re: cc on gymnastic shots

[LMarge]

Hi everyone! Below are a few shots from a recent gymnastic meet. She has 3 meets left for this season and any tips on how to get better shots would be great.(And yes I know, investing in a super fast zoom lens would help!! just haven't sold the dh on it yet!!) These were taken with the Xti and a Tamron 28-75mm f/2.8 lens. The vault shots may have been taken with a 50mm f1.8, I truly can't remember which one was on the camera at the time! I did use a monopod, but trying to track the girls as they vaulted proved harder than it seemed! Some of the pics have a blue tint - I did adjust the color balance for the lights and that helped a bit. The only one that has been tweeked in PSE is the beam photo - I cropped it,blurred the heads in the background and gave it a boost in color. Thanks for your feedback!

this was her tumbling pass -beginning and end! - the red floor is horrid with the pink leo!!

 

[geetey]

No advice or tips, LMarge. Just wanted to say Nice shots!! You and I are both battling that 'indoor fast paced" setting and I think you have done very well.

 

[LMarge]

Thanks geetey! I just wish I could get a little closer and get rid of the blur on the legs - but I think the only answer to that is either faster iso (which would mean a new camera-not an option, as this one just arrived at Christmas! ) or faster glass - which could be an option if I could just make a decision on what it is I need/want. Unfortunately I don't think my idea of need/want matches my wallet at the moment!!!

I've also used both of those lenses to shoot my son's basketball - they've been okay - not spectacular, but they'll do for the moment. A lot depends on the gym and the light - if it's bad it's all a wash!

 

[mabas9395]

What kind of camera were you using and what were some of your settings?

There doesn't seem to be that much noise at this size so maybe you could boost your ISO and get some faster shutter speeds.

 

[ukcatfan]

If not doing so already, I suggest going with RAW. You will be able to get the WB right that way. It also gives more room to fix blown out portions, intense shadows, etc. Also, a little blur on a fast moving part is not always bad. It shows the intensity of the motion. Just be sure to have something else locked in focus, like the face. Also, do not forget that you can crop to get the shot framed a little closer. I believe the shot with the flag is the best one because the subject is more prominent in the shot (i.e. the fill the frame rule). They could also benefit from some rule of thirds work. At least try to keep the subject out of the middle of the frame. That same shot is an example of that rule making a better shot as well.

Kevin

 

[LMarge]

What kind of camera were you using and what were some of your settings?

There doesn't seem to be that much noise at this size so maybe you could boost your ISO and get some faster shutter speeds.

I'm using the Canon XTi and the ISO was set to 1600 for all shots, Aperture Priority mode - anything lower and there was the blur issue. I've not done any pp on these except the cropped one on beam. If I crop them down and run them thru noiseware, I "should" still be able to get a decent 4x6 and perhaps a 5x7 out of them for her scrapbook. I'm afraid to try anything larger than that due to the noise issue.

 

[LMarge]

If not doing so already, I suggest going with RAW. You will be able to get the WB right that way. It also gives more room to fix blown out portions, intense shadows, etc. Also, a little blur on a fast moving part is not always bad. It shows the intensity of the motion. Just be sure to have something else locked in focus, like the face. Also, do not forget that you can crop to get the shot framed a little closer. I believe the shot with the flag is the best one because the subject is more prominent in the shot (i.e. the fill the frame rule). They could also benefit from some rule of thirds work. At least try to keep the subject out of the middle of the frame. That same shot is an example of that rule making a better shot as well.

