Geez, my photos continue to an impact. One of the mom's at the gym just showed me a glossy hardback book she just made online using all the photos I took of her L4 daughter. It turned out really nice and the color/clarity of the photos is so much better then what I'm used to seeing "on screen" or "online." That really put a smile on my face.
I'm working on making a book of this season for my daughter now.
Geez, my photos continue to an impact. One of the mom's at the gym just showed me a glossy hardback book she just made online using all the photos I took of her L4 daughter. It turned out really nice and the color/clarity of the photos is so much better then what I'm used to seeing "on screen" or "online." That really put a smile on my face.
I'm working on making a book of this season for my daughter now.
I made a book for my son last year using blurb (http://www.blurb.com/bookstore/detail/653160) and all of his teammates ended up purchasing one. Of course now I have to do it again this year and also do one for my older son's high school hockey team (he's a freshman and made the varsity- so it looks like that will be another annual 4 year project!!). My son just had his first meet of the season this past weekend, I haven't gotten the pictures posted yet. As usual not a great gym for photography - parallel bars and pommel horse were the only two "close" events to the spectators and on pommel horse they have their back to you.
I've done two books using Blurb. One that I sell showcases my nature stuff, "Along the Road" and the other I just did for my family....just snapshots. Very pleased with the quality/price.
Finally got a copy of the slideshow and uploaded it to youtube. It's still being processed, so the image quality is starting to improve. All but about 4 pictures, including the final 2, are mine. They've been cropped and edge blurred, but still, I really like the finished product.
Finally got a copy of the slideshow and uploaded it to youtube. It's still being processed, so the image quality is starting to improve. All but about 4 pictures, including the final 2, are mine. They've been cropped and edge blurred, but still, I really like the finished product.
Here's a quote from the assistant coach who made it: "I used Creative Suites 4 - Master Suite by Adobe, and then IDVD to burn and establish the layout to play the DVD from a system. I am studying Interior Design and so I got the CS4 to help me with my design practice and the MacBookPro because it's one of the best computers for design."
Finally got a copy of the slideshow and uploaded it to youtube. It's still being processed, so the image quality is starting to improve. All but about 4 pictures, including the final 2, are mine. They've been cropped and edge blurred, but still, I really like the finished product.
Here's a quote from the assistant coach who made it: "I used Creative Suites 4 - Master Suite by Adobe, and then IDVD to burn and establish the layout to play the DVD from a system. I am studying Interior Design and so I got the CS4 to help me with my design practice and the MacBookPro because it's one of the best computers for design."
Zing...Missed me by that much....:flush
All mac so not my alley. Thanks for tracking it down though...I have to see how close my setup can get to that.
I'm not a Mac user either. I'm sure there are some cool slideshow programs for PC. I haven't started searching for "them" yet, but it's the next thing I'd like to dive into.
I'm not a Mac user either. I'm sure there are some cool slideshow programs for PC. I haven't started searching for "them" yet, but it's the next thing I'd like to dive into.
I mainly use Pinnacle (v14) for movies and slideshows. Not rated the best in ability in the reviews but the easiest to use and is definitely capable. I also use Animoto but it's kind of a pain but the end result is nice.
Pinnacle has albums like your video but not quite that style. I really liked how that progressed and how multiple pics were layed over the same position before moving to the next page. I bet Pinnacle will do something similar and I just haven't found it yet.
In my experience, Click/Bang is nearly true for a 30 pic, 30 sec show. Of course Animoto will take 20 minutes or so to render and the result is a 22 second show with 8 seconds of Animoto tag at the end and no download.
To go to the next level and assuming someone takes 500 pics at a gymnastics meet, the workflow contains a lot of trial and error as you try try to create a gallery of the proper number of pics Animoto will work with. Then you have to work within the song limits. If you choose Animoto music, longest songs are typically 3-4 minutes. There are a few longer but who wants them. 300 pics is closer to 7-8 minutes or so. So you find a song you like and try to upload it, only to find Animoto has a 10 meg limit. The typical 4-5 minute mp3 is at or near 10meg so you switch to song B, then C, then D, until you are finally able to shoe-horn your 4th song choice into the available size and time. Now it's time to render.....Get some funky screen changes, render again....Get one that's pretty good. Download it, watch it several times, realize that 2 pics you really liked aren't included, even though you highlited them. Remove a bunch of pics and start over...render again....By now, 2-3 or more hours have gone by. Finally something you're happy with. Pay for the upgrade to Hi-Res because the default video is suitable for Youtube only. Re-render. This one takes a good hour. Download again. By now, I'm sitting at my PC at 11:30 pm, everyone went to bed and I'm wondering, 'What the heck happened?'.
