Muhammad Ali And Sonny Liston
This photo shows Muhammad Ali standing over Sonny Liston after knocking him out in the first round of their heavyweight title match. It was taken by Neil Leifer on May 6, 1965. Leifer was a young photographer, 22 to be exact, so he didn’t get to pick where he sat that night. A higher up photographer chose a spot by the judges’ table, and Leifer sat on the opposite side. To get the color, Leifer set up flash units over the ring. To add to the complexity, he only had one chance to get the shot he wanted because the flash units needed time to recharge. So while the other photographers clicked and clicked Leifer was waiting, waiting for his shot. The dark background color and the brightness of the ring show seriousness and makes Ali the main focus.
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Low angle shows power. In this photo it is Ali with the power. On the flip side, it can show weakness which is Sonny Liston on the ground. The long shot is key for this picture. Long shot shows action. Ali had knocked Liston down seconds before this was shot. If this photo wasn’t in long shot, it wouldn’t have the full effect because to appreciate the greatness of Muhammad Ali displayed in the photo you need to see Liston in clear pain and shock while flailed out on the ground.
I think this photo shows that hard work and perseverance allow for triumph in what you do. If you didn’t know, Muhammad Ali worked extremely hard, waking up every morning at 5:30, and running 6 miles under 40 minutes while wearing army boots. Ali endured brutal training 6 days a week and gave himself one off day. For his most common workout go to this link: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1mKoTh8Jn6TniuKtwtD3Z7rCYjBsNmGb5oyWRR-sA6JI/edit I think that someone less interested in sports or boxing could interpret this a lot differently. They could feel bad for Liston and not appreciate Ali’s greatness, as well as not appreciating or even thinking about what the photographer had to do to capture this moment. Also, someone of African-American heritage could view Muhammad Ali in this photo as a symbol of the struggle they have gone through to reach the
Low angle shows power. In this photo it is Ali with the power. On the flip side, it can show weakness which is Sonny Liston on the ground. The long shot is key for this picture. Long shot shows action. Ali had knocked Liston down seconds before this was shot. If this photo wasn’t in long shot, it wouldn’t have the full effect because to appreciate the greatness of Muhammad Ali displayed in the photo you need to see Liston in clear pain and shock while flailed out on the ground.
I think this photo shows that hard work and perseverance allow for triumph in what you do. If you didn’t know, Muhammad Ali worked extremely hard, waking up every morning at 5:30, and running 6 miles under 40 minutes while wearing army boots. Ali endured brutal training 6 days a week and gave himself one off day. For his most common workout go to this link: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1mKoTh8Jn6TniuKtwtD3Z7rCYjBsNmGb5oyWRR-sA6JI/edit I think that someone less interested in sports or boxing could interpret this a lot differently. They could feel bad for Liston and not appreciate Ali’s greatness, as well as not appreciating or even thinking about what the photographer had to do to capture this moment. Also, someone of African-American heritage could view Muhammad Ali in this photo as a symbol of the struggle they have gone through to reach the