Alex Pantling echoes the importance of preparation and shows how much thought goes into every picture. “What you think about when taking action shots is how you would want to be photographed. You’re trying to make the athlete look as professional and as skilful as possible,” he says, referring to his stunning shot of Vitinha striking a dead ball. “I think this is the sort of body shape that would be taught in football schools all around Europe. Even though there may be 30 other shots of him actually kicking the ball, Vitinha would probably post this on his Instagram because he looks the most elegant and the most professional.
“The reason I like the picture,” Pantling adds, “is because of how Vitinha’s body shape is parallel to the stadium lights at the top, but it’s not what I was trying to do at the time.”
As a photographer, you’re always hoping for pretty blue skies and sunlight to preview the event, but here the weather wasn’t really playing ball, to be honest. We tried to put the trophy in as many different spots as possible to create different angles. And when we tried this because the sky was so white, the trophy’s such an iconic silhouette that it really stands out.
Alex Pantling
This one wasn’t planned at all. About 20 minutes before kick-off, I was going down the tunnel and I saw the ribbons with both the teams’ colours were being put on. I asked if I could take some pictures and we managed to place it in the middle of the tunnel. Because of the studio lights that were in the corner and the spacious tunnel, we got some really large reflections and details on the side from the ribbons. We see so many wider pictures of the trophy, but it is always nice to see detail because fans don’t usually get to see it from this close. It really shows off how pristine and perfect it is. AP
Sometimes we have to photograph the branding on the drinks bottles, so it’s always worth us doing a picture of players drinking. Then at this moment Achraf Hakimi just cooled himself off by squirting firmly between the eyes, which made for really nice graphic picture. You can see the water droplets getting out of focus as they get towards the camera. I was genuinely really pleased with this picture. And even though it doesn’t really tell much of a story, I suppose it says something about the work rate these guys put in, so it’s not necessarily completely devoid of narrative either.
Michael Regan
When I was asked where I wanted to sit, I said I’d rather be close to the PSG fans because they were so active and so noisy. This one shows a lot of emotion because they’re all so happy and sweating and they have their mouths wide open. I had them right behind my back and it shows that the fans get quite close to us. They’re all in the same line and reacting in almost an identical way, so sometimes it’s nice to get close to them and then use a wide angle to get a shot like this.
Maja Hitij
Sometimes at the final whistle, you can get carried away with the winners, but you always have to keep an eye on the other side to the story. This is a big day in Inter’s history as well. This was Simone Inzaghi’s last match before he left the club and it almost feels like cheating when you have that big sign above which kind of says what you’re trying to say. I put the lens on the floor to get that arch into shot as he walked past and just then he brushed his hair, which adds an air of dejection. I like dejection. MR
The PSG fans were absolutely incomparable on the night, to the point where the final result kind of feels inevitable when you look back on it all. They were just so intense: the flags, the tifos, everything about them. I was really happy to get a picture of Senny Mayulu celebrating in front of them because they were such an important part of the night and, of course, because you can see just how happy he is. MR
Sometimes managers play it cool after they win a trophy. As soon as the final whistle goes, maybe they start thinking about next season. Not him. He was really enjoying himself and getting into the spirit of it, which was nice to see. I’m really grateful for the access we get because I can get right in the middle of things. But it’s also not easy to shoot when you’ve got arms flailing and people jumping around left, right and centre. The man on the left was about to run out into the middle, Luis Enrique was about to turn around and the trophy was about to block his face. As you’re shooting, you get a little buzz saying, “Oh, that might have been good.” So it’s a relief when you see a frame like this where he’s nicely framed by the staff. MR
One of the really great things when you are shooting a Champions League final is that as soon as the final whistle goes, you can get onto the pitch and photograph those really raw initial moments. I was ready for a bit of injury time, but there wasn’t any so I was taken by surprise a little. I got onto the pitch about five seconds later, which can make a huge difference, but Désiré Doué was in this position for quite some time. I took a couple of steps back, made sure to get the floodlights in and isolate this personal moment against all that madness unfolding behind him. MR
If you’re ever going to be able to approach a footballer to get a picture, it’s going to be after they’ve just won the Champions League. The shades add to the fun as well. It’s some sort of American tradition where they put sunglasses on once they’ve won a major final to stop champagne getting in their eyes. Doué’s turned his shirt around and he’s obviously buzzing so I just walked up and said, ‘Hi mate, can you bite your medal for me?’ And he was all too happy to do it. I also feel like it speaks about the moment on an individual level because the trophy is the team’s trophy, but the winners’ medal is a bit more personal. MR
It’s the first time I’ve ever done a winners’ photoshoot for a Champions League final. You feel incredibly fortunate to be witnessing what is probably the biggest day in some of these players’ lives. We walked into the dressing room and, for the first time ever, we had 24 confetti cannons. Now that’s a crazy amount and we thought it was more than we ever needed, but five players in, we ran out because the coaches, staff and substitutes were coming in and popping them off. So the players who came in later, rather than popping the cannon, were picking confetti off the floor and throwing it over each other. It was nice to see them getting involved to help us create these pictures. I especially like the Lucas Hernández one because when he won it with Bayern a while back, he apparently did the same thing, and it’s a tradition of his now to hold the trophy upside down. It looks like it gives him ears. AP
I was a bit lucky with this one because, as all the guys were more central, I was told to basically do whatever I wanted and to just pick where I wanted to be. I could go a bit far away and just shoot the trophy lift from a different angle, but there were so many people on the pitch and there was no clean shot. So I was completely on the edge, not too far from the other photographers, but they blew the confetti quite early, and thankfully that helped clean up the background for me. This way I could focus on how the whole team is looking at Marquinhos and how they are just waiting for the trophy to come to them. MH
Alex Pantling echoes the importance of preparation and shows how much thought goes into every picture. “What you think about when taking action shots is how you would want to be photographed. You’re trying to make the athlete look as professional and as skilful as possible,” he says, referring to his stunning shot of Vitinha striking a dead ball. “I think this is the sort of body shape that would be taught in football schools all around Europe. Even though there may be 30 other shots of him actually kicking the ball, Vitinha would probably post this on his Instagram because he looks the most elegant and the most professional.