This is how it works for me. Like I said above, YRMV. I have been typically taking the finished show and moving it into Pinnacle where I now put in my music of choice and whack off the Animoto trailer.
I think if you have a handful of pics and want to make a 2 minute video, you'll get as close as is possible to Click/Bang. Unfortunately for me, I'm just an anal Dad with hundreds of pics and have to do a bit more wrestling. As I've said in several posts, the end results can be pretty amazing and definitely better than I have done on my own in Pinnacle. That's why I was asking about Austinado's video; it's not Animoto quality of transitions but I liked it and it's better than what I currently do on my own. I'm looking for alternatives.
Now back to your regularly scheduled programming...
I've never used pinacle, I use Final Cut Express, if you can layer tracks in pinacle and create motion paths then with a little help from PS you could get to the same look.
I've never used pinacle, I use Final Cut Express, if you can layer tracks in pinacle and create motion paths then with a little help from PS you could get to the same look.
Thanks for the info on Animoto
Hey Keith,
YRMV = Your Results May Vary.
I know my way is not the way for everyone and I often make things more difficult than they should be.
Thanks for the info on layering tracks. I will check it out.
No offense, but I could barely read past this little gem:
"...they have a few hobbies that loosely fall into the category of sports: dance and gymnastics."
Anyone who doesn't think gymnastics is a real sport is a . . ah, I'm not gonna say it. Combine that with the advice of using a flash and I have a pretty clear picture of the author. Nice snapshots too. Way to use $4,000 worth of equipment.
No offense, but I could barely read past this little gem:
"...they have a few hobbies that loosely fall into the category of sports: dance and gymnastics."
Anyone who doesn't think gymnastics is a real sport is a . . ah, I'm not gonna say it. Combine that with the advice of using a flash and I have a pretty clear picture of the author. Nice snapshots too. Way to use $4,000 worth of equipment.
Photography can be a hobby, but who would do this for a hobby?
Cuong
"She Was a Little Taste of Heaven – And a One-Way Ticket to Hell!" - Max Phillips
I just read through all of this...I wish I found this sooner. I've been through all that you guys have dealt with also. I also do the photography for our gym (North Bay, aka NBAA). So I also travel around to all the meets, both compulsory and optionals, dealing with all the lighting issues. I just finished shooting the optional season...unless I feel like flying to Iowa for Westerns.
The challenges you have dealt with while shooting compulsory will multiply once you start shooting optionals. The speed is like day and night. You'll have to shoot at 1/500, plus learn to anticpate all the moves. Unlike compulsory, each girl will have her own routine and they will be fast and powerful. It's challenging, but really fun to shoot.
Funny thing is, the worst lighting I've had to deal with is our home gym. We host 3 meets, 1 compulsory, 1 optional and an off-season meet (coming up next week). Not only is our gym dark, the type of lights used have a very slow refresh rate, so if you shoot any faster than 1/60th, you will run into color cast problems, depending on where you hit during the refresh rate.
We were also at the SLO meet in October. I thought the lighting there was pretty nice. I also used the mirrors along the wall to add to the effect when shooting the floor.
I shoot with a Nikon D300 and D700 (I use the D700 90% of the time, due to the high ISO capabilities). If I'm given floor access, I like using a 85mm 1.4., otherwise I use a 70-200 2.8. I also use a light meter to check the lighting and set everything manual. I use an expo disk to set my white balance (although it does little good at our home meets). I also shoot raw and process everything using lightroom. On photos I do extra work on, I then use photoshop. For noise reduction, I like using Nik's D-fine, which is a photoshop plugin.
I'm sure I've been at other meets that you guys were also at. I did see our level 4 team in the background of one of the SLO meet pictures and one of our level 6's on the podium with one of the other girls you shot.
Glad you found this thread and I hope you'll post more of your technique and some photos too.
I'm in the off season now, but did just shoot some Acro a few weeks ago. That was a lot of fun actually. Challenging because with more than one girl in view, and them apart from each other sometimes, it was a real work out. I enjoyed it.
I also got to finally use the camera outside in the daylight.......geez, there's a concept. I only use it for gymnastics, and use a Panasonic Lumix TZ1 P&S for 100% of normal picture taking, so the Canon never leaves the bag.
Anyway, you can see the results in the PJ & Street forum, in the "Fire" thread.
