Archive for the Sports Category
Girls Basketball / Patterson Mill at Fallston
December 20, 2008 | Filed Under basketball, Sports | Leave a Comment
Two local photographers, Russell Tracy and Dave Yoakum contacted me to come out to meet and shoot with them sometime. That time came last Thursday night at Fallston High School. Russell and Dave are practicing their off-camera techniques and this would be a good opportunity to learn from each other.
The Fallston gym, like most in Harford County, has very little room, and no balcony at the end of court which prevents getting our lights high and pointed parallel to the sidelines. We had to place the lights on the sides, which create too much crosslighting and harsh shadows.
When using strobes/flashes, ideally you want to over power the ambient light by 3 to 4 stops so that when you are shooting at your camera’s sync speed (typically 1/250 sec), the quick burst of light from the strobes is what freezes the action and not the shutter speed. I tried bouncing my 580EXs off the back wall to create a large light source, but my flashes, even on full power, could only muster about 2 stops over ambient. In a darker lit gym, this method would probably work, but Fallston’s ambient lighting is better than average.
I had to stick with direct light from the corners of the gym. I placed my flashes on my 7-foot light stands and set them each to 1/8 power, 28mm zoom and aimed them towards the top of the key.
Here are some samples from the night.
John Carroll Grapplers Win Home Opener
December 3, 2008 | Filed Under Sports, wrestling | 4 Comments
The John Carroll Patriots wrestling team opened their home schedule against Boy’s Latin on Tuesday afternoon with a 56-18 win.
The NFL Experience
October 17, 2008 | Filed Under football, Sports | 3 Comments
I can finally say, “Yes, I’ve shot an NFL game.”
I’ve shot many high school games, a college game, but they don’t compare to the NFL Experience. To those who shoot the NFL regularly, it’s probably old hat for you, but for me it was like getting to fly first class after riding in coach all my life.
The first thing that really surprised me was how big these guys are. Not sure where these guys hang out all week, but I’ve never seen people this enormous at the grocery store or mall.
Photographing the game is pretty much the same — except the players move so much faster, and passes get to their intended receivers (or defensive players) in a blink of an eye.
-30-
Wrestling Team Poster
July 28, 2008 | Filed Under Digital Editing, group portrait, wrestling | 4 Comments
Keith Watson, aka “Watty”, head coach of the John Carroll Wrestling team (a private high school in Bel Air) called me with regards to creating a team poster/schedule for the 08-09 season. Watty, who is sometimes referred to the P.T. Barnum of Harford County wrestling, for he is always thinking of ways to market and promote his school and the sport. His first thought was to assemble the team on someone’s front porch and have some slogan referring to porch, big dogs, etc.
My initial reaction was trying to find a large enough porch for a shot like this, but even more challenging would be to find a time when all these guys would be free at the same time (over the summer), to make the shoot. These are high school boys, many who have summer jobs, are on family vacations, or are more interested in hanging with their girlfriends. I offered up a different idea — shoot each wrestler individually with a green screen, cut them out and create the illusion of a group shot. Using this method, each wrestler would be lit under controlled conditions much easier than trying to setup lights on location. This approach provides a way to now come up with any background image to use for the poster. The other advantage, is weather is a non-factor, so no rainout date would have to be planned.
The last day of class for John Carroll was June 6, so I went to the school that day, setup and shot each wrestler that Coach Watson wanted to be in the poster, before they all spread like wildfire after finishing the school year.
I submitted for review, ten different background images, from pastures to buildings, for potential candidates for the final poster. Coach Watson and his staff settled on the stormy clouds version. In addition, he let me know that one of the original wrestlers has transferred to another school and would need to be removed. With the removal of that wrestler, I then rearranged the other guys to balance it out.
Coach Watson wondered if I could add a bolt of lighting to the sky. I played around with Photoshop after Googling for help inspiration and technique from others. I personally like the poster without the lightning, but the coaches loved it, and wanted it included.
The final step was to add the text, and get the final OK. Once approved, it was time to send the final image to the lab to print the posters.
This was a fun experience, and would gladly accept another project that could utilize the green screen.
-30-
Don’t Shoot Till You See the Whites of Their Eyes: Tips to Taking Better Sports Pictures
June 27, 2008 | Filed Under Photo Tips, Sports | Leave a Comment
Go to any high school or recreational league where sports are being played, and you’ll find parents, grandparents, and friends with cameras.
From my observations, I see many folks whip out their pocket camera or digital SLR and just snap away when “Little Johnny” hits the field, most likely capturing many pictures of his back, or becoming unrecognizable because he is so far away and just shows up as a blip on the picture.
With some planning and keeping in mind some of my tips below, you can transform yourself from a sideline snapshooter into a quality sportsshooter, and create photographs worth looking at over and over again. Creating better images will not only make you proud of yourself, you will have cherished images to complement your memories.
