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| Muhammed Ali after knocking out Sonny Liston Photo by Neil Leifer Photo Courtesy of neilleifer.com |
Neil Leifer's photographs are some of the most iconic in sports history. He took off in the golden era of sports when sports were really starting to stand out as a huge entertainment industry and as a result Leifer has photos of some of the most iconic figures in sports. From Muhammed Ali, to Pele, to Secretariat, if you've seen a sports picture from this era, it's a good chance it's one of Leifer's. His ability to really capture the moment, include the environment, and let the subject sit as the focal point of the picture is truly awe inspiring. His countless photos of iconic athletes almost put together a tapestry of the world of sports throughout his tenure.
Leifer was first introduced to photography when he was 13-years-old when he took classes at the Henry Street Settlement House. Since he loved sports, he began taking sports photos and as a result, Leifer started his his career as a freelance photographer. As a teen, he worked at New York Giant's games and would push wheelchairs for handicapped patrons for free admission to the games. He took photos of the games that he was allowed into and on his 16th birthday he took photo's of the NFL title game between the Giants and the Colts, a game that would later be known as "The Greatest Game Ever Played." Leifer sold his photos for Sports Illustrated and they brought him aboard, he would go on to be a prodigy for the magazine and Leifer earned his first cover photo at the age of 19. Leifer would go on to have over 200 cover stories for the magazine throughout his life and was well known for his photographs of Boxing legend Muhammad Ali. One might argue that the photo of Ali knocking out Sonny Liston is the most iconic sports photo of all time and because of that and countless other examples of phenomenal photographs, Neil Leifer is also talked about as one of the greatest sports photographers of all time.
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