Rob Macklem Selected for "Photographer of Excellence" Award
posted June 2 1012 [ed. comments below]
In the run up to the BC Finals we ran a photo contest, the entries can be viewed below. There were a lot of fine entries and readers made comments on their favourites. We selected Rob Macklem as the winner. His photos showed a superior level of clarity and sharpness, the composition and focus was superb.
Rob uses a Nikon D3 which is a professional level camera costing over $5000 in its day (it's been replaced with newer releases) and that's just for the camera body without a lens. The D3 has been touted as the professional's choice for sports photography, and we can see why.
Rob is fairly new to rugby, he's a Level 3 Olympic Weightlifting coach and currently coaches two lifters who compete at the national level. He's a retired pharmacist and that lifelong attention to detail shows in his photography. He's become familiar with the strength and conditioning aspect of rugby through his acquaintance with Matt Barr, the strength and conditioning coach for the national rugby team. Rob wanted to learn more about strength sports science for weightlifters and Matt wanted to learn more about weightlifting for training rugby athletes.
You can enjoy two of Rob's recent photos below, we suggest you click on the images to appreciate a full screen view.
High flying Sean White eludes tackle click to expand image
Mike Fuilefau scores try for Canada U20 click to expand image
I'd like to vote for Imogen's first photo of the player leaping for the ball for the photo competition. I love the perfect timing to catch the player at full stretch, and the way she has captured the sheer determination you can almost feel every fiber in his body at full stretch. The tension and suspense adds to the shot!
Great work!
photo by Glenn Ivens
B.S. Writes:
My sentimental favourite for the BCRN photo/video of the year is the Glenn Ivens' photo of Velox Valkyries' captain Sarah Levson picking the ball out of the mouth of the "scrum half" on the Velox totem. My OFFICIAL vote for BCRN photo/video of the year is the first Glenn Ivens' photo, which is of the Velox Valkyries' Naomi Ogawa attempting to tackle a Bayside player. In my opinion these are great images of a truly great championship team, the Velox Valkyries. The first of Glenn Ivens' photos of the Valkyries vs. Bayside is Photo/Video of the Year, to me, because it is an actual GAME photo.
Videos and Photos from Finals Weekend: Pick a Winner
updated May 18 2012
So here are the videos and photos submitted for our first contest. The winner to get an award engraved with the BCRN logo and "Photographer of Excellence 2012" underneath along with their name. We'll award another in August 2012 after the 7s season.
So send your vote to editor@bcrugbynews.com and mention what you liked about the photo or video.
Pamela's Photos May 12th
Capilano celebrates taken with Nikon D200 1/400 f 6.3 ISO 320
Imogen's Photos May 12th
Shot with a Canon EOS REBEL T2i in Sports Mode - Tv 1/1600, Av 5.6 & ISO 3200 - Lens EF-S55-250mm f/4-5.6IS I love the effort to try and get the ball and also the expressions of the people on the sideline - almost like they are holding their breath.
Shot with a Canon EOS REBEL T2i in Sports Mode - Tv 1/2000, Av 5.6 & ISO 500 - Lens EF-S55-250mm f/4-5.6IS Great concentration on his face, especially as he isn't the biggest guy on the field and is facing two towering forwards! With the tee flying sideways you can feel the power in his kick.
Brent's Video May 12th
I shot the footage with a Casio Exifilm EX F1 camera at 300 frames per second. The footage is of a Castaway Wanderers Try, which is scored by #7 Jason Burt, from the second half of the game.
Mark's Video May 12th
Nikon Coolpix P500 in a 4:3 ratio using 60 FPS. Mostly highlights of the Prem game with shots from Women and Div 3 postgame
Caity's Video Season compilation
I put together a video/slideshow for the club with all my images and video clips.
Rob's Photos May 5th
Shot with a Nikon D3 and Nikon f4 200-400mm lens, shot at f4, 1/1600, ISO 800 @ 400mm
Shot with Nikon D3 and Nikon f4 200-400mm lens, shot at f4, 1/1600, ISO 800 @ 400mm
Glenn's Photos May 5th
Shot with a Canon 7d and 70-200mm f2.8 lens, shot at ISO 400 1/1250 at f 3.2, lens at 80mm. I like this shot as the ladies faces show the intensity of the game and determination and passion they have for it.
Shot with a Canon 7d and 17-55mm f2.8 lens, shot at ISO 400 1/4000 at f3.5, lens at 37mm. I like this photo for the spiritual aspect and the superstition aspect. The ladies all touch the sacred Velox totem as they head out onto the field with captain Sarah Levson taking the ball from the mouth of the 'scrumhalf' on the bottom.
Rob's Photos April 28th
Shot with a Nikon D3 and Nikon f4 200-400mm lens, shot at f4, 1/2000, ISO 640 @ 400mm
Shot with Nikon D3 and Nikon f4 200-400mm lens, shot at f4, 1/3200, ISO 640 @ 400mm
Mark's Photos April 28th
This was captured with a Nikon Coolpix P500 using an ISO of 800 and a shutter speed of 1/1500 second. I like the fact the ball logo was frozen in a perfect horizontal position with the defending player's eyes following the ball's trajectory and anticipating the destination. With a better camera you'd be able to see the pebbles on the ball and more detail in the face. The player is Clayton Daum (I believe) of Castaway Wanderers.
This was captured with a Nikon Coolpix P500 using an ISO of 800 and a shutter speed of 1/1500 second. Any good photographer (or editor for that matter) likes to capture the unusual in a photo. This photo is a little unusual with CW's prop Toby Peyton testing the tensile strength of the jersey belonging to Cap's fullback Harry Jones. The only disappointment is the camera lens doesn't capture enough detail in the faces.
This was captured with a Nikon Coolpix P500 in a 4:3 ratio using 60 FPS. Normal video is 30 frames per second and capturing at 60 FPS gives a "super slow motion" view. Audio isn't recorded in this mode but it allows better analysis at the micro level whether it's swiveling out of a tackle, a backhand pass, a missed tackle or dropped ball. It not only sheds a strange beauty on the game but is valuable for analysis and teaching.
Judy's Photos April 28th
Shot with a Canon 7D with 70-200 lens f2.8, shutter 3200, IS0 200 - This one I like as the CW player just gets by the Caps tackler.
Shot with a Canon 7D with 70-200 lens f2.8, shutter 3200, IS0 200 - This one I like as Matt Buckley is such a hard player to catch you don't know if he is going to weave left or crash the ball up as he has Nanyak right there for support.
Pamela's Photos April 28th
Akio Tyler and Capilanos powering the ball forward - I like the strength and determination this photo shows. Nikon D300 Lens 70-200 2.8, 1/1250 sec F/5, ISO 400