Of course, if I were to write down everything I know about shooting sports from equipment to technique, I would end up with a book. However, if you can keep in mind these 10 general tips, you can be well on your way to capturing better sports images. This list should work well for anyone shooting sports outdoors. Indoors brings about a whole new batch of problems — which I will discuss in the future.
1. The Eyes Have It
Having the face and eyes of your subject in the shot are key ingredients to taking a good sports image. Seeing the back of a player is not going to win many awards, and typically ends up in the delete pile. Being able to see the eyes of your subject is what really will connect with the viewer of the picture. How do we read emotion from others? By looking at their face.
Not only should you be watching the action, and waiting for a potential moment for a picture, but be equally aware of when your subject is facing in your general direction. You’ll be surprised how much better with using this tip alone will produce more pleasing images.
2. Location, Location, Location
Just as in real estate, a good sports photograph starts with the location from which you are shooting. Granted, getting onto or near the field of a professional sports event is nearly impossible without proper credentials, many high school and almost all youth sports allow you to get much closer to the action. You may enjoy sitting in the bleachers, or in one location with your personal lawn chair, with your family and friends to visit with during lulls in the action, but trying to take pictures from there, rarely produces good results.
If at all possible, get as close to the sidelines, or playing field area as permitted, and in a position that you feel much of the action of the player(s) you want to photograph will be happening. You can visit with your friends after the game.
3. Be a Snake in the Grass
Don’t be afraid to get on your belly to take pictures. Your subjects look larger than life when you shoot from a lower point of view. Standing up, and shooting down on little ones is not as flattering. Most adults view things in life from between 4 and 6 feet. To create more interesting images, you need to shoot from outside that zone, to give the viewer a different perspective than they normally would see.
If possible, try to shoot from below your subjects eye level. You’ll be surprised the difference this makes in your photographs.
4. Predict the Future (without your crystal ball)
I don’t mean like being able to predict the lottery numbers for next week, but rather knowing enough about the sport or event to have a good bit of confidence when something is going to happen. For example, if you are wanting to capture a soccer goalie in action, you know darn well when the ball is on the other end of the field, you don’t have to be poised and ready to shoot that player.
Anticipating when action will take place is a huge benefit to sports photography. If you are at a baseball game and there is a runner on first base, there is a good chance there will action at first base in the form of a pickoff attempt, or a play at second base by either a steal attempt, or a double play attempt. So, if you can be located on the first base side, near the first base bag and somewhat in line of second base, you are in great position to capture some peak action.
Each sport has it’s subtleties that if you know the sport well, can give you an advantage in knowing what to look for before it happens.
To those with point & shoot cameras with a long delay between the time you press the shutter and the camera actually taking the picture (shutter lag), many situations allow you to pre-focus on an area by pressing your shutter down halfway. By doing this you can eliminate much of the delay, so that when the action is happening, all you have to do it now depress the shutter fully and the camera will fire much faster.
5. What’s That in the Background?
An important issue that most amateur photographers miss is being aware of the background in the area they have positioned themselves. Photographers many times are so fixated on the action, they totally ignore what’s behind the action.
When scouting for locations, be aware of porta-potties, parking lots, trashcans, and the like. Sometimes, just moving a couple feet one way or the other makes a world of difference. It’s only after you’ve gotten home and downloaded your images to your computer do you realize the faux pas you made.
Be aware, that with many of today’s youth fields, finding a background that is clean is nearly impossible, so don’t always expect to succeed in this area.
6. Shoot Tight
Don’t be afraid of chopping off body parts in the frame. Having the full body of your subject is not always needed. The viewer has the ability to fill in that information without it being shown, which allows you, the photographer to zoom in tight and focus in on the face. Looking at the photo above, the photo tells the whole story with just the upper half of the running back in the photo. Through your experience, you know that the player is running past defenders with ball in hand. Being tight on the subject shows the intensity in his eyes that would have been lost if this photograph was shot from a wider angle.
7. Action not Required
Sometimes the best shots are taken away from the main action. Some potential shots can be found on the sidelines with players not in the game, as they are talking with each other, getting a drink or being chewed out by the coach. On the field during timeouts, or other lulls in the action also can tell a story.
Don’t always follow the ball. When a placekicker attempts a field goal, all eyes are on the ball as it flies through the air. A picture of the ball in mid-air is not that exciting, so stay focused on the kicker himself — he will either give you a jube shot as it passes through the uprights, or the “agony of defeat” as it misses the target.
Always be on the lookout for other photo opportunities.
8. Expect the Unexpected
Always keep your camera ready, and your eye on the event. Just because the player you are wanting to photograph is not involved in the action, or is on the sidelines, don’t be caught with your head in the clouds. Something may happen that you don’t want to say, “Oh man, I should of gotten a picture of that?” Granted, it’s easy to lose concentration when you feel nothing is going on that needs your attention, but when something does happen and you capture it — it’s an exhilarating feeling.
