BILL FRAKES
A Closer Look
Apparently the fact that the players in this rugby game were wearing dresses didn't diminish the intensity of the rivalry between the teams. Photographer Bill Frakes has captured a moment of dramatic action - the players' bodies are all in motion and their faces wear expressions of deep concentration. Yet the fact that they are wearing formal gowns adds humor for the viewer, if not for the players themselves.
About the Media
This is a picture of a game in between the women's rugby teams of the University of Florida and the University of Southern Florida. The women are wearing old prom dresses as part of a promotion to raise funds for Breast Cancer research. Photographer Bill Frakes specializes in sports photography because, he says, "I'm good at it. I enjoy the technical challenges. Things happen very quickly, and often just once. But I don't just shoot sports. My work is motion and emotion."
About the Artist
Bill Frakes is a Sports Illustrated staff photographer who has worked in more than 50 countries for many editorial and advertising clients. He was a member of the Miami Herald staff that won the Pulitzer Prize for coverage of Huricanne Andrew. He has also been honored by the Robert F. Kennedy Journalism Awards for reporting on the disadvantaged and by the Overseas Press club.
Write About It
- Make a list of what you see in the photograph.
- How does the photographer use the elements and principles of design?
- What is your opinion of the photograph? How does it make you feel?
