Canon 7D "Baseball" Fun (PART II)

Ok guys & gals!

Check this out, I got a paying gig to shoot a Real Amateur Baseball game tonight.
A friend of a friend saw some of the photographs I took from last game I shot and liked it. Thought of the idea of hiring me to Photograph his team at there Championship Game TONIGHT!

I know, I'm so un-prepared. No Tele to work with the terrible light conditions.
All I have to work with is my Beautiful Fifty"cent" 1.8!

But yea, all that matters to him is that I capture the moments. So I'm ok in that field!

My question to you all is: Am I doing to much?

He told me he only has $100 bucks to work with for tonights game. He explained, that he will use me for future games. That this will be the first of many. I asked him what it is that he wants?

He replys: I would like for you to cover the Whole Night. Game starts at 7:30PM tonight til 9:30pm. But before the game I would like a Team Portrait of all of us. And if we win tonight I would also like Celebration pictures.

Basically be here at 7-10pm! And remember this would be the first of many I will use your service.


I told him, sounds good. It would be a pleasure to photograph your team. But you have to understand that what you clearly asking for is under the amount I would charge for such a gig. I told him I will work with him and give him a break. (Keeping in mind that this could open other doors for a Paying Career)

So I enlisted my option:
I will cover the whole night of his team.
Action shoots, everything, the whole nine yards!
But at the end, he will
Recieve a CD with his 50 TOP (picked) photographs,
1 Print by 8x10
& the 50 printed by 4x6.
All of this edited ofcourse, since I shoot in RAW format. I
will be doing a simple edit in LightRoom. 2-5 mins tops in each frame. (Possibly)
And possibly for his TEAM Portrait shot, I will work on some Magic stuff in PhotoShop!

Just cause I'm cool like that. lol..

He was excited! Kept telling me, this would be the first of many.
Did I just BUMMED myself by giving him "Such a Deal"
Meaning, I hope for next time he doesn't think I will do such a job for such $$$.


So what you guys & gals think?
Am I doing to much, knowing that he is already pleased with my type of Photography?
How & what should I explain to him tonight that, for next time there will be a regular price. Or should I let it go and go with the Flow! Enjoy it and Thank God I got a paying gig. (In Sports)

Which I will enjoy tonight's game.

Thank you everyone for taking the time to Read this MEMO

DreamMaker23 wrote in post #15601954
I know, I'm so un-prepared. No Tele to work with the terrible light conditions.
All I have to work with is my Beautiful Fifty"cent" 1.8!

It's great that someone is willing to pay you to shoot, but consider if you are doing them justice with your setup.

Based on your last shoot, how many keepers did you end up with? Can you guarantee 50?

Sounds like not a bad starting gig, especially if it will eventually lead to more (and opportunities for you to up your fee a little bit as you go). Only thing that I would be worried about is that the nifty fifty - while probably fine for the team shots - I can't imagine that it is long enough to cover baseball. I haven't shot baseball myself so I can't say for certain, I don't know if you have special permission to be right in the middle of the action or anything for the shots, or if you are shooting singular players, or the whole field.

joeblack2022 wrote in post #15601982
It's great that someone is willing to pay you to shoot, but consider if you are doing them justice with your setup.

Based on your last shoot, how many keepers did you end up with? Can you guarantee 50?

Yes sir! I can guarantee 50
I wouldn't take this gig as a paying gig if I knew
I would not be able to give him the shots he is looking for.

Thanks JoeBlack!

Christina.DazzleByDesi​gn wrote in post #15602051
Sounds like not a bad starting gig, especially if it will eventually lead to more (and opportunities for you to up your fee a little bit as you go). Only thing that I would be worried about is that the nifty fifty - while probably fine for the team shots - I can't imagine that it is long enough to cover baseball. I haven't shot baseball myself so I can't say for certain, I don't know if you have special permission to be right in the middle of the action or anything for the shots, or if you are shooting singular players, or the whole field.

I will use a 28-105mm for the team portrait with a Off Camera Flash on a shoot-through white umbrella. All good there
Good thing is I have the oppurtunity to be do what I can to get the shot needed.
From the distance/positions I will be in, I can get good close ups of the batter/player. No luck on the Pitcher but I will have to experiment with the 28-105mm between innings.
Everything else would be in-field shots of the game. Behind the catcher, possibly move down by third Base & first base for different kinds of shots.

It's going to be fun! Knowing I'm excited for tonights game.
I shouldn't stress it that I'm only rocking with the fifty and covering the whole night. And I have the oppurtunity to get the shot how I want. Sux that it's at Night again. That's why I need to use mostly the fifty, my only fast lens.

Thanks Christina!

DreamMaker23 wrote in post #15602227
I will use a 28-105mm for the team portrait with a Off Camera Flash on a shoot-through white umbrella. All good there

Pardon my ignorance, but is a one flash/umbrella combo gonna be enough to evenly light a squad of baseball players?

Good Luck with the gig,its a step in the right direction!

Diamonddec wrote in post #15602270
Pardon my ignorance, but is a one flash/umbrella combo gonna be enough to evenly light a squad of baseball players?

Yes sir... (Oh wait, you said evenly) No not evenly, but if I get creative on it.
I should be able to pull it off..Two shots and merged them together in Photoshop.

ruthless STi wrote in post #15602325
Good Luck with the gig,its a step in the right direction!

Thanks Man!

Can't help but feel like you're being used somehow...Make sure that you get that $100 up front.

rrblint wrote in post #15602353
Can't help but feel like you're being used somehow...Make sure that you get that $100 up front.

