PHOTOS - Pan Am Artistic Gymnastics

PHOTOS – Pan Am Artistic Gymnastics

Jul 15, 2015 Estonian Life No. 29 2015

On July 14, with threatening skies, the Ricoh Coliseum hosted various final/medal events in Artistic Gymnastics. In different areas of the floor space, final competitions were held for women's vault and uneven bars as well as men's floor exercise, pommel horse and rings. For photographers, the main challenge was choosing a spot, for once there, you were not allowed to move for three hours. My choice was a spot right at the end of the vault, which also provided a reasonable view of the pommel horse, an excellent view of the rings and very distant views of the floor exercises and the uneven bars. The women's vault, in which Canada's Ellie Black was in contention, alternated competitors with the men's pommel horse, as will be seen in the gallery.

The medal ceremonies were done as clusters, with three events done together. One will note the interesting way in which a tie for the gold in the men's pommel horse was managed with the two flags. Accredited photographers were given a photo opportunity by the winning trio before they headed off for interviews.

For those interested in the photographic aspects, the F2.8 70-200mm lens was used. White balance was set at Fluorescent. ISO was high at 5000 and shutter speeds were at least 1/1000 seconds, except for lower speeds for the medal shoot. By far the most difficult photos were of the vault taken head on. I was very fortunate to get a few reasonable shots. In comparison, photos of the competitors on the rings were very easy, as each pose had to be held for 2 seconds for it to be counted by the judges. Only the dismounts were a challenge, as they were unique. However, it was easy to anticipate the moment just before dismount and to take the lens back to a wider angle.

Peeter Põldre

PHOTO GALLERY – Potos by Peeter Põldre (2015)