XC running III

rutt

OK, so this time had pretty nice light, but decided to try a few very different things anyway.

Got up on top of a little hill and shot down:



It was about to start raining hard anytime, so boys and girls ran together this time.



Got the slow shutter pan idea from a post on Fred Miranda. What do you think?

PossumCorner

Xc
I like them both, but if they are taken for the runners, they usually prefer the sort of focus and sharpness of the first one rather than something more artistic. That angle of the first one is good, it gives a "different" look to the usual runners-going-past shot. I forget without looking back to the other post who suggested that, but I will borrow it please, works well.

DavidTO

The comp on both is a big improvement, I think over your earlier attempts.

I don't like the panning/long shutter idea so much. I like it in theory, but the runners end up being soft, so I think it's a step back.

Baumann

Rutt: I really like the way your first shot turned out, something else to consider when your trying to compose your shots. Instead of down, try shooting up. 90% of my cross country shots are taken kneeling or sitting with the lens at the runners waist level. Since more often than not, they're looking down, you're more likely to catch eye contact with them that way.

The panning can work - but there's catch (Isn't there always?)
IMHO you've got to lock on to one aspect of the runner and get that part fairly sharp. I'm familiar with the Fred Miranda thread in question.. I was following it very closely as I shoot XC for a local high school.
This is an example of what I'm talking about. While I wish I'd managed to pan even with the horizion (I'm learning..) There's still enough 'sharp' to give some impression of tracking movement, rather than just blur. Of course they really wanted me to slow the shutter down even more when I asked for feedback, but you get the idea...