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State dirtbike championships?
Aug 11, 2012 01:32:08 #
I'm planning on doing my very first sports shoot of any kind on Sunday, at a state championship dirtbike competition. I just have a Canon SX30, so will need to work within its limitations...
My tentative plan is to mostly use Aperture Priority, crank the aperture wide open and fire away. I know I'll need to concentrate on timing more than anything, since the SX30 is so bloody slow with continuous shooting - those bikes will be past me by the time the 2nd shot clicks off anyway.
Here's one that I shot at a practice run this afternoon.
Am I on the right track?
My tentative plan is to mostly use Aperture Priority, crank the aperture wide open and fire away. I know I'll need to concentrate on timing more than anything, since the SX30 is so bloody slow with continuous shooting - those bikes will be past me by the time the 2nd shot clicks off anyway.
Here's one that I shot at a practice run this afternoon.
Am I on the right track?
catching some air
Aug 11, 2012 07:03:53 #
Aug 12, 2012 05:58:11 #
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Aug 12, 2012 06:21:33 #
I have a funny feeling that the motocross shoot is going to be the clincher for making me want to hurry up and buy a good DSLR - probably a Nikon, since I already have a couple of AF-S lenses. I see the D700 claims up to 5fps - hmmm... oops, here comes my wife, we'll talk later... :wink:
Aug 12, 2012 07:08:21 #
Aug 12, 2012 17:23:00 #
So I just got back from shooting the motocross races, and have indeed confirmed that the SX30 pretty much sucks for that kind of shoot. I sure SAW a lot more cool shots than I got, and realized why they call it a "capture" because all those cool shots are about as fleeting as it gets.
I talked to a guy shooting video there who does nothing but bike races professionally. He said that he has almost entirely given up on using a still camera for just that reason - even with the fastest cameras, you need to rely on the skill of experience plus a heapin' helpin' of luck. When I brought up the subject of shooting other sports like baseball, football, etc., he laughed and said, "that shit's EASY compared to bike races!"
I'll post a few of my 400 shots as soon as I identify the extremely tiny percentage of good ones...
I talked to a guy shooting video there who does nothing but bike races professionally. He said that he has almost entirely given up on using a still camera for just that reason - even with the fastest cameras, you need to rely on the skill of experience plus a heapin' helpin' of luck. When I brought up the subject of shooting other sports like baseball, football, etc., he laughed and said, "that shit's EASY compared to bike races!"
I'll post a few of my 400 shots as soon as I identify the extremely tiny percentage of good ones...
Aug 13, 2012 10:41:34 #
You know what, it is like that in that in every sport! You need to learn your sport and find that sweet spot for pictures!
Aug 13, 2012 19:32:57 #
I started shooting motocross when I was about 12 years old in 1970, with a Kodak instamatic... what a difference between what I had then and what I'm using now (Canon 7D), but it taught me how to pan. Before getting a digital SLR, though I went through some lesser point-and-shoot cameras and still got an okay image now and then.
I use auto-focus and manual about 50-50. I like manual focus for pre-focusing on a spot that the riders will be passing through, then shooting them when they get there. I found that when I'm capturing the riders jumping, only about half of my images are perfectly sharp when I zoom in at 100%, whether in manual or auto focus... jumps are the biggest challenge I think, and I have more to learn there about getting a higher percentage of my shots tack sharp.
I use the zone system to figure out the best exposure, then set it manually so that the camera isn't contantly trying to figure out the right exposure as I'm panning. I check the histogram frequently to make sure I've got it right. I use larger apertures: 2.8, etc. but I've been able to get away with relatively slower shutter speeds (1/320) with proper panning. I like seeing the wheels blurred a little bit, rather than have the spokes completely frozen with too high a shutter speed.
The great thing about motorcycle races, as opposed to sitting in the stands at a football game for example, is that you can get all around the track, so I take advantage of that by not shooting too many images from one spot. Shoot the riders coming at you, passing in front of you and moving away from you (even if they spray a little dirt on your glass). Mix it up.
Here are a couple I shot this year at Hangtown (MX) and one of Casey Stoner at Laguna Seca a couple of weeks ago. At Hangtown I used a 70-200. At Laguna I used a 300 prime.
