Boys HS Soccer 1-26-07

[Big Hands]

Clouds and late afternoon start made it a little more difficult than usual, but it still beats a good afternoon at the office.

Shot with the 20D and 70-200 f/2.8L (the one that's too short for soccer... wink, wink ).

C & C always welcome.

1 -
http://photos.imageevent.com/johansen01/westranchvarsity0607/wrhs12607vsvalencia/WRHS%2012607%20013a.jpg
2 -
http://photos.imageevent.com/johansen01/westranchvarsity0607/wrhs12607vsvalencia/WRHS%2012607%20055a.jpg
3 -
http://photos.imageevent.com/johansen01/westranchvarsity0607/wrhs12607vsvalencia/WRHS%2012607%20024a.jpg
4 -
http://photos.imageevent.com/johansen01/westranchvarsity0607/wrhs12607vsvalencia/WRHS%2012607%20040a.jpg
5 -
http://photos.imageevent.com/johansen01/westranchvarsity0607/wrhs12607vsvalencia/WRHS%2012607%20034a.jpg
6 -
http://photos.imageevent.com/johansen01/westranchvarsity0607/wrhs12607vsvalencia/WRHS%2012607%20096a.jpg
7 -
http://photos.imageevent.com/johansen01/westranchvarsity0607/wrhs12607vsvalencia/WRHS%2012607%20085a.jpg
8 -
http://photos.imageevent.com/johansen01/westranchvarsity0607/wrhs12607vsvalencia/WRHS%2012607%20044a.jpg

Thanks for looking.

Regards,
Jeff

[superdiver]

VERY nice series!

[nickybegood1998]

Those are great. I just bought the Sigma 70-200 2.8 for my 8 year olds soccer games. I know the lenses don't compare but I'm glad to see that the length works well. I'm still thinking of getting the 1.4x TC though.

Karman

[cwphoto]

Can't fault them - great timing.

[Big Hands]

Superd, thank you.

Karman, don't sell the Sigma short. I happen to believe it is a very comparable alternative to the Canon as I have seen some very impressive results from it.

As for the 1.4x TC, I have tried it and wasn't thrilled. I felt like it affected the accuracy of the AF. I couldn't get as many keepers and it kept some of the backgrounds more focused than I cared for. The one place it did work out well was for shooting softball. I put the 70-200 and 1.4x TC on the tripod and set it up just beyond first base to shoot batters. I hooked up the wired remote and as each batter stepped into the box, I would half-press to achieve focus and then quickly switch the lens to manual focua for the reminder of the at-bat. Then I could just sit back in my lawn chair and time the shots using the remote. I could get BOB shots (BOB = bat on ball) fairly consistently because I could see the pitcher since I wasn't watching the game through the viewfinder.

The only downside of that setup was that I sometimes had people sitting behind the chainlink in the BG that were just there... by that I mean knitting and looking off in other directions which didn't create much 'atmosphere'.

I hope you get better results from the TC than I did. Maybe for 8 year olds it won't be so tough. Personally I think I'd rather have a battery grip before a TC. It would make shooting in portrait orientation much easier, which I prefer for shooting soccer.

cwphoto, thank you.

Regards,
Jeff

[emurph2]

These are great!! Lots of good action.

[nickybegood1998]

Big Hands, thanks for the tips. I may just get the battery grip (I have been looking at those) before the extender. I'm just afraid of getting into the season and realizing that I need it. I'm going to give it a go without it. Worse case, I'll just have to wait until the action comes to me and do a lot of moving around. I will give it a go.

Thanks,
Karman

[Howler-Cat]

Wow...I have the same lense and could not believe your captures Jeff! Great series! I better get started! Good job!

Just wondering...where were you standing to get these shots?

Thanks!

[Big Hands]

Thanks Erica!

Karman, depending on where I shoot from there's only about a 50% chance that I will even move one time and I usually shoot over 1,000 frames in a typical match. The reason is that I usually make the position of the sun a top priority in determining where I shoot from.

If the position of the sun determines that I will shoot from behind behind the goal line, I probably won't move the entire match. If the sun is shining from one side or the other and I end up shooting from the touchline I might move at half time to another position along that touchline if I think the action might be more at one end.

My thinking is that it's more important to get quality exposure than a quantity of shots since I can get plenty by staying put. It seemed that when I would chase the action, I would miss more opportunities than if I just stayed put. I worry more about making the best of what I do get than worrying about what I missed.

As for the TC's? I have three of them and they don't even make the trip to the field with me. I just don't even use them for soccer anymore. I'm even considering selling my Canon 1.4x MkII.

A sturdy monopod is also nice to use. It keeps the camera steady and pointed at the action. I like the Bogen 681B with a 3229 quick release on top of that.

Ben, I kind of explained what dictates where I shoot from in the above paragraphs. Given a choice, I really prefer to shoot from behind the goal line. The play will usually either be coming toward me or going away with opposing players facing me. The other reason I prefer being behind the goal line is that the backgrounds will usually be less cluttered from this position.

Thank you all for the comments.

Regards,
Jeff