9. Take Control of Your Life Camera
This is a subject that a couple chapters in a book would cover, but you will have greater success if you can take control of your camera rather than letting the camera make all the decisions. Setting your camera to the “running man” (sports mode) is not taking control. I highly recommend you sit down with your owner’s manual and learn how to use aperture priority (Av on Canon), shutter priority (Tv on Canon) and yes, even manual mode of your camera.
For sports, I suggest aperture priority, and set your camera to open up to the widest aperture available to you (that means the smallest f-stop number on your camera). This will allow your camera to let in the most light and give you the highest shutter speed to stop the action. What this also does is give you a smaller depth-of-field (DOF), to blur the background and isolate your subject much better.
Sometimes, you may want to get a bit artsy to give show movement. This can be done by panning. Set your camera to shutter priority somewhere around 1/40 of a second (experiment with what works best for what you are photographing). Now, as your subject is moving past you, keep focused on your subject and press the shutter. Keep as steady as possible and keep your subject tracked in your frame throughout the entire opening of the shutter. You should end up with your main subject pretty well in focus, and everything else with that movement sort of blur. To the left is a photo I took of a bowling ball coming down the alley.
If you want complete control of the exposure — use manual mode. This takes all the thinking away from the camera as far as exposure is concerned. With cameras, they can be easily fooled by it’s surroundings. Dark jerseys, white jerseys, bright sky in the background, etc. Unless the clouds are moving in front of the sun often, the light is consistent, so you can set this manually in your camera, which now allows your camera to have less shutter lag, for determining exposure is one less step it has to perform before firing the shot.
10. Post-Game: Learn From Your Mistakes
Take a bunch of pictures, look at them on your computer at home and see your results. You will learn a great deal through critiquing your own work. You will see what works and what doesn’t and each time you go out and shoot, you will improve from the last.
Pick Your Poison
February 27, 2008 | Filed Under basketball | Leave a Comment
Monday night was the championship game of the UCBAC (Upper Chesapeake Bay Athletic Conference) Boy’s Basketball. It was being held at Harford Community College.
I was there on assignment for The Examiner. I had never been to the HCC gym, so did not know if there would be any place to mount my strobes, so I decided to leave them home, and shoot ambient. With that in mind I loaded my camera bag with my 85 f/1.8 and 135 f/2.0 lenses.
Surprisingly the lighting in the gym wasn’t too bad (as far as gymnasiums go). My camera settings were ISO 1000; f/2.0; 1/500.
The Examiner wanted images of Aberdeen’s two superstars — Devon Saddler and Devon Branch. Devon Saddler’s father saw me waiting for the Girl’s championship game to finish and was telling me how the two Devon’s are slam dunking machines. He then showed me his T-Shirt that had images of both players with “Pick Your Poison” written across the top. I knew I was in for an exciting game.
Normally I like to use my 135 lens, but with the information of them loving to go strong to the basket, I switched to my 85 and setup camp for the game sitting at the corner of the baseline and sideline.
It didn’t take long and the fireworks started. I think Devon Saddler had four in the first half. I was in perfect position to capture the slam dunks and with a clean background to boot!
These two images above are a good example of why people have fits with white balance in a gymnasium. Just look at the wall in the background. Same camera settings, but they produced two different colors. Gym lights are generally fluorescent and actually cycle at 60Hz, so the light output is not constant. The human eye doesn’t notice this pulsating wave of output, but the camera sure does. The best way I have found to get the majority of your shots correct from the get-go is to shoot a gray card at 1/60 second, which allows the lights to complete a full cycle, thus giving you the average light color to use for your custom white balance.
Aberdeen went on to win 66-49 over Elkton which was Aberdeen’s fifth UCBAC championship, which just happens to be the total number of years the UCBAC has been in existence.
Mount Mat Madness V
January 22, 2008 | Filed Under Photo Tips, Sports, wrestling | 1 Comment
Saturday I spent the entire day at the 5th annual Mount Mat Madness tournament. This is one of the toughest high school wrestling tournaments on the east coast. For anyone who loves the sport of wrestling, this is a must-see event.
I was on-hand to shoot some key semi-finals matches as well as all of the championship finals matches.
The lighting inside of the athletic center at CCBC is nothing spectacular, so I brought my trusty speedlight setup with me.
A very nice balcony along one side of the building provided a great location for me to mount my two speedlights. Using superclamps, I could easily mount them to the railing on the balcony.
I set my two Canon 580EXs at 1/4 +0.3 power; 105mm zoom and pointed the lights slightly inward towards the center of the mat and aiming at the far end of the mat. You can see a view from the balcony as they were setting up the mat for the finals. Once the lights were in place, it was time to head down matside to get my camera settings worked out.
I snapped a few shots of people walking across the mat and by checking my histogram on the camera, determined ISO 400; f/5.0; 1/250s was pretty close. I set my WB to daylight and was ready to go.
The finals did not disappoint — there was some fantastic wrestling and I was able to watch it on my belly at the edge of the mat. I’m already looking forward to MMM-VI!
Here are a couple more photos from the finals.
