kirt1

Nice of the ball carrier to get the tackler's helmet up so I could

see his eyes. I'm fairly new to football, so feedback/critique is

much appreciated.

I love this shot. The only thing I'm a little conflicted about is the background. I like the way his arms frame the banner but that makes me want to see it more clearly. But, if you add flash to get greater DOF, it'll be darker. Failing that, I guess I'd like to see less DOF, making the banner a little more abstract.

But that's really a nit. Great timing. The ball is in a perfect spot, the player's expression is great.

Well done.

This is just after the moment of release, during the championship

game of the 12U 2005 Triple Crown World Series. Check out the

freaky arm, especially around the elbow. Always interested in your

thoughts.

I agree. Heck, I almost ran away from my screen!

The DOF looks good; really focuses you on those teeth and the eyes. I don't know if it's the lighting or something else, but the shot looks a little flat to me, color-wise.

Hi Bruce,

One thing that I'm maybe overly sensitive to is whether or not the photo is level. Sometimes "crooked" shots are made for artistic effect, but it doesn't seem so in this case, or maybe it just doesn't work for me. One hint that works for all but the widest angle shots, is to look at vertical elements in the photo, and make them vertical. If you use Photoshop, use the little ruler in the tool bar (it's often hiding under the eyedropper) and draw along a vertical line. Then go to "rotate... arbitrary" and the angle will be already filled in for you.

In this shot, I think the guys in the background actually add a lot to the drama of the shot, but since they do, I think it would be better if their hats weren't cut off.

I hope that all comes across constructively. Keep shooting!

I like the shot. It looks slightly over-sharpened to me; there is a distinct black line between the yellow of the suit (especially in the highlights) and the background.

But it's still a nice shot, good job!

Kirt

Okay, bad pun. By tagging the runner going to 3rd, then turning to

look at 1st, this SS managed to get ponytails going in both

directions. I'd like to have eliminated the "fan" in the

background. Your thoughts appreciated.

This is just an instant before she was hit with the ball. I cropped

fairly tightly, so if it's too tight, or you see other opportunities

for me to improve, please let me know.

I like this one better, mostly because the car shows some sharp details. I think I would like it even more if the car were farther back in the frame, and more of the blurred background in the upper-left was visible.

Keep shooting!

Kirt

I like the background and I think I like the angle, but it bothers me that the car is not sharp. Maybe having the car farther back in the frame would also be better.

Kirt

Taking photos of batters as the pitcher releases the ball can yield

some interesting expressions. Let me know what you think.

I'm curious as to why the trees are in the photo. If you intended them as a part of the composition, they are just too dark, and there aren't enough bright star trails for them to have any dramatic effect there.

If you intended them to be visible, did you consider popping a flash at the end of the exposure to illuminate them?

There are also a lot of little colored pixels. Are those an artifact of the camera? Some digital cameras (which I'd guess these are an artifact of using a digital camera and a long exposure) have a "dark frame subtraction" function that might eliminate them.

You can also highlight the trees a bit by playing with the shot in, say, Photoshop's "Levels" function. Try bringing the white point downward and see if you like it.

I'd definitely encourage you to keep experimenting with it, though. Thanks for posting it, I had fun thinking about it.

Kirt

http://www.photo.net/photos/kirt

http://kirt.eventpictures.com

First, I'm curious as to how it was altered (it was marked as altered or unknown) but I'm guessing all you did is crop it and maybe do some color/contrast adjustment, which I don't believe qualifies as altered.

I like the crop too, and I don't think it needs sharpening or (further?) color adjustment. Obviously opinions vary on this. :-)

My biggest "nit" is that it doesn't look like a catch to me, it looks like someone who already has control of the ball who is diving out for a first-down or TD.

But a good capture regardless.

Kirt

I appreciate the details you included, particularly how you used the flash.

I'd love to be able to see the eyes of the QB, which is really my only "complaint" about the shot. I love the way that he seems frozen, while the back (because of his motion) and the lineman (maybe because he's out of focus) are moving around him.

I'm curious, where was your flash mounted? I have played with mounting it below the camera (with a clamp on my monopod) and thought that had promise because it helped get more light up under the helmet/facemask.

Anyway, great job.

Kirt

For quite awhile I was obsessed with getting bat-on-ball photos. I

think I prefer the other angle (other side of the field for a RH

batter) in general, yet I'm kind of drawn to this one.

All suggestions appreciated.

Kirt

In general, I like it; there's too little in the way of sports photos here.

I like the general position of the elements of the photo. I'm thinking slightly earlier in the follow-through and/or a tigher crop might make the composition look better.

The focus seems to be slightly in front of the pitcher. Keeping a narrow DOF and getting the perfect focus point is tough. Try to find it by focusing carefully on the dirt on the pitching mound and using focus lock (or just turn off AF after you get it) if your camera has trouble tracking the action.

Ditto the comments about the horizon. However, I have great success with horizons by actually getting the true vertical elements vertical, as depending on the angle of the fence (whether it is farther away on the left or right). The fence has a whole series of vertical slats. Get one in the middle vertical and you're home free!

I'll post some of my sports shots in the next few days. Please let me know what you think when I do.

Kirt