Boxer Tarvis Simms

It's got to be tough to make a living as a boxer. They pummel each other with great force, over and over again. It was hard to watch. But my close-up perspective shed a surprising light on the sport. More than once in the match, when one boxer hit another with a particularly swift jab or well-placed cross, the other would recover from the blow, then give an almost imperceptible nod to his opponent, as if to say, "good shot." Maybe it was my imagination.

For the photographers out there, the shot above was taken with a 17-55mm lens -- the short focal length gives you an idea of how close I was. You need to be close to be able to shoot around the ring ropes.

This top-of-the-card matchup started past the paper's deadline, but I stayed to the end anyway and the story and pictures ended up getting good play in the following edition.