Night soccer and flash

I was experimenting (first time out with the ranger) with flash and ambient light Saturday night. The model is the backup goalie for FC Kansas City.

Sunset and flash. Elinchrom Ranger RX at 1/4 power (275ws).

c/c welcome.

Here is my attempt with night soccer. Taken during a varsity game with a Canon 1DX, 400mm, ISO 6400, 1/1000ss, F3.5, Two 580 EXII flashes mounted low on the monopod and set to ETTL using Pocket Wizards to allow 1/1000 shutter speed. It was already past sundown.

I think these are both interesting posts but in both posts, I find the shadows to be very distracting. Would these be even better if they were taken at angle which would eliminate or minimize the shadows?

Curt

#1 and #2 work OK for me, but why are you using flash? I mean, you wouldn't use it during a match, you'd use the floodlights. Just curious?

I use a single Canon speedlight set to HSS for night soccer. Our high school field lighting is just too crappy otherwise. I have never had a complaint about the flash. Are you saying you'd mount some kind of halogens or other high power lights on poles and just leave them there for an entire game? Or you think the field lights are good enough, which for me they are not.

Yes ill like that.

Field lights ought to be sufficient - but may be not for your equipment. It has been my experience that the lower down the pyramid you go, the better your equipment needs to be to handle crappy lights. At Premier League level, it hardly seems important! That said, if the lights were THAT bad I think I'd just stick to daytime games. I have never seen a pitch-side 'soccer' photographer in the UK at the lower levels use flash. It seems an unspoken etiquette not to. I shoot some of the youth games on our 3G training pitch and the lights aren't good, but I'd never use flash.

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Dartford U18 v Bromley

In the first couple of shots f6.3 provides more DoF than you need for sports. I also agree with previous comments about shadows.

Third shot, would've used your 70-200mm instead of the 400mm unless you needed the reach.

In low light conditions I rarely have the shutter past 1/500, boost the ISO, and use the fastest lens I have with the lowest focal length I can get away with.