First HS baseball shoot - what to take?

A co-worker has a child on the JV team, game is at 4:30.
I'll take the 7D and I figure probably 70-200?
Monopod?
Where does one typically shoot baseball shots, I am not sure what kind of access I'll have.

Should I plan on taking the second body (XSi )with another Lens for T&Ishots?

70-200 is ok because on the 7D you'll be getting 300mm FOV. When I shoot baseball, it's usually from behind the plate for pitcher shots, first-base side and third-base side. I never use a monopod because the lenses aren't that heavy and the shutter speed is fast enough to negate it. Since it will be daylight, I'd kick the aperture up to 3.5 or so, just to get added sharpness.

Do they play 6 innings or 9 in JV? A 4:30 start and 9 innings would go until roughly 7:30 or so? Light might get a little low towards the end of the game.

IMO, I would drag both the 70-200 and the 200-500. Use the 200-500 early where the light will/should be better. As it gets later, switch to the 70-200 for the better aperture performance. Unless there is some performance issue I don’t know of with the 200-500.

In my experience (5U league, 60 foot base path) I am guessing if you are hanging around first/third base and shooting home/second base, you will want to be above 200mm to fill the frame as much as possible and not crop a bunch. Shooting across the field would be even better with more reach. The 200mm might be limiting when shooting which ever base is closest to you.

For daytime baseball, I'd take the 200-500. With the angles & distances involved, the 70-200 would likely be too short in most situations.

For example, if I wanted a picture of the first baseman making a play, I'd take it from the third base side so that I get their face in the image instead of the back of their head.

The 200-500 will capture useable images of batters from behind the center field fence. It's also short enough to get frontal pics of the pitcher.

Monopods & tripods are useful platforms for stabilization and keep the equipment up & ready to shoot. Even minor fatigue will compromise image quality. Do yourself a favor and use one or the other... games last for hours.

You can shoot through the fence. I have no problems when the hood is placed against the fence.

The 70-200 will be okay for infield, longer would be better with 90 ft. bases and especially shooting across the field.

Keep the shutter speed high for most shots. A cloud of dust created by player sliding into a base will
look like a brown blob if the shutter speed is too slow.

Light conditions can change rapidly in late afternoon. Watch your settings closely.

I use high speed continuous bursts but still try to time the shots as if shooting in one shot.

Expect to be on the wrong side of the field for many shots . You can't be everywhere.

Someone will walk in front of you at the worst possible moment.

I bring a Home Depot bucket to stand on so I can shoot "over the fence". Shooting
through the fence is ok if you can get in a direct line but from an angle it's a lot
harder to do.

Joe T.

Joemt wrote in post #14215391
I bring a Home Depot bucket to stand on so I can shoot "over the fence". Shooting
through the fence is ok if you can get in a direct line but from an angle it's a lot
harder to do.

Joe T.

Lots of great suggestions above. One of my favorite locations, not mentioned by those above, is with a 300mm or better lens - shooting from the centerfield (or left/right foul pole area) - if you have access to that section. Great views of the ball coming off the bat, catcher reaction to the ball (usually following it), dugouts, and a totally different perspective at second base. I usually shoot from the first base bag area and slip out there as the game progresses. I usually try to chat with the umpires a bit and sort of buddy up to them and mention to them that I'm going to move to "the wall" now and usually get a "see you later" type response - which means, "okay" (just leave me the hell alone photo dude). ha.ha

I like the bucket idea too ... never tried that one, but will now!!!

Good luck!

EDIT: Okay, I see that Scatter mention the fence area as well .. it has become one of my favorite angles. Good to see that someone else appreciates it too.

Thanks for all the advice. I'll post some shots after the game. If any are worthy.

I know buckets are cheap, but I use a three step aluminum ladder. Quite often two steps is enough, but most often I'm on the top step. Use it to sit on in between innings.