Rocky punching the animal carcass in the first instalment of the movie franchise.
When there is a body against the cage, just like the Ryan Bader and Anthony Perosh fight. With some serious ground and pound underway, you can really feel the breathing of the two guys and the desperation to either finish or survive.
You can't help but marvel at the craziness of the brutality, but also the toughness of the guys who chose to make a living out of the sport.
Then it's time for the big show. Main event is on and the man known as Bigfoot enters the arena to some mild cheers, then the hometown boy Mark Hunt enters and the roof nearly comes off as the Brisbane crowd goes crazy!!! Two of the biggest men you've ever seen are about to do battle in the cage, and the tension in the building is intense.
As they enter the cage, the door is shut, no one can help them now. The sound is now deafening and it compares only to a state of origin games if it were played indoor.
The fight is a sea saw battle with both fighters capable of a knock out. The intensity is insane and you can't afford to daydream during the fight, as it could finish at any point. A spectacular picture may be missed if you aren't paying attention!
As the fight goes on and local boy Hunt starts to put on some vicious left and right hands the crowd turns to chaos with screams and chants of Mark Hunt, Mark Hunt. The adrenalin runs through you as you continue to shoot, with the feeling that the roof could come off the building as the crowd goes more out of control with their screams.
The fight goes the distance and both fighters are clearly exhausted, 25 minutes of brutality and bravery has come to a end! The both hug and embrace in a way that only MMA fans can understand and the cheers for both fighters is truly deserved.
The fight is then considered a draw by the professionals. It's hard to argue that either man deserved to be a loser in arguably the best fight in heavyweight history.
Then it's off to the media room to file and edit pictures. Normally editing pictures is a boring event, but today was different. I had Aussie fighter Rob Whitaker sitting by my side and Shogun Rua the former world champ on stage at the press conference and the nations MMA media packed the room.
Any other day, filing pictures is the boring part of the job, but today was no ordinary day.
When the UFC comes to town ordinary goes out the window.
Til next time
Chris
As a photographer the anticipation of the first fight is overwhelming.
Having not shot a UFC before it is all a new experience. The security is tighter than any NRL game, with multiple checks throughout the day and the media pass has my photo on it. Having to show my drivers licence on two occasions to pick up my pass shows that these guys run a tight ship.
As far as being a photographer goes it was one of the more technically challenging shoots of my career.
Firstly the cage. A nightmare to shoot through it!!! Wide angle(20mm) is nearly impossible due to the fact you are around one foot from it, so you are unable to put the lens right up against the cage and shoot through the fence.
Any attempt to use it resulted in the autofocus having a meltdown and locking on to the cage not the action. The other option was to shoot manual focus, but it's not 1950 so manual focus is not my strong point!
So the best plan of attack was to shoot with the 70-200 and zoom in on the action thus minimising the effect of shooting through the cage.
Only problem with that is as the fight action moved across the cage, once again the autofocus tried to lock onto the cage in the foreground and making it a nightmare to shoot freely, as the AF would bounce between the cage and the fight action.
The other issue was the referee, as the fight heated up and a finish was near, the ref would close in on the fighters and circle the two combatants.Thus blocking a clear shot at a crucial moment in the fight.
The UFC is such a made for TV experience that TV and their cameras take priority. So being tapped on the shoulder on numerous occasions to keep my head down while shooting. It added to the challenge with the focusing difficulty and the forever circling referee.
As in anything in life if it was easy everyone would be able to do it, and the bigger the challenge the greater the satisfaction. So try harder I did.
Back in the pressroom one of the biggest names in the sport, Michael Bisping wondered in searching for food, then he was asked to leave by the security when all he wanted was a donut. It showed the no pass no access rule applied to everyone, even the greats.
Sitting cageside at the UFC is definitely a surreal experience.
To my left sat a judge which changes after every fight, all of them were interesting characters and were obviously fight fans. But it was best not to start up a conversation during the fight as I wouldn't want to be the guy who distracted a judge when someone future is on the line!!!
Then being only meters away was the great Greg Jackson, coach of GSP and Jon Jones. Hearing him shout out instructions to one of his two fighters on the card was a special moment. And man that guy can coach.
Sitting that close to the fight is far more real than on the couch. You can actually feel the thud of the 4oz gloves ripping into the bare body when a punch is thrown. Much like the sound of Rocky punching the animal carcass in the first instalment of the movie franchise.
When there is a body against the cage, just like the Ryan Bader and Anthony Perosh fight. With some serious ground and pound underway, you can really feel the breathing of the two guys and the desperation to either finish or survive.
You can't help but marvel at the craziness of the brutality, but also the toughness of the guys who chose to make a living out of the sport.
Then it's time for the big show. Main event is on and the man known as Bigfoot enters the arena to some mild cheers, then the hometown boy Mark Hunt enters and the roof nearly comes off as the Brisbane crowd goes crazy!!! Two of the biggest men you've ever seen are about to do battle in the cage, and the tension in the building is intense.
As they enter the cage, the door is shut, no one can help them now. The sound is now deafening and it compares only to a state of origin games if it were played indoor.
The fight is a sea saw battle with both fighters capable of a knock out. The intensity is insane and you can't afford to daydream during the fight, as it could finish at any point. A spectacular picture may be missed if you aren't paying attention!
As the fight goes on and local boy Hunt starts to put on some vicious left and right hands the crowd turns to chaos with screams and chants of Mark Hunt, Mark Hunt. The adrenalin runs through you as you continue to shoot, with the feeling that the roof could come off the building as the crowd goes more out of control with their screams.
The fight goes the distance and both fighters are clearly exhausted, 25 minutes of brutality and bravery has come to a end! The both hug and embrace in a way that only MMA fans can understand and the cheers for both fighters is truly deserved.
The fight is then considered a draw by the professionals. It's hard to argue that either man deserved to be a loser in arguably the best fight in heavyweight history.
Then it's off to the media room to file and edit pictures. Normally editing pictures is a boring event, but today was different. I had Aussie fighter Rob Whitaker sitting by my side and Shogun Rua the former world champ on stage at the press conference and the nations MMA media packed the room.
Any other day, filing pictures is the boring part of the job, but today was no ordinary day.
When the UFC comes to town ordinary goes out the window.
Til next time
Chris
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