On the fly Team Photo

What could I have done better?
After, what turned out to be, the last game of the season, one of my son’s football coaches asked if I could take a team photo (he missed the official team photo and wanted one with him in it). The problems:

• Bright sunny day, about 2 to 3 hours before sunset (I just noticed that the time in my camera is off).
  
• The kids were spent and didn’t want to do this. They just lost to a bigger stronger team and thus didn’t make the playoffs.
  
• Not all the coaches wanted to do this: “Okay, but let’s make this quick” was said.

Looks like plentiful shade over by bleachers? I would have tried that.

Shooting with the harsh sunlight from behind them was the mistake. It would have been a good idea to have switched positions, although I can't comment on what the background was like.
Prob best shoot in raw too - gives you a chance to 'rescue' a better shot.

The light was so harsh that, if they were facing any other direction, there would have been harsh shadows all over their faces; facing the sun, they all would have been squinting and there still would have been hash shadows on the faces. This way, at least, the light on the faces is consistently in the shadow of their heads, though some have stage halos around their hair and side of their face.

If I had a flash, I would have used it for better contrast and fill light.

The bleachers were not an option, there was just a small corner that was in the shade and I would have been shooting up at them from the ground. It looks like they are in the shade, I think, because all you can see is the front side of the seats; but notice the tree right there, it is completely lit (front back and sides). If the bleachers were actually in the shade of the large building (as they appear to be) so would the bottom of that tree.

The conditions stunk. One mistake (I think) I made was shooting with a very short focal length (20mm). I suspect that if I had stepped back and shot at 55, or even gone further back and used the 70-200, I might have been able to get less sky and sun in the frame and thus less flare.

The shot was further complicated by the wide range of skin tones. My primary goal was to get the faces right.

Considering what you were working with... good job on getting ALL THE FACES IN and nobody hiding behind someone!
Sounds like a highly stressful situation, and a good question to get people thinking!
btw, I got nothing haha

One way to stop people squinting is to get all of them to shut there eyes and open them on the count of say 3. You may have to do this a couple of times. Hope this helps.

While browsing Tim's site (Tim is one one of the excellent wedding photographers that frequents POTN -- most often found in the Wedding and Events section) I found my answer:

Here is a link to a shot from Tim's page where he shot a really nice group shot in similar lighting!
http://www.wildphotogr​aphy.co.nz …st-959/full/c40-LM212.jpg

I should have positioned myself up in the stands, the team on the field, back to the sun, and shot down on the team. That would have taken the sun out and away from the frame while keeping the players backs to the sun (so their faces are squint free and are in consistent light, in the shadow of their heads).

I don't think having everyone looking up at the camera while you're elevated works for a team photo.

I think your third photo is fine. I wouldn't cut the coach's arm on the left off. I would go back in there and increase the exposure locally on the individual faces. Besides that, it is what it is. It seems acceptable as in with the conditions and gear you had.

HiepBuiPhotography wrote in post #16513193
I don't think having everyone looking up at the camera while you're elevated works for a team photo.

I agree.. but what I did also didn't work. Considering the situation, I believe that would have been my best option, but I posted this, originally, because I was wondering what others would have done to get a better shot.

Considering the situation, there was not 'good' show, show I was wondering what better options there might have been. There was usable shade within distance that this group would have been willing to move to. They would have walked 20' toward the stands while I got up about 10 rows.

You need some studio strobes with powerable power packs. I don't remember what I used for my shot, but I suspect it was on camera flash and photoshop. Ideally I'd have had 1-2 big strobes with me, but that shot is from a roof.

I think given the limitations you did the right thing in shot 2 by realizing you had an issue and you corrected it with your hand. ...but, the main issue is not expressing enough confidence to direct the team and coaches to move to a slightly better location. I had a very similar experience this summer and I could see the light was not right and had to instruct the team to reposition itself after they were mostly ready...you get groans, but laugh and joke about it a bit and it can work out better as everyone relaxes a bit...you have to be really quick though and you only have one chance to fix it. It is not easy, but people will understand if its not going to work one way...they still want to look good.