WoW... how cool is that...Congrats!

Aww... they are kind of cute in a wrinkly way! The first one is a nice close up but perhaps a bit more room in the front of him might be better. The front tusk is a bit close to the frame. It also needs a bit of sharpening. I like the contrast and darkness of the B&W of this photo.
The Mom and Baby are darling. I think the only thing I would suggest is to add a bit more contrast to make them look a bit darker. It seems a bit light but that may be my screen too.
Too cute!

I like the light in #3 but I think my favorite is #6. Great expression and fun! I would suggest cropping a bit closer because you can see your reflection in the door. I like the angle, I think it goes with the fun expression.

Hey Captain Cliff, I have a few questions for you. I visited your website...loved loved your photos by the way. Here are my questions with regards to your sports pictures on your gallery.
1. What lens were you using for those shots of the swimmers?
2. The baseball player had a grunge look to the photos, did you use layers of texture for that or a plug in of some sort, if so which plug in?
3. final question is regarding your portraits, what kind of light set up do you use and do you do any skin smoothing with programs like portraiture or aperture? My cheapy light set I bought just to play with uses umbrellas but I after this session with my son, I was not totally convinced that it was enough light due to some of the other shots I had which I did not show.

Probably should have PM these questions to you but, I figured other people might benefit too from your wisdom.

Thank you

Here's a nice article about Image stabilization and shutter speed, when to use it and when to turn it off.


http://www.bhphotovideo.com/indepth/photography/tips-solutions/image-stabilization-when-use-it-and-when-turn-it

Well, I guess my response to that is....I don't really know! I guess I have always set my own ISO probably because at one time when I was a beginner I did use Auto ISO and still got a darker shot than I wanted so I ended up adjusted the ISO myself. I suppose its a matter of personal preference. Either I am sure is good if you are getting the pictures you want. I just always set my own....what can I say I am a control freak.. :)

Much better...looking good! :)

I agree with Jim. IS is great when shooting at lower shutter speeds usually 1/200 and lower if hand held. From what I have read and experienced myself, if you are shooting at 1/400 and up you do not need the IS and it is recommended not to use it at those shutter speeds either. Two of my lenses have them and I use them rarely again only when I am shooting under 1/200.

Thank you

Thank you and yes, I am very proud of him. It has been fun to watch him improve every year. He is looking at colleges now and does have a few coaches interested in him which he is excited about.

They already look better! Great... Like everyone else has said move as close as you can to the action and you will find you get some great action shots. Sometimes corners of the court are good and yes you have to deal with the people walking in front of you but that can't really be helped. Directly behind or slightly to the side of the basket is also a spot but it will depend on the school and the refs if they will allow that. Good luck...your kids will appreciate the pictures for sure.

Thanks, this was the look I was going for so I didn't want more light on his head. Couldn't really do much about his shirt since this is his team's jersey. But, he does have a darker jersey so I may try with that one to see...that is if I can get him to sit again. Always a tricky thing with teenagers! :)

ok, I use a Canon so I am not sure about the Nikon's settings but I think the principles are the same. In the sports mode, your shutter speed is very high which for sports is a good thing. However, this is an automatic mode so with a high shutter speed it automatically calculates your aperture. These two are related, one effects the other in the auto modes. With the higher shutter speed, you are getting less light into the camera so even at high ISO's they can come out dark. Even when you think you have good light, the camera may perceive the situation differently, especially indoors.
So, my suggestions for what they are worth are these.... For outdoor shooting for Track, you can use the lens you have and it should work well unless it needs to be recalibrated due to being jostled to much etc... I always shoot in manual mode which gives you more control over the situation. I am sure there are others that may use the TV or AV modes and you should experiment with those too to see which one works better for you. In the manual mode, set your shutter speed for 1/640 or higher depending on the light situation. Sunny days I go as high as 1/1250 or 1/1600 and reduce it when the light gets lower. I try not to go below 1/400 shooting sports and even in low light situations I still get some blur at that speed. With your lens, your aperture will be effected by focusing your lens in and out. So again depending on your light situation, you could see some picture that look ok and then at a different focal length look too dark. With a zoom lens like this you just have to play with the settings until you get a happy medium at all focal lengths. Set your ISO on sunny days starting at 100 and go up depending on how cloudy or dark it gets. You will reach a point at dusk/dark where you will no longer be able to get good shots with the lens you have.
Also, I would not let the camera choose the focus points. With Canon's you can set your own focal point (where in the scene you focus). I set mine for the center focal point. This helps me get a focus on the body of the player better especially when they are moving. You are less likely to take a photo of your track star only so see the focus was on the tree behind him and not on the runner at all. Check you manual to see if you can switch off the auto focal points in your Nikon and how to choose where you focus.
Indoor shooting is a lot more trouble with the lens you have. You will really have to bump up your ISO and live with the noise unless you want to get a new lens. I have a 70mm-300mm which I have used indoors and get ok results but not great. In manual mode you will have to lower your shutter speed as low as you can until you get some blur and up your ISO. I would try starting at 1/320 shutter speed and an ISO of 800 or 1000 and see what you get. You can adjust up and down with both until you find something might work. It will also help to be closer to the action if possible. The fast lens for sports is a 70-200mm f1.8 lens or even a f4.0 lens might work. With the fixed aperture, you will get more light in and you are able to use the faster shutter speeds. This lens is expensive though but if you have kids that will be in sports for awhile it might be worth the investment. A 85mm f1.4 might work too and be in your budget. Not sure though, I haven't priced those. You would not get the zoom with the prime lenses but you could get better pictures.
Sorry, I know this is lengthy and again, I am sure there are others that have better advice but this works for me and has for 10 years of soccer photography. I have included some photos I have taken and the settings I used for each so you can see what I mean about the manual mode. Keep playing with your settings and you will see results after much trial and error.

lens 70-300mm ISO 200 1/1250 f5.0


70-300mm ISO 100 1/1600 f5.0


70-200mm f2.8 1/400 ISO at 1250 I think

What specifically is wrong with your photos you are taking with the lens you have?