HS Volleyball State 2013

Without a doubt volleyball has to be the most difficult sport to shoot. C&C appreciated.

1.

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Mark, once again, well done, buddy. These are fabulous! Got an immediate "WOW!" out of me for #2. I think that mainly comes from the "how-low-can-you-go" perspective that you gave us, the viewers. Keep up the great work!

Difficult or not, you've done extremely well!

bimhoff07 wrote in post #16438199
Difficult or not, you've done extremely well!

Agreed!

Great looking action shots!

All very nice

Agreed. Shoutout for shooting high -- opens up their faces when the lift their heads to the light. No raccoon eyes.

Very nice Mark. Shoutout for going low as well!

I'm curious what gear you were using for each image. I'm very new, but this is one of the two main sports my daughter plays. As for the equipment I currently have, I can only shoot outdoor sports with only minor success. Just put in an order for the 70D and the 70-200 2.8 mkii and I'm hoping I'll be able to get some volleyball shots half as good as these.

I'd wager that Mark shot those with his 1DX (or maybe 1D4) and the 300 f2.8 and 400 f2.8.

However, you should be able to get very good captures of the sport using a 70D and the 70-200 you have coming in. The keys are (i) a high enough usable ISO to get your shutter to 1/800 or more, (ii) position with respect to the players, (iii) timing, and (iv) learning the rhythm of the team and players you are shooting.

For (ii), look at the pictures Mark, Phil Z and others have posted to learn the positions they have shot from and the reasons for doing so. There's a good chance you will not be in a gym that provides the same vantage points, but you can use the thought process to find good shooting locations in your gym with your equipment.

For (iii) and (iv), the key is practice. Go to your daughter's practice sessions and shoot a lot. Don't be afraid to use a 2-3 shot burst, although it is not usually very helpful to machine gun things.

Finally, focus on getting the player's face and eyes in the picture with the ball.

Phil's written some good articles on shooting the sport that you can find in this forum.

chrisnosleep,

Jim is correct I was shooting with the 1DX 70-200mm 2.8 and the 1D MK IV and the 400 2.8. I agree with Jim that you should take a look at Zivnuska's blog there is a ton of valuable information there. I would also look at the threads Jim has put together and study his images. In my opinion these two are are a couple of the best on the forums when it comes to volleyball.

My advice practice and work on your timing. Volleyball is a very difficult sport to shoot, good positioning is important, and you will find it is very easy to shoot late and miss the action. I can count on one hand the number of volleyball games I have shot, but if you study what Phil and Jim are doing and apply their techniques there is no reason you can't get some great images. Again I highly recommend reading Zivnuska's blog post on shooting volleyball.

http://zivnuska.zenfol​io.com/blog

nice job!

PhotoGeek wrote in post #16445922
I'd wager that Mark shot those with his 1DX (or maybe 1D4) and the 300 f2.8 and 400 f2.8.

However, you should be able to get very good captures of the sport using a 70D and the 70-200 you have coming in. The keys are (i) a high enough usable ISO to get your shutter to 1/800 or more, (ii) position with respect to the players, (iii) timing, and (iv) learning the rhythm of the team and players you are shooting.

For (ii), look at the pictures Mark, Phil Z and others have posted to learn the positions they have shot from and the reasons for doing so. There's a good chance you will not be in a gym that provides the same vantage points, but you can use the thought process to find good shooting locations in your gym with your equipment.

For (iii) and (iv), the key is practice. Go to your daughter's practice sessions and shoot a lot. Don't be afraid to use a 2-3 shot burst, although it is not usually very helpful to machine gun things.

Finally, focus on getting the player's face and eyes in the picture with the ball.

Phil's written some good articles on shooting the sport that you can find in this forum.

MSW wrote in post #16446272
chrisnosleep,

Jim is correct I was shooting with the 1DX 70-200mm 2.8 and the 1D MK IV and the 400 2.8. I agree with Jim that you should take a look at Zivnuska's blog there is a ton of valuable information there. I would also look at the threads Jim has put together and study his images. In my opinion these two are are a couple of the best on the forums when it comes to volleyball.

My advice practice and work on your timing. Volleyball is a very difficult sport to shoot, good positioning is important, and you will find it is very easy to shoot late and miss the action. I can count on one hand the number of volleyball games I have shot, but if you study what Phil and Jim are doing and apply their techniques there is no reason you can't get some great images. Again I highly recommend reading Zivnuska's blog post on shooting volleyball.

http://zivnuska.zenfol​io.com/blog

Thank you both for the quick answers. I am digging in to each of these threads trying to soak up as much info as I can. And I will definitely check out his blog.

One more question on this subject. Will I have any luck if I add the Canon 1.4x or 2.0x teleconverter? I have a feeling affording the 300 or 400 f2.8 isn't in my near future, however with my rewards at B&H, I could pick up one of the converters for about $300.

Edit: I do understand from what I've read about losing 1 or 2 stops, but would be more interested in hands on experience with this particular indoor scenario if you guys can help.

I've shot with the 1.4X on my 300 f2.8 some, and posted some of the pictures in this thread: https://photography-on-the.net …/showthread.php​?t=1329126. Note that those were shot at ISO 12,800 to get enough shutter speed.

Generally, I don't use it as it slows down focus tracking; however, I've made it work in situations where the player is not moving very fast, such as shooting serve return or the front row head on. Not so good when the action is moving across your field of view.

Don't waste your money on the 2X for this sport.

The 70-200 will serve you well as you gain experience. It's a really high quality and versatile lens. Shoot for a while and then decide if you want to add to the arsenal. In my case, the first lens added to that was the 135 f2, long before picking up the 300. I absolutely love the 135 for volleyball.