Kevin

Kevin,
Thanks for the tips - I plan to try a few in RAW at the next meet. I've hesitated to do so because it seems to take a bit longer for the camera to write to the card - so there's a bit of delay between bursts. If I had shot the beam photo in RAW, could I have adjusted those blown areas on her shoulders a bit more without losing the brightness of the colors? I also agree with the rule of thirds comment. However, I'm so concerned with even getting the shot that I tend to set the focus on spot center, try to keep the girls in the frame at all times, and focus on them.Sometimes they move from one area to another so quickly that compsure is an after thought - I'm just busy trying to track them thru the lens! My line of thinking is to just work with what I get - cropping, etc. Below is the original beam photo so you can see what it started as - and you can see she was spot center! Suggestions on how it could have been post processed better? I'm learning that there is so much "to learn" about this camera and composition - a bit mind boggling at times!!

 

[DragonSlyr]

I would say your lenses are plenty fast enough. Can’t say I disagree with any of the advice you’ve received so far. RAW is a toss up as you stated it slows write speed. I try to shoot RAW as much as possible, but usually end up shooting jpg for vault and floor passes. I would strongly recommend shooting full manual though with custom white balance. Some blurring adds to the photo as Kevin stated, but if you wish picking up shutter speed while maintaining an open aperture in manual can minimize it. Any lightening needed due to the faster shutter could be accomplished when rendering the picture.

What State are you from? Which meet did you take the photos at?

Tom

 

[LMarge]

Tom,
Thanks for the advice about manual settings. We have an upcoming meet this weekend in Columbus - "The Arnold". So I plan to try the manual/raw aspect there. I picked up an extra 4 gig card last week for that purpose!
We're from Ohio. That meet was north of Cincinnati and was called "Top's Super Challenge". I think the host gym was from outside Columbus.

If that's your dd in your posted photos - she's got a terrific split jump and her vault "rocks" (my dd's word, not mine! ) Colleen is still working on getting that "block" down on the vault - she's very small, just breaks 50 pounds, so she doesn't have the body mass yet to get a real rebound off the springboard - but she's working on it. The joke this year is "that at least it's making a noise!!!"

Your profile says Michigan - we competed against a team from there a few weeks back, the "Twistars". Amazing scores they were putting up - very high 9's on all events. Needless to say, we were all in awe!! Our girls don't see scores like that until the last meet or so - which is still another month away!!
Thanks again for your feedback!
Blessings,
Marge

 

[ukcatfan]

We have an upcoming meet this weekend in Columbus - "The Arnold".

That is an awesome event! Only got to go once, but would love to go again. Hope you get to see more than just the part you are involved in. At a minimum, I suggest going to the expo.

Kevin

 

[LMarge]

That is an awesome event! Only got to go once, but would love to go again. Hope you get to see more than just the part you are involved in. At a minimum, I suggest going to the expo.

Kevin

We plan to stroll around and check things out. We were there two years ago, but were so hurried that we just competed and left!! I just remember the place being HUGE!! Wish us (dd!) luck!!

 

[DragonSlyr]

Marge

Twistars are real archenemies of ours. LOL Very competitive team, great gymnasts. Both my daughters are competing level 6 this year. Our gym is hosting a meet this weekend so we are not going to the Arnold Classic. We are going to the Kalahari meet the following weekend in Sandusky though.

Tom

 

[LMarge]

Tom,
Good luck to your girls!! Next weekend we head the opposite direction of you - we head to Louisville, KY for the "Derby Classic". I think it's one we've done for several years now. Then we're off until States, which is in early April. I'd love to see some photos of your host meet!
Blessings,
Marge

 

[DragonSlyr]

Marge,

Hope your DD had fun this weekend at the Arnold Classic. Been realy swamped around here between work and prepairing for our gyms meet. I will try to post a couple pics this week.

Tom

 

[JR6ooo4]

With the vault shots you do not need to follow the gymnast. You already knpw when and where she will be. If you want a shot over the vault then prefocus on that. If you plan a anding shot then refocus on the right spot on the landing mat. You can lock the focus with half press the recompose...

now if you were going to do a burst of several shots over the vault then use servo focus mode and track the gymnast.

also since you are trying raw you can under expose and that will give you a little faster shutter. then brighten a bit in the raw conversion.

Mikeeee