Softball
With all the technicals of shooting spec for this league, I wanted to pause and take a moment to share some of the work I have produced in the last 8 days.... Prepare yourself for some immense cuteness! This hasn't been easy as my 50-200mm is falling apart.. literally, I have to carefully extend it to the FL I choose and hold the barrel as the length and weight want to pull it apart... the lens is 8 years old and quite used up.... I am expecting my new 40-150/2.8 (4/3... so equiv. to 80-300mm at 2.8 :wink )
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Much more on my site... I've only done about 12 out of 31 teams.....
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Much more on my site... I've only done about 12 out of 31 teams.....
Lee Wiren
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However it looks like you are inserting yourself into the game and are possibly a distraction. 1 is adorable, but 2 and 8 look like "what are you doing here?", IMO.
I'd like to see more action and less "hey kid" shots.
An "accurate" reproduction of a scene and a good photograph are often two different things.
Well, the new camera has the option of up to 11fps in S-AF mode and up to 8 (I think) in C-AF..., I gotta be honest though, at this age and this sport, I think anything over 6 is a waste. In my old E-3 all I had was 3 fps... I am using the 6 fps burst and have my touch on the trigger trained to get 3-4 shots... If I aimed 11fps at every batter and every pitch plus a few more between, i'd be editing 2500 shots from each game... I ain't got that much time. I have done better honing my sense of timing and knowing my camera. I am still learning this new model cam and the settings.... just got my new 40-150/2.8 that has an L-Fn button on the lens that takes it off of C-AF and idles it at the last acquired focal point while pressed... handy that, makes for switching between C-AF and S-AF just a press of a button....
For this young age group, they're looking everywhere, staring into the camera and smiling at the nice guy behind it is as common as smiling at the coach. after U-10, this phenomenon disappears and i'm just the "stupid camera guy"
Also, as they get older, it get's more and more dangerous and I have to stay in the cage... I take a 5 gal bucket with drinks and snacks and business cards with me so I have somewhere to on the edge of the dugout where Blue won't yell at me and i'm relatively safely tucked away.
I like to start at one dugout capturing all the right handed batters and then the other dugout for the lefties and field action... if there's time, back to the visitor side to catch home plate slides..... trust me, as I get into the older age groups, it will certainly be more action than portraits... not much to shoot at during this age... here's a few (still with that janky old, broken lens....
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Definitely make a point to shoot lefty batters from the 1st base side, and righty batters from the 3rd base side. The follow-through is one of my favorite poses.
I hear you about fps and indeed I shot for 2 years with a 5D3 (6fps) and 300/2.8 and didn't really feel like I was missing out. However after I got my 7D2 (10fps) I found it can be beneficial to take short 2-3 shot bursts while also trying to nail the timing as if you were just taking one shot.
An "accurate" reproduction of a scene and a good photograph are often two different things.
Really nice images. I certainly like the flexibility of a zoom lens... I typically park it in just 2-3 focal lengths, but when I need that fl, it's nice to not be stuck with a long prime... while on the 3rd base line, I will go from the batter and then down the fl range to get the runner running to 3rd.....
I appreciate your time and sharing and especially the advice and recommendations. I am always looking to improve, so if you have any other shot/pose tips, send them on over, they're welcome here
I'll post some more of the older age groups soon enough, I believe my "planned" schedule puts me at the U-14 & U-18 level.
Thanks Jack
4x6s and 5x7s are the biggest sellers. I'd recommend pricing them both at your 5x7 price.
Zoom is nice but it is less important in Baseball/Softball as the field is the most organized of any. You basically know where the players are going to be at all times. Primes are a liability in sports like Soccer, Lacrosse, Field Hockey, Basketball, etc if you need to get decent shots of as many players as possible in a single game.
An "accurate" reproduction of a scene and a good photograph are often two different things.
Fixed that for you. ;-) Yes, shots of batters are not as exciting as action shots in the field, but the problem is that at the Little League level, good action in the field is pretty rare, harder to catch, and definitely won't get you shots of every kid. So, you take shots of every kid batting.
An "accurate" reproduction of a scene and a good photograph are often two different things.