Atletico Madrid vs. Liverpool FC

Atletico Madrid 1-0 Liverpool FC

Atletico de Madrid inched past Liverpool in the first leg of their UEFA Europa Cup semifinal Thursday night thanks to an early Diego Forlan goal.  Despite a few good opportunities for Liverpool, the Atletico defense held, giving them the advantage heading into the second leg at Anfield.  

After several matches where I have been a distance from the field, I managed a seat in the fifth row near a corner.  Forlan's goal was unfortunately at the other end so I didn't manage to get the goal celebration, but I managed several keepers.

  

With summer approaching, the 9 o'clock start time meant that there was still some natural light at the beginning of the match.  With the lighting at the Vicente Calderon not so ideal, any natural light helps.

Next week Osasuna vists the Bernabeu for Real Madrid's next-to-last home match of the season.  I will be back in the fourth amphitheater will little chance for any decent pictures.  Hopefully Spain will play a match in Madrid before the World Cup so I will have some chance for additional photography.

More images can be seen on my website:

Trommer Photography

Real Madrid 0 - 2 FC Barcelona

Madrid, April 10, 2010

FC Barcelona took a large step towards securing their second consecutive La Liga crown with a 2-0 victory over Real Madrid at the Santiago Bernabeu Saturday night.  The win takes them three points clear at the top of the table with seven matches remaining.  They also possess the tiebreaker, having won both head-to-head matches.

This was my first Clasico match as I was able to purchase a half-season pass at the beginning of February.  Unfortunately my seat is up near the top so it is difficult to get good pictures of the action.  I was, however, able to get a nice view of the moment of silence before the match in remembrance of those who died in the crash of the Polish presidential airplane.

Messi's first half goal was scored at the opposite end of where I was sitting so my 200mm didn't reach very well.  The second goal, however, was at the near end so I was able to get a few shots off.

I made my way down near the end of the match to get a few shots of the Barcelona players saluting their fans.

Unfortunately I have the same seat for the rest of the season so while it is possible to move down to the 3rd amphitheater if there are some empty seats, there is control in place throughout the match to prevent people from moving down any farther.
As for Real Madrid, there is still a chance that Barcelona will slip up in the remaining matches.  If Madrid keeps its confidence and concentration, anything can happen.

El Clasico

Madrid vs. Barcelona, April 10, 2010.  Going into the most anticipated match of the calendar in Spain, both teams are level on 77 points.  While not decisive, the results of this match will go a long way in deciding the champion at the end of the season.

For the first time I have managed a ticket, thanks to the half-season pass I bought a few months ago.  Unfortunately, though, my seat is in the 4th amphitheater, and with a railing from the stairs in my view, making pictures basically impossible.  I will still bring my camera to try to get a few pictures of the environment, etc.

Hala Madrid!!

Atletico Madrid vs. FC Barcelona

Atletico Madrid 2-1 FC Barcelona

Atletico de Madrid handed Barcelona their first loss in the league this season in the 22nd match week.  Unfortunately both of their goals was at the opposite end, so I didn't get a good view of the goal celebrations.  On the other hand, I had a very good angle for Simao's freekick goal.  I was a fraction of a second late, however, and managed to get the ball just after it passed the diving Victor Valdes.  

The Vicente Calderon stadium is really not ideal for photography from the stands.  First of all, the seats are elevated somewhat from the field, so that even sitting in the 10th row I was pretty elevated.  The primary problem, however, is the lighting.  It is between 1-1.5 stops darker in the Calderon than in the Santiago Bernabeu across town.  Since pretty much all matches are at night this is really a problem.  I am shooting exlusively at f/2.8, but in the Vicente Calderon I can only manage 1/500s at ISO1600.  I typically like to stay below ISO1600 to avoid excessive noise even with my Canon 5D MarkII.  1/500s is manageable for many situations, but not ideal whenever you have a ball in motion.

I ended with some keepers, but none that I consider to be exceptional.  The match, however, was a good one with Atletico playing a very good 20 minutes taking advantage of some defensive blunders by Barcelona and remaining unusually solid in defense.  The result is an excellent one for Real Madrid, putting them back in control of their destiny in the league.

More images can be seen on my website:

Trommer Photography