Tips n Tricks for DragonBoat Festival photos please....

SivaS

Hi friends,

I have volunteered to photograph on Dragon Boat Festival occassion in my town! :clap

However, it is something really new to me as in never experienced real-water-sports shots!! :scratch :dunno

Any tips and tricks to get GREAT clicks would be much appreciated! :thumb

Thanks,

-Siva

Zerodog

What is a Dragon boat? Is a a boat that looks like a dragon in a water parade? Or is a fire breathing boat flying over the water at 200mph? Different techniques for each one I would guess?

puzzledpaul

SivaS wrote: »

Any tips and tricks to get GREAT clicks would be much appreciated!

Depends what sort of shots you're after, and what you consider to be 'great'.

At least have a trawl thro pics (of similar events) on the net, see what you like / prefer ... and if you know the route and location of the event you want to cover and it's possible to check it out before the day(s) do so.

Personally, I'd try get as low as possible - probably for head on shots.

pp

JSPhotography

From what I know of a Dragon Boat Festival there will not be much fast paced action. Dragon boats are big and relativly slow. You are pretty much going to document people having a good time at the festival with some boat shots. I think the only way to get a "sports" shot is long glass and find somebody with a lot of facial expression while paddling. Maybe one will flip over for a little "action".

aktse

SivaS wrote: »

Any tips and tricks to get GREAT clicks would be much appreciated!

It honestly depends on your definition of great clicks.

In general, to get good "sports" dragon boat photos, you need to be on a boat with a 400mm+ lens. Most races are 200m, 250m, 500m, 1000m or 2000m and the few that I've seen are either 500mm or 1000m. They also start and end away from the shoreline... Unless you have a long lens, you have to settle for lucky shots, detail work, and PJ frames. In addition, be prepared to shoot in full sun with reflections off the water.

A few years ago, my friend was racing and I rattled off a few frames as a spectator between cheering them on and helping them bbq lunch in their tent. I believe these were mainly taken on a crop body, with 100-300 + 1.4x. Although I didn't shoot much, I wanted much more reach and wished I was on a boat in the water.

1. Details


2. Dry land practice


3. Heading out


4. Winner


If you're shooting from the shoreline, the angles are all the same, but you need to pay attention to backgrounds and the same applies to the team tents and PJ work.

For sport shooters, in addition to the normal face, emotion, ball (puck), etc, the racers are interested in form. Pay attention to geometry and form.

5. All Arms/body should be identical in angle and reach. Oar position depth is critical too.


6. The drummers are usually interesting because they can be wearing silly hats and are usually animated. I needed a longer lens and a better angle for the face.