London Olympics 2012 - Mens 100m Final
Usain Bolt's 9.63 seconds was just 0.05 seconds slower than his own world record, was a new Olympic best and capped a race in which seven men went under 10 seco...
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Usain Bolt's 9.63 seconds was just 0.05 seconds slower than his own world record, was a new Olympic best and capped a race in which seven men went under 10 seconds.
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Jul, 2013Views
1154
Likes
Awards
Contest Finalist in Running Photo Contest
Winner in Sports Action Photos Photo Challenge
Peer Award
Superb Composition
Top Choice
Absolute Masterpiece
Superior Skill
Outstanding Creativity
All Star
Top Ranks
Top 10 rankTop 10 rank week 2Top 10 rank week 1
Top 10 rankTop 10 rank week 1
MediaOne
October 27, 2013
This is damn good photo, I was looking at your gallery and just curious are you travel photophotographer?
PRO+
adavies
February 11, 2017
Wow! Very cool capture! If you haven't done so already, please consider joining my Outdoor Events challenge:)
https:// viewbug.com/challenge/outdoor-events-fairs-concerts-marketsany-outdoor-event-photo-challenge-by-adavies
https:// viewbug.com/challenge/outdoor-events-fairs-concerts-marketsany-outdoor-event-photo-challenge-by-adavies
Same photographer See allBehind The Lens
Behind The Lens
Location
I took this at the Olympic Stadium during the 2012 London Olympics. It was the final of the mens 100 metres, which Usain Bolt won. My seat was a long way from the track, the stadium was packed and I couldn't move about. Ideally, I'd have moved 50 metres back to give myself a little breathing room. I was using a 300mm prime and from where I was standing the runners completely filled the frame with no margin for movement. The main challenge was making sure I didn't end up with an image of the back of someones hand as hundreds of people were standing up and waving their arms around in front of me, and secondly making sure the all the runners were still in the frame.Time
Around 7pm.Lighting
I was suprised that even under the floodlights of the stadium, the overall light level was much lower than I had anticipated. Given that I had to choose a fast shutter speed, deciding on a good trade off regarding ISO and aperture was the main decision.Equipment
Nikon D600 with a Nikon 300mm F/4. I had to choose between the Nikon 70-300VR or the 300mm F4 before I went because of the stadium policy. I took a gamble on the 300mm F4 on the night because it's a stop faster, and the sharpness and contrast is much better than the 70-300mm at 300mm. My concern was that from my seat I may not be able to fit everything in the frame with the prime, but just about got away with it.Inspiration
It was a once in a lifetime opportunity but it's an image I'm really happy with. I knew I'd probably never have the chance to be in the situation to capture this event again. The mens 100m final is really the iconic event of the olympics.Editing
Very little, some sharpening, and some curves adjustments. A few small tweaks to the colour balance because of the stadium lights.In my camera bag
Nikon D600, plus a Nikon 24-70mm, and either the Nikon 70-300 VR, or the Nikon 300mm F4. An 8 stop ND, a polarizer. Sometimes I take the Nikon 16-35mm VR, a backup D7000 and rarely a Rokinon fisheye just for a change.Feedback
Use manual focus, use the live view to check focus, and don't forget to switch to burst mode! Ideally have a checklist if the shot is important, especially if it's a situation where there are lots of factors that may distract and maybe cause you to overlook the obvious. I spent some time earlier in the evening wondering whether to go with raw or just jpg due to the additional burst benefits, decided on raw, and then due to all the madness around me and the general excitement totally forgot to turn burst mode on anyway!