More Hangtown pix here:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/bgphillipsphotography/sets/72157629821105846/
I use auto-focus and manual about 50-50. I like manual focus for pre-focusing on a spot that the riders will be passing through, then shooting them when they get there. I found that when I'm capturing the riders jumping, only about half of my images are perfectly sharp when I zoom in at 100%, whether in manual or auto focus... jumps are the biggest challenge I think, and I have more to learn there about getting a higher percentage of my shots tack sharp.
I use the zone system to figure out the best exposure, then set it manually so that the camera isn't contantly trying to figure out the right exposure as I'm panning. I check the histogram frequently to make sure I've got it right. I use larger apertures: 2.8, etc. but I've been able to get away with relatively slower shutter speeds (1/320) with proper panning. I like seeing the wheels blurred a little bit, rather than have the spokes completely frozen with too high a shutter speed.
The great thing about motorcycle races, as opposed to sitting in the stands at a football game for example, is that you can get all around the track, so I take advantage of that by not shooting too many images from one spot. Shoot the riders coming at you, passing in front of you and moving away from you (even if they spray a little dirt on your glass). Mix it up.
Here are a couple I shot this year at Hangtown (MX) and one of Casey Stoner at Laguna Seca a couple of weeks ago. At Hangtown I used a 70-200. At Laguna I used a 300 prime.
More Hangtown pix here:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/bgphillipsphotography/sets/72157629821105846/
Aug 13, 2012 23:42:15 #
Aug 14, 2012 02:18:04 #
Bumphil - Your flickr set is great! If I had seen it earlier, I'm sure I'd have tried a lot of different stuff than I did. I may have felt more frustrated, though, due to the lack of good shooting locations I had - there was absolutely nowhere to get above angles, and the light was coming from the back of the track, with the entire spectator area seeing only the shadow side of everything. So I ended up trampling the star thistles around a field with the video guy. This race was really small time compared to your Hangtown event - you will notice the dearth of spectators! And it was 105ยบ with no mud in sight.
This was a complete learning experience for me, and I was a little surprised that there is so much to learn! Most of my photo experience has been in product photography, and my hobby shooting has largely been landscapes, nature, etc., where you can usually wait for the right light, leisurely set up the shot, be concerned with framing, etc., and occasionally capture a chance artistic trifle of insignificance. This is a whole different ballgame, where the challenge is just getting the damn shot, if you can!
I've practiced panning quite a bit just shooting cars and bikes that go by our house (pretty close at 40-50mph), so I have a bit of a feel for that - I found myself just doing it naturally at the track. I see what you mean about getting the spokes blurred with a slower shutter speed, though. I 'll definitely try that next time.
I used almost all auto-focus, focusing first on a spot on the ground or something that was at the same range the rider would be - there are some shots I tried where manual would have been better, but this camera is a royal pain for manual focus (no lens ring!), so I blew off the whole idea.
You'll notice right away that these shots are very loosely cropped, partly because there's some really nice scenery around there. But I also realize that a lot of racers couldn't care less about that, either...
I ended up with at least 40 or 50 that I think are "keepers", as I only shot a few short races. I can see where pros who do this for money could easily rack up thousands of shots in an afternoon of racing (pretty hard work, too!).
I found that the most "exciting" shots are nearly always the multiple-rider shots. And I realized right away that there's also a class of shots you can do as "every rider at the same choice place on the track" - a very merchandisable approach, I'm sure!
This was a complete learning experience for me, and I was a little surprised that there is so much to learn! Most of my photo experience has been in product photography, and my hobby shooting has largely been landscapes, nature, etc., where you can usually wait for the right light, leisurely set up the shot, be concerned with framing, etc., and occasionally capture a chance artistic trifle of insignificance. This is a whole different ballgame, where the challenge is just getting the damn shot, if you can!
I've practiced panning quite a bit just shooting cars and bikes that go by our house (pretty close at 40-50mph), so I have a bit of a feel for that - I found myself just doing it naturally at the track. I see what you mean about getting the spokes blurred with a slower shutter speed, though. I 'll definitely try that next time.
I used almost all auto-focus, focusing first on a spot on the ground or something that was at the same range the rider would be - there are some shots I tried where manual would have been better, but this camera is a royal pain for manual focus (no lens ring!), so I blew off the whole idea.