Oh trust me, I know! Been thru something similiar.
Did a gig for a "Rapper" and this guy didn't want to pay when it came time to deliver him his shots. After editing his shots and all..And he didn't even see his photos yet. So it wasn't that he did not like them. Friends of mine looked at them and said, he missed out on some Great photographs.

For now on, I work when I get paid first.

Thanks!

rrblint wrote in post #15602353
Can't help but feel like you're being used somehow...Make sure that you get that $100 up front.

Pretty hard to be used, considering if there isn't a $100 bill waiting for me once I show pics, I wouldn't be supplying any CD or photos.

I have one suggestion. Take a laptop with you, and after about 2 innings of shots, take off an inning and check out your pics and your settings that yield the best pics. Since baseball is somewhat repetitive (except for that occasional bean in the head), you should then have time to correct and take more shots the later innings. Get shots of the players in the dugout, a few slides here and there, a line drive where the guy has the mitt ready to snag the ball, etc. Those action shots are fun and also really add to your portfolio later.

Examples of crowd pleasers

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TeamSpeed wrote in post #15602387
Pretty hard to be used, considering if there isn't a $100 bill waiting for me once I show pics, I wouldn't be supplying any CD or photos.

Cary, I personally wouldn't even shoot the game without getting at least $50(non-refundable) up front...But maybe that's just me.

Good luck DreamMaker23!

TeamSpeed wrote in post #15602387
Pretty hard to be used, considering if there isn't a $100 bill waiting for me once I show pics, I wouldn't be supplying any CD or photos.

I have one suggestion. Take a laptop with you, and after about 2 innings of shots, take off an inning and check out your pics and your settings that yield the best pics. Since baseball is somewhat repetitive (except for that occasional bean in the head), you should then have time to correct and take more shots the later innings. Get shots of the players in the dugout, a few slides here and there, a line drive where the guy has the mitt ready to snag the ball, etc. Those action shots are fun and also really add to your portfolio later.

Thanks again TeamSpeed! Great shots, as always
That is a good idea to do. I was going straight to the park right after work this evening.
Might just make a quick stop at the house for the laptop. (maybe)

rrblint wrote in post #15602459
Cary, I personally wouldn't even shoot the game without getting at least $50(non-refundable) up front...But maybe that's just me.

Good luck DreamMaker23!

Thanks RRBlint!

rrblint wrote in post #15602459
Cary, I personally wouldn't even shoot the game without getting at least $50(non-refundable) up front...But maybe that's just me.

Good luck DreamMaker23!

For me, it depends on how far the needle pegs on the Fun vs Work gauge. If the needle is more on the "that would be fun to do", then I probably wouldn't demand the money up front. If it was more work than fun, then yes, I would want funds up front just in case.

Of course, I am the person that is happily accepting the press badge for our local NBA d-league team and shooting pics and allowing them free use of them, since it is 1) fun for me to be on the court, 2) I get some much needed experience and critique, and 3) hope that when their paid photographer goes up to renew his contract, they call me instead. I guess I am a bit too photographically "easy".

Well, you're right, you don't really have the proper gear to cover it the way many would, however, that doesn't mean you can't get some nice shots.

What concerns me the most is getting $100 for many hours of work (3 hours for the game--if you're lucky, probably more) then your time editing, picking out shots and putting them on a CD. Then you have to pay for the prints. Where's the profit?

Don't mean to bust your bubble but all of us who shoot to make money have heard the, "we'll use you for future shoots..." BS line before. It is (essentially) BS 90%+ of the time. They tell you that to make you feel better about taking peanuts for the work you're going to do.

One thing I tell aspiring pros is, if you don't want to be known as that guy/gal who will shoot for very little/free, then don't shoot for very little/free. Trust me, it's much harder to raise your prices than you may think.

I don't mean this to sound directed at you but this kind of work for the amount you're going to do it (without the correct equipment) doesn't help those of us who DO have the correct equipment and DO charge what our time is worth. I know it's exciting someone wants to pay you something...ANYTHING for you to shoot for them but you have to stop and think about the long term.

Either way, good luck with your shoot.

GadgetRick wrote in post #15603678
Well, you're right, you don't really have the proper gear to cover it the way many would, however, that doesn't mean you can't get some nice shots.

What concerns me the most is getting $100 for many hours of work (3 hours for the game--if you're lucky, probably more) then your time editing, picking out shots and putting them on a CD. Then you have to pay for the prints. Where's the profit?

Don't mean to bust your bubble but all of us who shoot to make money have heard the, "we'll use you for future shoots..." BS line before. It is (essentially) BS 90%+ of the time. They tell you that to make you feel better about taking peanuts for the work you're going to do.

One thing I tell aspiring pros is, if you don't want to be known as that guy/gal who will shoot for very little/free, then don't shoot for very little/free. Trust me, it's much harder to raise your prices than you may think.

I don't mean this to sound directed at you but this kind of work for the amount you're going to do it (without the correct equipment) doesn't help those of us who DO have the correct equipment and DO charge what our time is worth. I know it's exciting someone wants to pay you something...ANYTHING for you to shoot for them but you have to stop and think about the long term.

Either way, good luck with your shoot.

Like any other market, customers have budgets, and they will invariably find somebody that will work the services they need for that budget. $100 is $100, and if the OP uses this opportunity to learn what works and what doesn't, then it is a good gig, regardless of who else gets their toes stepped on.

I would rather get paid to learn, than pay to learn.