help with football training camp.

[troyer16]

Im going to be attending NFL training camp (american football). I was wondering if anyone could offer some suggestions such as a shutter speed to freeze the action. I know its all relative but just a place to start would be very helpful. Thanks.

[troyer16]

no where to start anyone?

[dmwierz]

Troy,

Your question is pretty generic, and that might explain why there have been no replies. Plus, weekends are tough, since lotsa folks are shooting rather than posting.

Are you going as a fan or press? Which team? Do you know what the layout is? What equipment are you bringing? Your XT and 70-300? Can you get hold of a longer lens? Typically, fans (and even press) are kept a fair distance from the sidelines, and you may need something longer than 300mm.

Hard to give advice, since each training camp is different, in terms of access, where the photographers can stand/sit, where the public can stand/sit, etc.

For example, I'm covering the Chicago Bears this week, and I'm bringing my 400 and plan on using it most of the time with the 1.4X TC, and I'm going as credentialed press. The fans and public will be even farther away.

As far as shutter speeds, training camp is no different than any other sports you might have shot. Keep your speeds > 1/1000 to minimize motion blur. Shoot Av or manual, with your lens open as wide as it goes.

Players won't be going "all out" at camp, unless they're doing sprints or other training activities, at least until nearer to the end of camp, so their speeds won't be as fast as regular season.

Hope this helps.

Dennis

[Aleksandar]

For example, I'm covering the Chicago Bears this week, and I'm bringing my 400 and plan on using it most of the time with the 1.4X TC, and I'm going as credentialed press. The fans and public will be even farther away.

Hmm. Do you happen to be one of the gents here? ;)

http://www.xcelluploader.com//files/21/Training%20Camp/July%2027/Media.jpg

I was at the Bears camp Friday as well and once when there was nothing nearby to shoot I just shot a picture of the shooters. Anyway, I wasn't able to go Saturday but I'll be there tomorrow through Friday so maybe we'll bump into each other. I'll be the guy on my knees at the ropes with a wimpy 70-200 2.8. ;) Speaking of that, I *really* need to bring something to kneel on. My knees are raw from Friday. :P

Anyway, considering I just took up photography seriously a couple months ago and have only actually shot games two times before Friday (both little league soccer games as a spectator), take what I say with a grain of salt.

While it sure would be nice, you don't need $10,000 or press credentials to get decent shots. Yes, with a smaller lens you're limited to what you can shoot but that just means you're going to have more patience. Instead of being able to walk up and down the field and follow the action, you're going to have to wait until the action comes to you. This can mean drills the players are participating in or shots when practice is over and the players are signing autographs.

As for specific settings, to start off with I'd just do what dmwierz suggested and shoot in Av mode wide-open, in AI Servo Mode, auto white balance and adjust your ISO accordingly to get the shutter speed you're looking for. I did that my first two soccer games but since there was some time between them and Bears training camp, I borrowed Bryan Peterson's book "Understanding Exposure" (which you'll hear recommended from everyone on this board) and read up a bit on the subject. In it, he suggests exposing for the blue sky on sunny days and exposing for the grass on overcast days. I did this by first setting my camera to Av mode, selecting my wide-open aperture (2.8) and then pointing it at some grass. I then looked at the settings and if the shutter speed was acceptable, I'd switch to Manual and input those settings. Of course, he doesn't explain what to do if it's mainly overcast but has patches of blue sky and the sun is coming in and out of the clouds. As a result, a lot of my shots of players came out slightly underexposed (something I'm hoping I can correct in the RAW images).

Anyway, even though I was roped off with all the rest of my fellow fans and only had a 70-200mm lens (no extender), here's some shots I was able to get over the course of a couple of hours:


Drills
http://www.xcelluploader.com//files/21/Training%20Camp/July%2027/85.jpg


Leg Stretches
http://www.xcelluploader.com//files/21/Training%20Camp/July%2027/Benson.jpg


Picture taken during autographs
http://www.xcelluploader.com//files/21/Training%20Camp/July%2027/Bradley.jpg


Another autograph picture
http://www.xcelluploader.com//files/21/Training%20Camp/July%2027/JayStaggs.jpg


A leaping catch
http://www.xcelluploader.com//files/21/Training%20Camp/July%2027/Peterson.jpg


Yes, a few could have really benefited from a bigger lens but if you're doing it for your own personal enjoyment (like me), I'm sure they'll be more than acceptable.

[dmwierz]

Aleksander,

Nope, I haven't been there yet. Sunday is my first day this year. I'm only going every few days.

I *really* need to bring something to kneel on. My knees are raw from Friday. :P

Nothing wrong with knee pads. I'll probably have mine with me.

Nice captures, by the way.

. Of course, he doesn't explain what to do if it's mainly overcast but has patches of blue sky and the sun is coming in and out of the clouds.

This is actually when shooting Av is preferred over manual. If you have consistent light, exposing for the sky/grass and shooting Manual works best, but when the light it variable, or when the playing field has some shadows and varying light, Av allows one to concentrate on shooting and not have to worry about constantly changing the shutter speed (or fixing it in post).

Av can be fooled by bright backgrounds and other situations, and it's far from perfect, but it's pretty good for many shoots.