Whiff!

wxwax

Georgia Tech is hosting an NCAA regional baseball tournament. I went down yesterday to shoot baseball for the first time.

Bright sun, so the conditions weren't the best. I learned a lot, tho. You'll see the mistakes here. :lol3

300mm is not much reach, even when you're right beside a dugout. Even at f2.8, you don't get great bokeh on batters or pitchers. So, watch your backgrounds! Which means moving around a bit and sacrificing length for background: just crop like heck once you get the shot.

I played with different kinds of focus. I used a bit of AI Servo, prolly shoulda used more. I used "all focus points", but the camera took too much time thinking for that option to work. I used center point, and I used selective points. If I'd been using the 5D, I'd have used manual focus a lot. But on the 1DmkII, I just can't tell if I'm sharp or not. My setups worked for the scene I was going for, but did not allow me to follow the ensuing action. So I'd get the batter, but couldn't follow the runner to first for the throw, or the play at second. I'm curious what focus option the pros use.

Also, I was careless. I shot in Aperature Priority. My shutter speed was plenty high early in the shoot. But as the day went on, the shutter speed dropped, I didn't notice it, and I got blur where I wasn't expecting it. Not necessarily a bad thing, but since I wasn't controling it, that goes down as an error.

Since the sunlight was direct, I had to accept that the whites would get blown out.

Anyway, a few shots. Starting with, spot the ball!

wxwax

This is the University of Michigan pitcher. I believe he threw a complete game. Michigan beat Stetson 11-1.

This image is a combination of 4 different exposures in RAW, mostly to get some detail on his face and chest.




And this is one of many Stetson pitchers to take a beating. This is only 2 RAW exposures. I prolly should do more to lighten the shadow on his face.

wxwax

This is a good example of the blur I was talking about. Not much is sharp here, except maybe the pinstriping on his pants. I guess the motion part of it works. Sure wish it had been intentional, tho.






And here's another unintentional motion blur. At least, by this time, I'd figured out that I needed a cleaner, simpler background.

Antonio Correia

Very good. Even with something to correct...
One must do it to understand the difficulty of such a work.
I've never tryied this kind of pictures ... Yet !

wxwax

Thanks Antonio. I agree, the only way to learn is by doing.

Steve Cavigliano

Ya done good Sid

Busy BGs are a sports shooter's bugaboo :uhoh I think you handled these fairly well.

As you point out, you learned a lot and thanks for passing that info on to the rest of us

Steve

You got some really nice facial expressions too

wxwax

Steve Cavigliano wrote:

Ya done good Sid

Busy BGs are a sports shooter's bugaboo :uhoh I think you handled these fairly well.

As you point out, you learned a lot and thanks for passing that info on to the rest of us

Steve

You got some really nice facial expressions too

Thanks Steve! Golfers could take a lesson from those darned batters. They're so good at keeping their heads down and still through their stroke... that you never see their faces! :bluduh

Seefutlung

For a first time ... mmmhhh ... not too bad. You followed the first rule of sports photography ... if they play with a ball ... gotta have it in the shot. I found a 300 just fine for shooting from the dugout along first or third (but all depends of the ball park). So where are the plays at second ... the sliding runner and the jumping shortstop?

wxwax

Seefutlung wrote:

For a first time ... mmmhhh ... not too bad. You followed the first rule of sports photography ... if they play with a ball ... gotta have it in the shot. I found a 300 just fine for shooting from the dugout along first or third (but all depends of the ball park). So where are the plays at second ... the sliding runner and the jumping shortstop?

Here. :bluduh




There weren't a lot of plays at second. In a blowout, neither team is inclined to steal. And I blew my only two opportunities.

On this one, I prefocused on second base, then switched to manual focus. Didn't work, not exactly sure what I did wrong.

Seefutlung

Sorry I asked (lol). I find that shooting sports really refines and hones the mechanical end of taking photos. Gotta think fast, react fast and get to know you equipment really well. So when is the next game?

wxwax

Seefutlung wrote:

Sorry I asked (lol). I find that shooting sports really refines and hones the mechanical end of taking photos. Gotta think fast, react fast and get to know you equipment really well. So when is the next game?

Yes, I agree.

Next week.

I need to practice my reactions. After reading your posts, one goal next weekend is to capture decent shots at both ends of a play. Plus a second base shot, a bat-on-ball against a clean background, and I'd like a shot of the ball on the pitcher's fingertips, just leaving his hand.

Thanks for the feedback. As I said elsewhere, I love your galleries, I studied your framing and could learn a lot about how you frame the point of interest.

Seefutlung

wxwax wrote:

Yes, I agree.

Next week.

I need to practice my reactions. After reading your posts, one goal next weekend is to capture decent shots at both ends of a play. Plus a second base shot, a bat-on-ball against a clean background, and I'd like a shot of the ball on the pitcher's fingertips, just leaving his hand.

Thanks for the feedback. As I said elsewhere, I love your galleries, I studied your framing and could learn a lot about how you frame the point of interest.

Thanks ... I appreciate your kind words. Your next BB post ... PM me so I don't miss it.

wxwax

Seefutlung wrote:

Thanks ... I appreciate your kind words. Your next BB post ... PM me so I don't miss it.