First time Hockey with f/4

[ajbalazic]

Finally the moment had come for me to see my Godson play a playoff game. I'd been looking forward to photographing the game for weeks, reading any and all post about hockey. I don't have the "right" equipment for perfect hockey photos, but I did the best I could with what I had. All shots taken with Digital Rebel (300D) at iso1600 (noise is unnacceptable at 1600, but you can't shoot at anything less). Used my 70-200mm f/4 (not ideal for indoors, but that's what I have). In manual mode, set the aperature to f/4, and the shutter speed 1/500 sec which left all shots underexposed 1-2 stops. Adjusted the RAW files in DPP, applied Noise Ninja, and then unsharp mask. I'm happy with the results- what do you think?

Winding up...



Starting the rush...



Is that Bobby Orr?



Keep your head up!



Backhand towards the net...



A few more at: http://alanbalazic.smugmug.com/galle...024/1/59767526

[ajbalazic]

A couple more...

[convergent]

How did you set your camera to f/3 with an f/4 lens, or was that a typo?

The first couple of these (and some of the others) look like the wall was in focus, rather than the player. Were you using center point focus, or something else? The shutter speed you were using should have been plenty to pretty much stop the action at this level, so I think your focus tracking may be the problem.

The exposure and white balance look pretty good.

[rgaya]

nice shots but dont be afraid to crop them a little tighter and see how they look

[primoz]

Those from first post (I somehow can't see those from second) are quite nice. Maybe a bit too dark, but you can really easy fix this with small correction in Photoshop. But there's something else what I don't like. There's way too much empty space around. Crop them much much tighter and you will see difference. With much tighter crop you would get much better looking photo.

[ajbalazic]

Originally Posted by convergent

How did you set your camera to f/3 with an f/4 lens, or was that a typo?

Typo. That would have to be one special lens!

Originally Posted by convergent

The first couple of these (and some of the others) look like the wall was in focus, rather than the player. Were you using center point focus, or something else? The shutter speed you were using should have been plenty to pretty much stop the action at this level, so I think your focus tracking may be the problem.

I used the center point focus and some manual (for when shooting the goalie), but found some problems in focus as you mentioned. I think some shots appear out of focus due to the noise reduction and not enough sharpening after.

Thanks for the comments Mike- I'll have to work on the focusing issue.

[ajbalazic]

Originally Posted by rgaya

nice shots but dont be afraid to crop them a little tighter and see how they look

I will! I think I got a little to excited and posted them here to fast before I thought to do some cropping. There are a few that should look really good once cropped. Thanks for the suggestion Rodrigo.

[ajbalazic]

Originally Posted by primoz

Those from first post (I somehow can't see those from second) are quite nice. Maybe a bit too dark, but you can really easy fix this with small correction in Photoshop. But there's something else what I don't like. There's way too much empty space around. Crop them much much tighter and you will see difference. With much tighter crop you would get much better looking photo.

Najlepsa hvala Primoz! I agree, they need to be cropped and the levels should be adjusted to make the ice pure white.

Are you going to the World Cup in Germany this summer to cover the games? It's not too far from you.

Zivio.

[ajbalazic]

Originally Posted by lavished

i like the last picture, however it's quite dark

You're right. I need to do a little more work and adjust the levels to get these shots looking right. Thanks for the comment lavished.

[DavidEB]

Nice shots. second the comments about cropping, but still, they're very good. Good timing, good eye for action. Your photos capture the players with the puck, playing hockey, not just standing around. Good work.

With the little guys, you can get by with a slower shutter. Try turning down the shutter a little at a time, and looking at the shots. First things to blur will be the blades (of the sticks) and the rear skate.

As he grows up, you'll need faster glass.

Some of your photos are backfocused. This could be a problem with the camera, not your technique. See this post. Sad to say, the solution is a 1d.


again, good work.

[ajbalazic]

Thanks for the comments David. I was considering using a slower shutter speed- in fact I took a couple shots at 1/250sec and they worked fine, but I couldn't tell at the arena- the Digital Rebel screen is so small, I couldn't tell if the shots were blury or noisy. (That's where the new 30D would come in handy with that big preview screen).

Here's a couple croped and levels adjsuted. Thanks again for all the suggestions. I'm looking forward to next season.