Hockey portraits...traditional style

sonny_c · March 9, 2009

This year my company is shifting our gears and we will begin to focus on T&I portraits. We experimented last year in this area and like it a lot. Also, there is a big local photography company in our area that is making many leagues and more importantly...parent very unhappy with their poor quality of work. From this, we are getting many requests. So we bit the bullet, and decided to invest a little money to get started in this area (T&I).

We photographed the Houston Wild Bantam AA hockey team a couple of weeks ago. They sometimes practice at the Aerodrome. We setup a shoot for them and these are the results. This was the first time I've shot with any type of background, and lighting setup.

Please take some time to offer your C&C. Thank you.

This was our setup

nw scout · March 9, 2009

Lighting looks good.
My tips would be.
Carry a little portable steamer with you. Helps get out those wrinkles.
Have the model stand as far from the background as possible to help it separate a little.

slipkid · March 9, 2009

I would add a hockey puck into the picture, near the blade of the stick. Otherwize they look real nice.

mercphoto · March 9, 2009

One concern I have is if you have enough room to crop an 8x10 out of most of those shots.

aktse · March 9, 2009

I play adult hockey and have seen various T&I shoots at the various local rinks of the bay area over the years.

I think the photos technically are sound and would be great with the tweaks suggested in this thread, would make them even better.

My issue: I think they look funny and unnatural standing on the carpet; I see a grey background, a different color shade of grey carpet, and then the backdrop again.

I normally see this type of photos if youth hockey on the ice itself and not off the ice.

The local T&I photogs shoot on the ice, move the backdrops, lights on the ice and have the skaters pose in front of the background and sometimes add a nets, pucks, etc. to use as props.

The photogs are the ones standing on carpet.

I believe this is usually done during a practice on an ice slot rented by the team and drills are run on the other side of the ice and photos are done on the other half of the ice.

kwkodiak · March 9, 2009

I would second Aktse's comments re taking the pictures on ice rather than your current setup.

BradfordBenn · March 9, 2009

I like the shots overall.

I agree with Aktse to do it on the ice, another option could be to blend out the rubber runner. Taking shots on the ice after a skate is not that hard, as the ice is fairly cut up and not that slick.

The fact that everyone is smiling is also very refreshing.

ian408 · March 10, 2009

I do like these shots. The backdrop color works with the team colors. My only suggestion is to bring your subject toward the camera and to use more of the carpet runner for a solid surface front to back (or is it rubber?).

An on-ice shot might be better but more difficult to control. A practice, unless it's skating drills, is going to put pucks in "your end". As the photographer, you can't be watching for pucks and shooting pictures so unless there's a coach willing to maintain control until you're done or you've got the whole sheet, I wouldn't suggest this--trust me, you don't want to get hit by a puck

aktse · March 10, 2009

ian408 wrote:

A practice, unless it's skating drills, is going to put pucks in "your end". As the photographer, you can't be watching for pucks and shooting pictures so unless there's a coach willing to maintain control until you're done or you've got the whole sheet, I wouldn't suggest this--trust me, you don't want to get hit by a puck

Oops. Oops. Oops! No pucks! Give people pucks and they want to shoot!

Yes! Half ice skating drills without pucks and it cane be done easily.

The team can easily work on stuff like quick starts, clocks, russian circles, tight turns, etc.

sonny_c · March 10, 2009

Wow, thank you for the great response!

nw scout - The steamer is a great idea. Having the players move further away from the background is something I totally overlooked. Thanks for the tips!

mercphoto - These photos are cropped to various size. The originals do have room for an 8x10.

aktse - I agree with everything you said in your 1st post. Unfortunately the head coach would not allow us on the ice. We were forced to find a room, setup our gear, and do our best. I do love the idea of combining more props with the background.

I agree the dark strip does stand out. This was a last minute suggestion by a parent. I originally wanted the players to wear their blade guards to prevent the skates from tearing up the fabric. Next time I might use a piece of Plexiglas.

Again, thanks to everybody that left a comment.

aktse · March 10, 2009

sonny_c wrote:

....
aktse - I agree with everything you said in your 1st post. Unfortunately the head coach would not allow us on the ice. We were forced to find a room, setup our gear, and do our best. I do love the idea of combining more props with the background.

I agree the dark strip does stand out. This was a last minute suggestion by a parent. I originally wanted the players to wear their blade guards to prevent the skates from tearing up the fabric. Next time I might use a piece of Plexiglas.

I don't recommend plexiglass or glass for a few reasons. It will dull the skates. Players (and goalies) wearing skates only walk on a few places at the rink and most of the surfaces are covered by a rubbery surface and carpet if the rink is cheap. If i have my skates on and I left something in my car (like my water bottle), I franticly run around looking for someone in street shoes and give them my car keys. Also, the plexiglass will not remain clear for a very long time; it will become extremely scratched from the sharp steels and will be dirty quickly from debris from the floor and ice on the steels.

Sorry – I don’t like the idea of the soakers/guards either because my attention would go directly there. And have you seen the guard/soakers? They come in all sorts of colors/prints/designs, etc. and some are pretty ugly looking.

Will the coach allow your background and strobe on the ice? Can you shoot at the zamboni door while standing outside of the rink? What about from the bench with the door opened?

ian408 · March 10, 2009

aktse wrote:

Will the coach allow your background and strobe on the ice? Can you shoot at the zamboni door while standing outside of the rink? What about from the bench with the door opened?

Both of these spots are usually darker than the rest of the ice. If you can't get on the ice, you're better off with the carpet--and yes. Leave skate guards or soakers off.

tjk60 · March 11, 2009

Agreed with the steamer.
Add a backlight to the backdrop to get a bit more separation.
Look into some off white linoleum to place down as fake ice.