You'll notice right away that these shots are very loosely cropped, partly because there's some really nice scenery around there. But I also realize that a lot of racers couldn't care less about that, either...
I ended up with at least 40 or 50 that I think are "keepers", as I only shot a few short races. I can see where pros who do this for money could easily rack up thousands of shots in an afternoon of racing (pretty hard work, too!).
I found that the most "exciting" shots are nearly always the multiple-rider shots. And I realized right away that there's also a class of shots you can do as "every rider at the same choice place on the track" - a very merchandisable approach, I'm sure!
heat start
the Video Guy
Aug 14, 2012 11:06:55 #
Thanks for sharing. You might consider renting a good SLR & lens for a couple of days from borrowlenses.com if you have an event coming up where you want to get the best images you can... although there might be a learning curve with a new camera. I was thrilled when I went to Hangtown this year with my 7D and the 70-200 L-series glass, because I'd never shot MX with that kind of equipment before. Here's a shot I took from 1976 or 77 at Puyallup, WA of Roger DeCoster who was world champion at the time. Then, about 5 years ago at Hangtown I had the chance to get him to autograph it for me. I had a film SLR at the time but only a 50mm prime lens, and of course no autofocus. Wish I could travel back in time with today's equipment!
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Aug 14, 2012 11:08:53 #
try lens giant! a 7d and a 70-200mmf2.8 is an awesome combination for any sporting event! try one
Aug 14, 2012 16:40:23 #
I appreciate the suggestions on camera & lens sources, but I have no way of justifying any considerable expense now, just to support some fun "hobby" shooting. I would need to find some niche to generate income in order to justify spending a bunch of dough on camera gear of any kind, and have not identified any such niche as yet. I wouldn't be worried about the learning curve of some new gear, since I have used high-end Nikons and Canons in the past, and no longer find them the least bit intimidating, but I have identified a serious shortcoming in my photo know-how - I need to study optics!
I should mention that the MX shoot on Sunday was just part one of that day's exercise of probing the SX30's limitations. People on this blog (and elsewhere) are constantly raving about the greatness of the PowerShot SX30/SX40's, I decided to go do some specialty jobs to disprove their worth for anything but snapshots, and I did so successfully, at least to my own satisfaction.
My second shoot on Sunday was a go at the meteor showers under the clear, dark sky of Crater Lake - just about the direct photographic opposite of the MX shoot. Although the 15-second shutter limit was adequate to capture the stars and a few meteors, the shots came out so awfully noisy as to be virtually useless, and I felt fairly impotent beside the guy getting pristine 30-second captures with his 5DmkII!
So basically, I succeeded in proving - to myself anyway - my hypothesis that the SX's are indeed "jack-of-all-trades but master of none." Therefore my conclusion will be to continue to regard my SX30 as not much more than a pretty good snapshot camera that also shoots okay video. The JPGs that come out of it are nearly always unavoidably noisy, with almost enough image data to do any substantial post - almost...
If I were at all employed, I'd be ordering a 5D today - or last week!
I should mention that the MX shoot on Sunday was just part one of that day's exercise of probing the SX30's limitations. People on this blog (and elsewhere) are constantly raving about the greatness of the PowerShot SX30/SX40's, I decided to go do some specialty jobs to disprove their worth for anything but snapshots, and I did so successfully, at least to my own satisfaction.
My second shoot on Sunday was a go at the meteor showers under the clear, dark sky of Crater Lake - just about the direct photographic opposite of the MX shoot. Although the 15-second shutter limit was adequate to capture the stars and a few meteors, the shots came out so awfully noisy as to be virtually useless, and I felt fairly impotent beside the guy getting pristine 30-second captures with his 5DmkII!
So basically, I succeeded in proving - to myself anyway - my hypothesis that the SX's are indeed "jack-of-all-trades but master of none." Therefore my conclusion will be to continue to regard my SX30 as not much more than a pretty good snapshot camera that also shoots okay video. The JPGs that come out of it are nearly always unavoidably noisy, with almost enough image data to do any substantial post - almost...
If I were at all employed, I'd be ordering a 5D today - or last week!
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