Deer Trail Rodeo

donek

I got to shoot the rodeo in Deer Trail on Sunday for the paper. It was my first time shooting or really attending a rodeo. As is usual for Colorado this time of year it was hot, not a cloud in the sky, and difficult lighting. Faces are usually in shadow and whites are blown out. I got lucky every now and then though. Here are a few of my favorites.

This little kit caught my eye.








On to the big guys events. This guy was local and won the bare back event.




I love this shot


This one is pretty fun too


Sometimes I had to settle for the eye of the calf instead of the cowboys eye.






Just before the barrel races






If you look closely you can see some goo coming out of the bull's nose.


Unfortunately there weren't any really spectacular spills.


There are quite a few more here:
http://donek.smugmug.com/gallery/3335082

coldclimb

Awesome shots! Thanks for sharing, these are great!

rwells

I shoot rodeo's for a living and must say you did a good job.

Outdoor shoots are sometimes hard with the lighting, but you held it together nicely

It takes a while to learn the difference between journalistic rodeo pics and ones that the cowboys will buy, but for the paper these are great!

Welcome to rodeo photography...

donek

rwells wrote:

I shoot rodeo's for a living and must say you did a good job.

Outdoor shoots are sometimes hard with the lighting, but you held it together nicely

It takes a while to learn the difference between journalistic rodeo pics and ones that the cowboys will buy, but for the paper these are great!

Welcome to rodeo photography...

Thanks alot. I found your youth bull riding post. It looks great (indoors or night is tough). I guess I'd love to get your input on what would sell to the cowboys. I got somewhere around 1000 frames that day, so perhaps it's just a matter of selecting the right one in a sequence. Is it perspective?

rwells

donek wrote:

Thanks alot. I found your youth bull riding post. It looks great (indoors or night is tough). I guess I'd love to get your input on what would sell to the cowboys. I got somewhere around 1000 frames that day, so perhaps it's just a matter of selecting the right one in a sequence. Is it perspective?

I'll give it a try...

Like any sport, the participants want pictures that show them in a good way. Meaning, bull riders want to buy a picture only if they are in the correct position, toes pointing out, not back on their arm, & generally with the bull standing on his nose, etc...

Steer wrestling cowboys want pics that show them in good form also. As an example, the pic that you stated that you liked, the cowboy missed grabbing the horn with his left hand. He probably didn't turn in a good time, but even if he did, he wouldn't want a picture in his house showing bad form.

Unfortunately, the cowboys won't buy crash pictures either (except rare cases). I love them, but I can understand why they wouldn't.

Barrel racing pics: The "norm" is to shoot the second barrel from just in front of the timer. This barrel allows a shot of the horse coming around hard with it's legs pushed out wide, and body low. (if that's the way that particular horse runs them, but most do) Also, barrel racers don't like the legs cut off of their horses.

Muttin Bustin: Most all of this is fair game & parents will buy anything that suits their fancy. Form is not really an issue at this stage. Courage and being cute is!

And don't forget... You will certainly have to clone out some "things" on some otherwise great shots. Lot's of times a bull is having a little too much fun, and it shows :eek1 Or as in the otherwise great shot you posted of the wining bareback rider... well, that rope just looks like it's coming out of a really inappropriate place

You did good, you just have to learn about the sport in more detail. Go to some rodeos where seasoned photogs are shooting and watch were they setup for each type of event.

One last thing: This ain't these cowboy's first rodeo. They know exactly what they want to see. Also, check the local area's rodeo picture prices. We don't want to hear that they strapped you to one of those bulls because you were charging more than what they are used to paying.

Hope that helps...


PS: Just looked at your gallery... GREAT snowboard shots!!!

pahl

Wow, them are some really amazing shots.

DJTHEMAC

Excellent shots!!! If you dont mind me asking, what set up were you using?

KMCC

You've really managed to catch the moment of peak action in many of those shots. Great work!

donek

rwells wrote:

I'll give it a try...

Like any sport, the participants want pictures that show them in a good way.

PS: Just looked at your gallery... GREAT snowboard shots!!!

Having never been a cowboy or followed rodeos, I don't know what's good form or really what the athlete should be doing. I do a relatively good job of shooting snowboarding because I know what to look for. All I know to look for with Rodeo is peak action. Thanks for the great advice.

donek

DJTHEMAC wrote:

Excellent shots!!! If you dont mind me asking, what set up were you using?

I used my D2H shooting at 8 fps. The action was too erratic and fast paced to be able to anticipate the correct moment. I shot in Aperature priority (wide open) at iso 400. I used a 70-200 f2.8 VR lens with a circular polarizer for the closer action. When shooting from the opposite end of the arena, I used a Sigma 50-500 (sometimes refered to as a Bigma).

donek

KMCC, pahl, & coldclimb. Thank you for the very nice comments.