Yeah, glad you found it too. Post some pictures!! We have one more meet, May 14 (I think), then we're done until Fall. Our gym is moving across the street. More room, better lighting too! Did I say better lighting?! !! We can also start hosting meets.
Comments
I'm working on making a book of this season for my daughter now.
Canon 7D... Canon 70-200/2.8L IS... Canon 28-70/2.8L... Canon 135/f2L... Canon 85/1.8... Canon 50/1.4... Canon 28/1.8
Got it Todd, Thanks. I just misunderstood...something my wife says I have a problem with.:ivar
Wayne in Oregon
Canon 7D... Canon 70-200/2.8L IS... Canon 28-70/2.8L... Canon 135/f2L... Canon 85/1.8... Canon 50/1.4... Canon 28/1.8
Cuong
I'm just sayin'...............
Canon 7D... Canon 70-200/2.8L IS... Canon 28-70/2.8L... Canon 135/f2L... Canon 85/1.8... Canon 50/1.4... Canon 28/1.8
I have an excuse. I'm deaf in my right ear and I suffered a minor stroke a few years ago and it effected my comprehension.
Images in the Backcountry
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I made a book for my son last year using blurb (http://www.blurb.com/bookstore/detail/653160) and all of his teammates ended up purchasing one. Of course now I have to do it again this year and also do one for my older son's high school hockey team (he's a freshman and made the varsity- so it looks like that will be another annual 4 year project!!). My son just had his first meet of the season this past weekend, I haven't gotten the pictures posted yet. As usual not a great gym for photography - parallel bars and pommel horse were the only two "close" events to the spectators and on pommel horse they have their back to you.
Stephanie
Canon 7D... Canon 70-200/2.8L IS... Canon 28-70/2.8L... Canon 135/f2L... Canon 85/1.8... Canon 50/1.4... Canon 28/1.8
Images in the Backcountry
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Enjoy.....
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B6Fh_l6l9Vs
Canon 7D... Canon 70-200/2.8L IS... Canon 28-70/2.8L... Canon 135/f2L... Canon 85/1.8... Canon 50/1.4... Canon 28/1.8
That was great. I really like that.
What was used to produce that slideshow? Just curious as it was a little different from what I normally see.
Wayne G
"I used Creative Suites 4 - Master Suite by Adobe, and then IDVD to burn and establish the layout to play the DVD from a system. I am studying Interior Design and so I got the CS4 to help me with my design practice and the MacBookPro because it's one of the best computers for design."
Canon 7D... Canon 70-200/2.8L IS... Canon 28-70/2.8L... Canon 135/f2L... Canon 85/1.8... Canon 50/1.4... Canon 28/1.8
Well done! I may have to try that (I think)!
Images in the Backcountry
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Zing...Missed me by that much....:flush
All mac so not my alley. Thanks for tracking it down though...I have to see how close my setup can get to that.
Wayne
Canon 7D... Canon 70-200/2.8L IS... Canon 28-70/2.8L... Canon 135/f2L... Canon 85/1.8... Canon 50/1.4... Canon 28/1.8
I mainly use Pinnacle (v14) for movies and slideshows. Not rated the best in ability in the reviews but the easiest to use and is definitely capable. I also use Animoto but it's kind of a pain but the end result is nice.
Pinnacle has albums like your video but not quite that style. I really liked how that progressed and how multiple pics were layed over the same position before moving to the next page. I bet Pinnacle will do something similar and I just haven't found it yet.
Thanks again,
Wayne
Keith Tharp.com - Champion Photo
YRMV
In my experience, Click/Bang is nearly true for a 30 pic, 30 sec show. Of course Animoto will take 20 minutes or so to render and the result is a 22 second show with 8 seconds of Animoto tag at the end and no download.
To go to the next level and assuming someone takes 500 pics at a gymnastics meet, the workflow contains a lot of trial and error as you try try to create a gallery of the proper number of pics Animoto will work with. Then you have to work within the song limits. If you choose Animoto music, longest songs are typically 3-4 minutes. There are a few longer but who wants them. 300 pics is closer to 7-8 minutes or so. So you find a song you like and try to upload it, only to find Animoto has a 10 meg limit. The typical 4-5 minute mp3 is at or near 10meg so you switch to song B, then C, then D, until you are finally able to shoe-horn your 4th song choice into the available size and time. Now it's time to render.....Get some funky screen changes, render again....Get one that's pretty good. Download it, watch it several times, realize that 2 pics you really liked aren't included, even though you highlited them. Remove a bunch of pics and start over...render again....By now, 2-3 or more hours have gone by. Finally something you're happy with. Pay for the upgrade to Hi-Res because the default video is suitable for Youtube only. Re-render. This one takes a good hour. Download again. By now, I'm sitting at my PC at 11:30 pm, everyone went to bed and I'm wondering, 'What the heck happened?'.
