Legendary photographer Tom Casino's EliteXC pics

Damn those pictures are really actually noticeably better than usual MMA pictures..

would like to see more in-action shots

Awesome.

Tom is the man. And he's one of the goddam nicest people on the earth...he's so nice he makes me feel like I'm a scumbag, and i'm a nice guy.

wonder what camera he uses wow

PAGrappler412 - wonder what camera he uses wow

i'll ask him.

Great Pictures, thanks for sharing

That Diaz pictures has ROMOSHOP written all over it...

DIAZ is a BEAST!! haha

Holy shit at those pictures.... lol those are amazing

thanks for asking for me! i am super new to photography and I am very interested at what kind of camera(s) and equipment he uses because it looks amazing. Someday I wish to be a quarter as good as that guy

The camera obviously makes a difference, but most of what makes them great is timing, angle/position and understanding lighting/camera settings.

I'd be curious to know what he uses as well, but when people see a shot of mine they like, they often say "oh, you must have a really good camera", which I don't. Some photographers don't like that question, as it implies the difference in the shot was the cost of the equipment.

I would love to get to shoot an MMA event.

Tom Casino = AWESOME photographer and super nice guy!  This guy deserves all the awards and compliments that he gets.

GenericAmerican is 100% correct in his statements.  I really hate when people say "ask Greg Honda to take the pictures, he has a good camera."

 

TTT for tom casino!

an extra TTT for Greg Honda as he is a DOPE ass photog too! I respect the hell out of both of these guys...

 more?

 He needs more pictures of after parties and fighters having their hair done, imo.

Casino is the man!! I just hope the PR of EliteXC starts providing pictures of the whole night instead of just the last 5 matches of their shows.

Tom is AWESOME!


Great professional and very nice guy. Ttt for him

Eduardo Alonso.

GenericAmerican - The camera obviously makes a difference, but most of what makes them great is timing, angle/position and understanding lighting/camera settings.

I'd be curious to know what he uses as well, but when people see a shot of mine they like, they often say "oh, you must have a really good camera", which I don't. Some photographers don't like that question, as it implies the difference in the shot was the cost of the equipment.

I would love to get to shoot an MMA event.

True.

The biggest difference maker, above all else, is being familiar with what you're shooting. As an example, I shot the Brad Imes/gogo pic with an entry-level dslr and a used 3rd party lens, a combined value of about $1000. The vast majority of pro shooters, as seen above, use $1500 lenses on $5000 camera bodies. But, unless the photographer is familiar with the subject at hand, they won't take good photos, period. Having pro equipment will allow one to take pics faster, with better quality, and a higher rate of "keepers", but at the end of the day, it comes down to the competence of the person behind the camera.

Those shots above- fun stuff. Makes me jealous. I'd love to shoot big events. 

 Those are cool and all, but where are the pics of the after party, the groupies and the food that the fighters were eating?

 Good stuff , although I really like Zack Lynchs Feel for the camera better.

Casino probably uses either a Canon Mark ii or Mark iii or a Nikon d3. His lens mostly looks like a 70-200 f2.8. He probably also has a 24-70 f2.8 lens and another body with him. I would almost guarantee that he works with two or three camera bodies at a time.

A good camera can't make you take good pics, but a bad camera surely can make you take bad pics.

Buying good lenses is more important than the camera body. You can have the best body in the world but if you have a crappy f3.5-f5.6 zoom lens, you're getting get crap inside at the fights.

thanks for your insight