“The reason I like the picture,” Pantling adds, “is because of how Vitinha’s body shape is parallel to the stadium lights at the top, but it’s not what I was trying to do at the time.”
As a photographer, you’re always hoping for pretty blue skies and sunlight to preview the event, but here the weather wasn’t really playing ball, to be honest. We tried to put the trophy in as many different spots as possible to create different angles. And when we tried this because the sky was so white, the trophy’s such an iconic silhouette that it really stands out.
Alex Pantling
This one wasn’t planned at all. About 20 minutes before kick-off, I was going down the tunnel and I saw the ribbons with both the teams’ colours were being put on. I asked if I could take some pictures and we managed to place it in the middle of the tunnel. Because of the studio lights that were in the corner and the spacious tunnel, we got some really large reflections and details on the side from the ribbons. We see so many wider pictures of the trophy, but it is always nice to see detail because fans don’t usually get to see it from this close. It really shows off how pristine and perfect it is. AP
Sometimes we have to photograph the branding on the drinks bottles, so it’s always worth us doing a picture of players drinking. Then at this moment Achraf Hakimi just cooled himself off by squirting firmly between the eyes, which made for really nice graphic picture. You can see the water droplets getting out of focus as they get towards the camera. I was genuinely really pleased with this picture. And even though it doesn’t really tell much of a story, I suppose it says something about the work rate these guys put in, so it’s not necessarily completely devoid of narrative either.
Michael Regan
When I was asked where I wanted to sit, I said I’d rather be close to the PSG fans because they were so active and so noisy. This one shows a lot of emotion because they’re all so happy and sweating and they have their mouths wide open. I had them right behind my back and it shows that the fans get quite close to us. They’re all in the same line and reacting in almost an identical way, so sometimes it’s nice to get close to them and then use a wide angle to get a shot like this.
Maja Hitij
Sometimes at the final whistle, you can get carried away with the winners, but you always have to keep an eye on the other side to the story. This is a big day in Inter’s history as well. This was Simone Inzaghi’s last match before he left the club and it almost feels like cheating when you have that big sign above which kind of says what you’re trying to say. I put the lens on the floor to get that arch into shot as he walked past and just then he brushed his hair, which adds an air of dejection. I like dejection. MR
The PSG fans were absolutely incomparable on the night, to the point where the final result kind of feels inevitable when you look back on it all. They were just so intense: the flags, the tifos, everything about them. I was really happy to get a picture of Senny Mayulu celebrating in front of them because they were such an important part of the night and, of course, because you can see just how happy he is. MR
Sometimes managers play it cool after they win a trophy. As soon as the final whistle goes, maybe they start thinking about next season. Not him. He was really enjoying himself and getting into the spirit of it, which was nice to see. I’m really grateful for the access we get because I can get right in the middle of things. But it’s also not easy to shoot when you’ve got arms flailing and people jumping around left, right and centre. The man on the left was about to run out into the middle, Luis Enrique was about to turn around and the trophy was about to block his face. As you’re shooting, you get a little buzz saying, “Oh, that might have been good.” So it’s a relief when you see a frame like this where he’s nicely framed by the staff. MR
One of the really great things when you are shooting a Champions League final is that as soon as the final whistle goes, you can get onto the pitch and photograph those really raw initial moments. I was ready for a bit of injury time, but there wasn’t any so I was taken by surprise a little. I got onto the pitch about five seconds later, which can make a huge difference, but Désiré Doué was in this position for quite some time. I took a couple of steps back, made sure to get the floodlights in and isolate this personal moment against all that madness unfolding behind him. MR
If you’re ever going to be able to approach a footballer to get a picture, it’s going to be after they’ve just won the Champions League. The shades add to the fun as well. It’s some sort of American tradition where they put sunglasses on once they’ve won a major final to stop champagne getting in their eyes. Doué’s turned his shirt around and he’s obviously buzzing so I just walked up and said, ‘Hi mate, can you bite your medal for me?’ And he was all too happy to do it. I also feel like it speaks about the moment on an individual level because the trophy is the team’s trophy, but the winners’ medal is a bit more personal. MR
It’s the first time I’ve ever done a winners’ photoshoot for a Champions League final. You feel incredibly fortunate to be witnessing what is probably the biggest day in some of these players’ lives. We walked into the dressing room and, for the first time ever, we had 24 confetti cannons. Now that’s a crazy amount and we thought it was more than we ever needed, but five players in, we ran out because the coaches, staff and substitutes were coming in and popping them off. So the players who came in later, rather than popping the cannon, were picking confetti off the floor and throwing it over each other. It was nice to see them getting involved to help us create these pictures. I especially like the Lucas Hernández one because when he won it with Bayern a while back, he apparently did the same thing, and it’s a tradition of his now to hold the trophy upside down. It looks like it gives him ears. AP
I was a bit lucky with this one because, as all the guys were more central, I was told to basically do whatever I wanted and to just pick where I wanted to be. I could go a bit far away and just shoot the trophy lift from a different angle, but there were so many people on the pitch and there was no clean shot. So I was completely on the edge, not too far from the other photographers, but they blew the confetti quite early, and thankfully that helped clean up the background for me. This way I could focus on how the whole team is looking at Marquinhos and how they are just waiting for the trophy to come to them. MH