This is how it works for me. Like I said above, YRMV. I have been typically taking the finished show and moving it into Pinnacle where I now put in my music of choice and whack off the Animoto trailer.
I think if you have a handful of pics and want to make a 2 minute video, you'll get as close as is possible to Click/Bang. Unfortunately for me, I'm just an anal Dad with hundreds of pics and have to do a bit more wrestling. As I've said in several posts, the end results can be pretty amazing and definitely better than I have done on my own in Pinnacle. That's why I was asking about Austinado's video; it's not Animoto quality of transitions but I liked it and it's better than what I currently do on my own. I'm looking for alternatives.
Now back to your regularly scheduled programming...
Wayne
I've never used pinacle, I use Final Cut Express, if you can layer tracks in pinacle and create motion paths then with a little help from PS you could get to the same look.
Thanks for the info on Animoto
Keith Tharp.com - Champion Photo
Hey Keith,
YRMV = Your Results May Vary.
I know my way is not the way for everyone and I often make things more difficult than they should be.
Thanks for the info on layering tracks. I will check it out.
Wayne
If you look closely, it's a Nikkor 400mm f/2.8, but Canon also has an equivalent.
Cuong
A 135/2L showed up on CL locally right before xmas and I just couldn't buy it. Arggggh.
Canon 7D... Canon 70-200/2.8L IS... Canon 28-70/2.8L... Canon 135/f2L... Canon 85/1.8... Canon 50/1.4... Canon 28/1.8
No offense, but I could barely read past this little gem:
"...they have a few hobbies that loosely fall into the category of sports: dance and gymnastics."
Anyone who doesn't think gymnastics is a real sport is a .
Canon 7D... Canon 70-200/2.8L IS... Canon 28-70/2.8L... Canon 135/f2L... Canon 85/1.8... Canon 50/1.4... Canon 28/1.8
Cuong
Canon 7D... Canon 70-200/2.8L IS... Canon 28-70/2.8L... Canon 135/f2L... Canon 85/1.8... Canon 50/1.4... Canon 28/1.8
Cuong
The challenges you have dealt with while shooting compulsory will multiply once you start shooting optionals. The speed is like day and night. You'll have to shoot at 1/500, plus learn to anticpate all the moves. Unlike compulsory, each girl will have her own routine and they will be fast and powerful. It's challenging, but really fun to shoot.
Funny thing is, the worst lighting I've had to deal with is our home gym. We host 3 meets, 1 compulsory, 1 optional and an off-season meet (coming up next week). Not only is our gym dark, the type of lights used have a very slow refresh rate, so if you shoot any faster than 1/60th, you will run into color cast problems, depending on where you hit during the refresh rate.
We were also at the SLO meet in October. I thought the lighting there was pretty nice. I also used the mirrors along the wall to add to the effect when shooting the floor.
I shoot with a Nikon D300 and D700 (I use the D700 90% of the time, due to the high ISO capabilities). If I'm given floor access, I like using a 85mm 1.4., otherwise I use a 70-200 2.8. I also use a light meter to check the lighting and set everything manual. I use an expo disk to set my white balance (although it does little good at our home meets). I also shoot raw and process everything using lightroom. On photos I do extra work on, I then use photoshop. For noise reduction, I like using Nik's D-fine, which is a photoshop plugin.
I'm sure I've been at other meets that you guys were also at. I did see our level 4 team in the background of one of the SLO meet pictures and one of our level 6's on the podium with one of the other girls you shot.
I'm in the off season now, but did just shoot some Acro a few weeks ago. That was a lot of fun actually. Challenging because with more than one girl in view, and them apart from each other sometimes, it was a real work out. I enjoyed it.
I also got to finally use the camera outside in the daylight.......geez, there's a concept. I only use it for gymnastics, and use a Panasonic Lumix TZ1 P&S for 100% of normal picture taking, so the Canon never leaves the bag.
Anyway, you can see the results in the PJ & Street forum, in the "Fire" thread.
Canon 7D... Canon 70-200/2.8L IS... Canon 28-70/2.8L... Canon 135/f2L... Canon 85/1.8... Canon 50/1.4... Canon 28/1.8
Images in the Backcountry
My SmugMug Customizations | Adding CSS to Your Site | SEO for the Photographer | Locate Your Page/Widget Number | SmugMug Help Desk