There are so many things to say about this shot from the Warrior Dash in Amesbury, MA. First of all: don't think that you are handicapped just because you are not using your best equipment. I shot this with my back up camera (Nikon D70) because it was pouring and muddy. I left my $2400 zoom lens in my truck and used the 60mm prime lens that is on that camera because it has a recessed lens and would be less likely to get dirty. However, the 60mm 1:2.8 is still a decent lens. You just have to compose more with your feet and don't expect to get those long shots.
The strongest part of this image is the story that it tells. The people dressed in tutus (including one guy), mud all over them and the fat guy, an almost naked guy in front of them, the little girl taking this all in, and the only clean things in the foreground are the t-shirts that read "be curious". This would have been a good image with just the four main subjects, but add the little girl and voila!
Techniquewise (is that a real word?), all I had to do was add a slight localized increase to the exposure on the little girl's face and burn the white thing on the guy's head in the upper left corner of the image because it was distracting. I also did a slight cropping.
How to get a shot like this: be there, be aware, and don't ever allow yourself to say "Wow, that would have been a good shot". Turn around and go back and take the shot (if you still can!) I literally ran after these people trying to get a front shot until I saw the little girl. I stopped dead in my tracks, composed, and fired. Oh yeah!
Compare these two versions. I adjusted a very important flaw. See if you can spot it. Hint: check the periphery.
