A Leap of Faith

A Leap of Faith a photo by HamWithCam on Flickr.

Gymnastics is a tough sport. You practice long hours in the gym learning the basic skills. Then you put those skills together, again during long hours in the gym, to learn simple routines.

If you stick with it, then you try the simply skills and basic routines out while trying to maintain your balance on a 4" wide (100mm) piece of suede covered wood.

Trying to photograph a gymnast is like using a camera for the first time. You may try really hard, but wind up without a lot to show for it.

Gym meets are usually held in poorly lit spaces. Spectators are typically kept toward one end of the gym, it would seem as far from the competition as possible. No flash is allowed. The action is fast, and often unpredicatable, and even the best camera equipment is of little help.

This photograph is one of the "best of the worst" from about 400 shots I took at the "Winter Blast Invitational Gym Meet", held this past weekend in Woodstock. GA.

This was shot using a Canon 20D, ISO 3200 (I told you it was poorly lit, right?), 1/400 and f2.8 using a Canon 70-200 f2.8 L IS/USM lens, handheld. Oh, while apologizing to another dad and two moms for blocking their view. See, there are 3 others events going on simultaneously (bars, vault and floor).

The good news is hard works pays off, at least if you're a gymnast. GizmoGrrl placed 2nd in this balance beam event and went on to win "All Around Champion" for this gym meet -- for earning the highest total score for beam, bars, vault and floor exercise.

There are 5-6 other gym meets this season. The next meet is in Tucker in February. Let me know if you want to go take 400 or so shots of totally unpredictable, fast moving action, in near darkness.

It's fun. Really.

JG/HamWithCam

Best Way To Gain Muscle - It As Simple As Working Out And Eating Right

Author:

Jonathan Castor
There are thousands of companies out there selling newsletters, web site subscriptions, and all kinds of products that are promising to help you gain muscle fast. The thing is, all these companies want is your money. Every single one of them. They don\'t care if you will actually achieve your goal or not and yet they make you believe that you won\'t get there without them.

Rhian, the track star

Rhian, the track star a photo by Lsianny85 on Flickr.

i don't know when this hit explore, but I guess it did

Muscle Man

Muscle Man a photo by Blue Cockatoo on Flickr.

Avynn doing what he typically does when he knows I want to take a picture of him. He and Nicholas were exploring our first stop on our Schnebly Road offroading trip.

Date: 08/08/2004
Location: Near Flagstaff, AZ

How To Effectively Reduce Belly Fat

Author:

Rebecca Welch
Jelly Belly. Love Handles. Dunlap Disease. Whatever you want to call it, the excess fat around your midsection that wiggles and jiggles in all the wrong places just isn\'t pretty. Not only is belly fat unattractive, it can be downright dangerous to your health. Extra fat carried around your abdomen can increase your risk of heart disease. With so many pills, potions and programs flooding the weight loss industry today, many people are left feeling just plain confused about how to effectively reduce belly fat.