Blunt Force Trauma: Mixed Martial Arts Photography [Hardcover]

To the casual observer and the combat sport entusiast, Blunt Force Trauma delivers in both style and substance. From the introductions by Dan Hardy and Lee Whitehead himself throught to the images and captions the reader is treated to a mixture of intelligence and emotion by a guy who has followed the sport for a long time and has a clear passion for what he was doing and for the sport.

Often described as a 'thuggish' sport, MMA can be difficult to describe. To most the image is of a bloody, no holds barred cage fight to the death. Yet MMA is much more than that. Through these images Lee is able to convey both the humanity and brutality of MMA but in a respectful, honest way. This isn't a book out to shock or glorify fighting but more to pay respect to the people dedicating their lives to training and fighting who sacrifice a lot of their time for little gain. Not every fighter can make it to the big promotions or the glitz and glamour of Vegas, but in Blunt Force Trauma there is a recognition and respect paid to those who dedicate their lives to the pleasure of the sport.

As a growing sport in the UK it is great to have a visual referece of where the sport has come from and where it is going. Lee Whitehead has done a great job in giving the viewer a greater in sight to the world of MMA. I highly recommend this book.

This book is excellent - pretty much the best photos of MMA in action I've seen, but the accompanying text really shows a deep understanding of, and love for the sport. My favorites are the fighter portraits, capturing them in the aftermath of a fight, victorious or not, and some of the action shots are brilliant. As a relative newcomer to the sport I found the descriptions of the photos to really help me understand the different characters of the fighters, and the stories behind the pictures are really interesting. Fans of MMA will love it!

I dont know what I was expecting from Blunt Force Trauma when I heard a while back from Lee Whitehead that he has bringing out his own book. I suppose I was expecting a small book with a few photos of some blood and some nasty MMA injury's. I was very surprised when my booked was delivered by the postman in a big envelope.

Lee Whitehead is a well known reported and photographer from the UK and has been around the sport for a number of years. He has worked with MMA Weekly as well as Spiked and other MMA Magazines.

The book is huge and with 192 pages of MMA photos. It is one for the die hard MMA fan as well as those who are just getting into the sport. This is no ordinary photo book as Lee takes the time to describe what is happening in most of the pictures and also gives you explanation as to what the move is and also some do's and dont's, kind of like a mini training manual.

It is a great insight into the world of MMA, with some backstage photos as well as some training pictures from gyms such as Xtreme Couture. There is also the odd photo of some nasty cuts and a few of the blood left behind by the fighters in the cage.

There are some awesome portrait photos from the likes of Frank Mir and Vitor Belfort. The photos Lee has taken throughout his career can be looked back on like a history of UK MMA. There are some classic pics from the old days of Cage Warriors and Cage Rage as well as the more up to date Ultimate Challenge and UWC. Paul Daley and Dan Hardy make an appearance in quite a few photos from before their UFC days as well as the classic Ross Pointon forehead cut picture that has become as famous as Ross himself.

Most books you buy and read once then they go on the shelf for the next few years, however this is one book that will not be on your shelf for long as each time you pick it up you find a new photo that you didn't notice the first time around. I myself have sat flicking through the book and just stared in awe at some of the brilliant photography as well as some of the legends of not only UK MMA but world MMA.

Lee Whitehead has done a fantastic job of putting together Blunt Force Trauma and I would recommend this book to any MMA fan.