Last week I attended the Te Awamutu Boxing Tournament which were held at the local Sports Centre. The place was buzzing and contestants came from all over the place with boxers of all ages competing. I was originally asked to photograph the event by Jamie Hansen from Empire Espresso who is himself active in the boxing community and also a trainer. (you can see their photo shoot here)
Friends and family and members of the boxing fraternity looking on as the competitors fought it out, with the winners and losers taking trophies at the end of their bouts.
While these competitions have traditionally copped some criticism I have to say the event was conducted in a safe and controlled environment with medics on hand to tend to any emergencies and the camaraderie was inspiring between the fighters.
Photographically I enjoyed my subjects being so focused on their fighting – not having to give any direction I was able to shoot away and get real, honest shots.
Head over to the ps|studio DPI proofing gallery to view all the photos from the tournament