Around here, no pics (T&I) on the ice, it's booked solid. The rinks provide an extra net and an area. The linoleum looks pretty real in pics....

sonny_c · March 11, 2009

aktse - It wasn't a matter of allowing me on the ice. Here in Houston the parents/players pay for the ice time. The coach did not want a photo session taking away from their practice. Time is money.

And from what I understand, ice time is very expensive. Thus the reason for not shooting on the ice. We were only allowed 10 minutes on the ice to get the team shot. :uhoh Needless to say that did not turn out as well as i would of liked. But it was a great learning experience.

aktse · March 12, 2009

sonny_c wrote:

aktse - It wasn't a matter of allowing me on the ice. Here in Houston the parents/players pay for the ice time. The coach did not want a photo session taking away from their practice. Time is money. And from what I understand, ice time is very expensive. Thus the reason for not shooting on the ice. We were only allowed 10 minutes on the ice to get the team shot. :uhoh Needless to say that did not turn out as well as i would of liked. But it was a great learning experience.

Same here... we pay for the ice. I sometimes wonder how much camera gear I could buy if I didn't play...

Tim was correct when he said that ice slots are difficult to book and there is a reason why some of my games start at 11:15 pm at night, even at a weekend night. And ice is very expensive and can cost between $275 and $550+ for an ice slot for an hour. It's very common to find a parent with a kid on a top travel team pay $7k for a season. I pay about $550 a season just for one team; practices extra. I seriously don't know how the parents handle the cost of the sport.

I never said to rent the ice slot just for a photo shoot -- i always wrote that practice is happening at the same time on the other part of the ice and it is possible to run drills without pucks. It's just an idea -- if the coach doesn't agree, you move on to the next idea.

10 minutes for a team shot? Got an example? Natural light? Strobed? Posed? Were they nice looking? Or was it after a practice and smelly? A game?

Note: I don't consider myself a pro and don't do this for a living or even part-time; I'm just a GWC who knows how to shoot ice hockey (or I think I know how to photograph the sport). I have only done team photos for a specific friend when asked because she had issues with the pro. This is a low level HS team and according to the parent, the "pro" won't cover them without charging $$$ just to come out and shoot one game. She wanted a team photo and got it printed for all players for free at the end of the year (a very nice lady; i play with her ex-husband).

I got this in 30 seconds.

Why 30 seconds? I didn't have any more time... I shoot immediately after the game while someone distracts the zamboni driver.

I start walking to the center of the ice as soon the hand-shakes start.

Is it the best pose? no -- could I do better if I had more time --YES!!!! You would probably do a better job in getting people lined up, in better position, etc. I'm slowly learning.... very, slowly. This rink also had 1/2 lights turned off -- ick. However, the moms/dads/kids were extremely happy.

The key for me is to get everyone "prepped" before they line up and they understand the the zam is coming and about to chase them out of the ice. After the handshakes, the kids head back to the bench to pick up their water bottles and know to head to the center of the ice. The kids know that they're taking a picture, getting in two/three lines, helmets offs, sticks to the side. I also have a check list now of instructions to tell the kids on the ice and I learn a bit more each time i do this. This year, I remembered mouth guards and helmets off (and thrown far away); I forgot about stick positions.... :cry I'm still learning.

Wearing shoes with good traction also helps.

Please note that I'm saying that you must do things the way I do. I"m just providing options/experience and ways that I've worked around the system that's in place without breaking any rules. You just sometimes have to think outside of the box.....

Ice hockey is expensive and one of the hardest sports to shoot.

If you have any suggestions for me, let me know

b08rsa · March 12, 2009

Try shooting an indoor soccer game. :grim It seems like no matter what field I went to for indoor, all lighting stinks. The turf grass just absorbs the already poorly lift field. I guess you just have to do the best with what you have to work with.

tjk60 · March 12, 2009

b08rsa wrote:

Try shooting an indoor soccer game. :grim It seems like no matter what field I went to for indoor, all lighting stinks. The turf grass just absorbs the already poorly lift field. I guess you just have to do the best with what you have to work with.

They all have there challenges, this is indoor soccer @ISO 5000, 1/400 and f/2.8

hockey at ISO 4000 1/500 and f/2.8

b08rsa · March 12, 2009

tjk60 wrote:

They all have there challenges, this is indoor soccer @ISO 5000, 1/400 and f/2.8

hockey at ISO 4000 1/500 and f/2.8

My OLY E510 only gives me an ISO 1600. Maybe this fall I will upgrade to the E-3. Since I have some coin wrapped up in the 4/3 lenses. :cry

b08rsa · March 12, 2009

Wow Tim, awesome shots. Here is a sample of my indoor soccer nightmare.
This is with a 70-200 f2.8 shooting in sports mode. I tried manual mode, but i could not get a fast shuter speed. This is my daughter playing keeper. Noise, noise, noise. I see you are from Troy, MI. Is that your daughter in the soccer pic? If so do you all play select soccer? We play teams from all around Michigan. We are located in Cincinnati, OH.

tjk60 · March 12, 2009

b08rsa wrote:

Wow Tim, awesome shots. Here is a sample of my indoor soccer nightmare.
This is with a 70-200 f2.8 shooting in sports mode. I tried manual mode, but i could not get a fast shuter speed. This is my daughter playing keeper. Noise, noise, noise. I see you are from Troy, MI. Is that your daughter in the soccer pic? If so do you all play select soccer? We play teams from all around Michigan. We are located in Cincinnati, OH.

Not my daughter in that one, nor my son in the hockey!

Daughter not yet at that level, she just started playing.

Hockey portraits...traditional style

Comments