April 2019 action

Published on Author Yean Wei Ong
First Tae Kwon Do flying side kick, April 2019, Perth

I was at a few First Tae Kwon Do Western Australia events in April, and here are a few photographs of breaking techniques. First, we have a front snap kick executed as part of a sequence of breaks. The strong sunlight streaming in from the open doorway (in the background) would have presented serious problems for exposure, but I was shooting in RAW mode, so adjusting exposure in post-processing was simple.

First Tae Kwon Do front snap kick, April 2019, Perth
FTKD front snap kick, April 2019

This second picture, showing a punch through roof tiles, was taken at f/2.5 and ISO 800, resulting in a 1/60 s exposure; a bit too long to be able to freeze the action nicely. If I were to shoot this again, I would probably use f/2 and maybe boost ISO slightly.

First Tae Kwon Do punch, April 2019, Perth
FTKD punch, April 2019

At a different venue this time (and at night rather than during the day), I shot this flying side kick at f/2 and ISO 1600, resulting in a 1/400 s exposure. This was easily fast enough to freeze the action. If I had been able to capture a frame slightly after this one, I would have been able to show you the student’s foot breaking the board, but he was already landing by the time of the next frame. (I was shooting at 8 fps, but that still was not quite fast enough.)

First Tae Kwon Do flying side kick, April 2019, Perth
FTKD flying side kick, April 2019

A lot of work goes into shooting action well, and it takes knowledge, experience, alertness, and discipline to be able to get good results consistently.