Ping Pong Balls In Mid-Air: 17 Intense Up Close Photos

With all the new apps, technology and photo sharing sites that are constantly introduced to us, photography has changed tremendously over the past few years. Suddenly everyone is a photographer, and just like with technology in general, our standards and expectations have gone up. By installing a few apps on an iPhone, almost anyone can take really, really good pictures. That means in order for photographs to be considered extraordinary these days, they have to be really unique and extra special. They have to capture something we don’t get to see everyday on Facebook or Instagram. Ping pong balls, in mid-air, combined with the intense competition at the Olympics, is definitely not something we see everyday.

One of my favorite articles that I’ve ever written featured a collection of photographs like what I’m describing. You can check them out at 20 Captivating Photos Shot At Exactly The Right Moment. I could stare at those pictures over and over again, and they never get old. To me, that is the definition of extraordinary photography. The ironic part is that to this day, I don’t know who the photographers are who shot each one of those.

If you are a ping pong fan, you are going to love this set of photographs also. These pictures, taken at the Olympics, show close-ups of these incredible athletes and their ping pong balls during what was probably the most intense match of their lives. You can see a lifetime’s worth of determination, commitment, concentration, practice and skill in their faces as they play harder than they’ve ever played before to make their countries proud. The intensity and the humor combined in these photos is really inspiring.

If you want to see another super cool Olympic photography feat, check out these Olympic Synchronized Swimming Photos Flipped Upside-Down that I read about yesterday. It’s an experiment that Huffington Post did, and the results are fascinating and beautiful. I don’t know what photographer to credit for these ping pong ball pictures below, but if you know, please let me know in a comment so I can give that person proper recognition. Enjoy!