viewthroughmylens

October 13, 2011

I'm not positive that Joseph has ever shot a night sport with flash.. the players don't even know you're there unless you literally get in their way or attempt to strobe like a 70's disco. Here in Minnesota our 'State High School League' media guides actually expressly allows flash for everything but gymnastics, and swimming starts and diving.

I use a ring clamp, usually for plumbing or automotive, but extremely cheap in comparison to flash clamps, mounted 3 feet (the flash cable length) below my camera, with the flash upside down shooting at a slight angle up, to try and eliminate face mask shadows. Always in TTL so the camera tells the flash the distance rather than having to adjust as the play moves closer. Still working on really perfecting the technique, but have moved towards an F4 aperture with my 70-200 F2.8 to underexpose in camera and have it corrected better with the flash to try and limit the 200 foot shadows behind a player. Mounting away from the lens of course, eliminates most of the red-eye issues of flash also.

IT definitely requires more timing in shots, rather than being able to 'burst' .. I missed this next one by a second, but it still ended up being run by a newspaper editor

July 4, 2011

I really liked (and still would if I didn't have a Canon 24-70 now) my Tokina 50-135 F2.8 that I used a lot before getting a Sigma 70-200, it focused really well and good and crisp at 2.8. For some reason (a bad contact?) it only worked at F2.8 and gave an error at any slower aperture, but I only used it at 2.8 anyway. It might be an option if somebody has experience with the Nikon mount version.

June 27, 2011

It's time to get OUT of the pre-set sports mode, it doesn't let you do much.. and also shutter priority at night. Use only the center-point focus when shooting most sports or the lens/camera can start hunting a bunch if stuff moves around the subject.

In Av mode you could have gone up to ISO 320 or so and got a shutter speed that's great for baseball/softball given the light we see.. then because it is back lit, you need to use a bit of exposure compensation at +1/3 or +2/3 to expose the front of the pitcher. Av is especially helpful when the light is constantly going from sunny to cloudy if you don't have time to keep changing settings besides ISO.

April 23, 2011

I used Photoreflect for a while but didn't care much for the fact that when someone ordered, I had to THEN go and upload a high resolution photo for them to print, rather than having the high resolution photo already uploaded for the fulfillment printer like with Smugmug. Difference of course is the $149 yearly fee on Smugmug, but I also like the customer service better, having used both.

January 28, 2011

Ai Servo and Center Point are two different things.. one's the motor and one's the spot you're telling the lens to focus

January 27, 2011

I'll greatly disagree on the #11.. use of a monopod .. for volleyball there's way too much movement up and down for it to be of much use unless you're going to be standing around a long time between matches, then you can mount the camera after to carry it around.

Crop pretty tight on volleyball also.. eliminating worthless background stuff, especially if you're at a tournament with split gyms and people everywhere.

Probably a bad example given the Xcel center's lighting for the state tourney but:

An ISO 2500 F2.8 1/800 shot (lucky to get eyes framed in the net, by accident)

December 14, 2010

NCAA D2 Football National Semi-Final between UMD (Minnesota-Duluth) and Northwest Missouri State.. UMD won 17-13 on the home field, in -15 windchills.. brr

Field is usually too dark to get decent night shots, but with CBS' CSTV and Fox Sports North broadcasting there were extra lights brought in that were staged behind us so huge improvement

Ruled a touchdown, then overturned by replay for the obvious reason I caught in the photo

<a href="http://www.viewthroughmylens.net/Galleries/UMDFootball/SemiFinalVsNWMissouri.html">MORE shots</a>

November 11, 2010

Ron, I think you need a faster focusing lens.. most of those basketball you posted on smugmug are out of focus, and those that aren't, are way soft, making it not the ideal lens by far

Sigma 70-200 in the tiny CC/JC gym from Tuesday..cannot get near the basket because the gym was built too short.. only about 4 feet from the wall to the endline and you'll get run over or injure a player being under the basket.

November 11, 2010

I've been shooting college at 1/640 because of the glass that's in the old arena.. new arena opening December 30 will fix that.. as will my buying an EOS 7D yesterday. If I shoot over the glass 1/800 is easy but not so much when it's through the glass. We'll see how the 7D improves that Friday night

November 11, 2010

If that's the case.. then the photos above should be cropped or shot tighter.. lots of wasted space on them that doesn't need to be there.

