Swim Meet photos

AZmog

Here are some photos I took of my son and daughters swim meet, any thoughts on how I can improve my shots. I am a novice/beginner and got my whole camera setup specifically to shoot them in swim meets mostly outdoors here in Arizona. Lots of sun.

AZmog

another one

AZmog

another

AZmog

butterfly

AZmog

on the wall

time2smile

Welcome,

You have a good start, and it seems you will have some descent to harsh lighting. Thats the opposite of most indoor swimming events.

practice on focus and of course timming...and maybe a CPL filter

my favorites are the wall and the butterfly.

what equipment are you using, and your exif data.

thanks for sharing

rstwohee

I could only hope for outdoor lighting. My daughter is a competitive swimmer and her meets are indoors in a range of pools with crappy to extremely crappy lighting.

I agree with time2smile that you should work on focus and timing. You'll find that in shooting swimming there are points where there just isn't a compelling shot. Backstroke is one of those where if the swimmer isn't pushing a lot of water then it looks like he/she is just floating.

I like the butterfly picture as well though you might consider getting lower to the deck so that it seems like the swimmer is coming right at you. Also - did you do some touch up? The pool water has a different quality to it. I hope you were out of the way of the officials -- I say that as I'm also a carded referee and I hate having to deal with photographers who feel their needs are more important than the swimmers.

Take lots of pictures and don't overlook those fun scenes at poolside. Through practice you'll find what works / doesn't work for you.

Betsy

SweetScenePhoto

The 1st one is my favorite.

Here are some from the 1st swim meet I ever photographed (just a few weeks ago). I did make sure that I was behind the judges and out of the way (so I know that I missed what would have been some great shots).
All with Canon Rebel XSi - 70-200mm on Manual mode (forget the Fstop - as it was outside in late evening - about 7pm). Please let me know what you think.







Thanks!
~Jasa

rstwohee

Argh.... lost my reply... (user error here...) Anyway, shooting swimming is a matter of understanding the stroke and anticipating the shot -- probably like any other sport. Don't lament shots not taken because you were avoiding an official -- you'd be surprised how many great shots you can get and never get in the way of an official. At higher level meets, you'd be lucky to even get on deck and will be relegated to the stands. I personally like to see a swimmer's face (where possible) so #2 while showing action doesn't really tell a story. #3 I like much better - there is face and water action. Take lots of pictures, try lots of angles, and see what works for you.

Good luck!