November 10, 2010

My 50D settings have usually been ISO 3200 and 1/640 through the glass at the college arena.. the high school arena I go up to 1/800 shutter with more light. Friday this week will be my first game shooting with a 7D instead of 50D and can't wait to see what I can get. I think 100mm is too short for hockey, especially if you're shooting over the glass, but would be good if you were in a corner through the glass.

November 9, 2010

Three volleyball matches on Saturday... 1 college then 2 section finals.. one LONGGGGG day.

1.

2.

3.

4.

5.

6. Posted in back order of occurrence, the college drew 10x's fewer people for it's final home match of the year than either high school match

Shooting ONE state tourney match Thursday then that ends my volleyball match shooting until the 'JO' season in the Spring far as I know it.

November 8, 2010

I give them a 300 dpi copy, cropped 8x10 and they resize how they need for the size they have. The area's not huge but they do have some small towns half hour away that receive and are covered also.. covering a football state tournament game of a team out in the middle of nowhere that they write up.

November 7, 2010

Our weekly paper is offering me $20 per shot (just "hired" as freelance this week by them) which doesn't sound like a lot but in this market where they aren't getting a ton of advertising revenues right now it's what they can do. I'll take it since they've already told me to sell anything else I get where I can (aka, my website and Smugmug,) and I'd be shooting a lot of the events for my own sale/blog/etc already.

November 7, 2010

I doubt he even knows the camera is there.. it LOOKS like he was looking at the player being tackled and the camera caught him looking like he was looking at it.

October 28, 2010

We're only a day from this weekend now but last weekend was.. hockey..and more hockey

UMD (Minnesota-Duluth) women swept UConn in a 2 game series

UMD men swept Alaska Anchorage

October 22, 2010

You could get away with the 70-200 IF you are able to roam from end to end but definitely go with the 120-300 when you have the option, just rotate to portait orientation (or shoot it the entire time, and save post-cropping time) for those shots that come inside the 120 short range of the lens. Then, since you announced your press pass here... post pictures of your results afterwards!

October 12, 2010

I've never heard anything bad about the 85 F1.8, but have never tried one myself but really want one.. I may after I have the money to buy the EOS 7D and move my 50D to the backup position.

When I needed a lens on a budget when I first started a few years ago the Tokina 50-135 F2.8 was a really good starter for me though it won't quite do what the 85 F1.8 will in those low light situations

October 11, 2010

Minnesota-Duluth soccer vs U of Mary Saturday afternoon

Minnesota-Duluth volleyball vs Bemidji State University after the soccer

And, Junior Hockey, Duluth Clydesdales vs Dryden (Ontario) Icedogs on Sunday night

October 4, 2010

The week started with volleyball and soccer

And ended with hockey on Friday and Sunday

September 27, 2010

I shot a cold high school football game Friday night.. flash wasn't cycling fast (I need to retire the 'Promaster' flash and get a 580) so I took it off and shot ambient...

1. B4 taking the flash off

2. Fumble recovery

Ambient.. ISO 3200 SS 1/640 I think.. probably should have warmed them a tad but haven't yet

3. I hate the shadows the helmet make in ambient, but got a lot more shots this way

4. Halftime fire twirlers

5.

Shot girls soccer Saturday morning at 11.. goal scored 2:01 into the match then 78 minutes WITHOUT a goal.. really bright sunny morning

7.

8. No, she wasn't kicked in the butt.. just the reflex grimace after a header

September 27, 2010

A lot of places.. if you buy the cheapest ticket.. you won't even be able to get near the areas of the other seats.. they'll check your ticket when you try to get from the concourse into the seating sections

September 24, 2010

I don't tend to sit down .. other than basketball.. don't usually shoot the little kids games other than a few football so never decided I needed to get down to knee level of the high school or college age players. I do daylight at F4 with a 1.4 extender on my Sigma 70-200 and everything else (indoor/evening) F2.8 without the extender

September 24, 2010

High school football on Friday night..

Would have shot the community college game Saturday but was asked to run the scoreboard/clock.. really glad there was no 25 second play clock also or it would have been extra tough.

September 24, 2010

70-300 F1.8???? You mean a 70-200 F2.8 probably..

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