Suggestions for sports photos

Just started taking photos of track and cross country. This race was during a break in a torrential, day long downpour. Just looking for any thoughts or suggestions.

IMAGE LINK: https://troybracker.sm​ugmug.com …2017/n-8KxT69/i-nxp2ttv/A

Hey ... I'm no authority on this kind of shot (and we don't have your EXIF) ... but I think the image you posted would have worked better shot at a wider aperture. The background is distracting and needs blurring out.

Thanks for the input. The photo was shot with a (new to me) Canon 7D, 1/500, f5, ISO 500

DaviSto knows what he's talking about, but on this one I think your aperture is about right to show that whole foreground portion of the field.

I've never shot CC, but in track, with a large field, you generally want to be at least fifty yards from the start, begin shooting for faces and then, as they pass, running form. Starts generally look chaotic.

I assume you are using center point, due to the limbs being cut off. You want to shoot wider, and also not be afraid to move your AF point up to the top half so that you can focus on the upper torso, but still get the feet.

Find spots in the path they take so you can get somewhat in front of them and catch them in lines with each other, those are good shots to take as well (example below). Finally, get some at the finish line where they have the large timers.

I think it's a great shot that captures the moment well. I would have preferred to not have the feet cut off and a little more free space on the right for them to run into.

Thanks for the suggestions, everyone. I was using center focus so will look at moving to the upper half

duckster wrote in post #18560577
Thanks for the suggestions, everyone. I was using center focus so will look at moving to the upper half

The alternative is to shoot more loosely (zoom out) and then crop for composition later. That being said, kids running at 7-9mph isn't going to really tax the upper AF points so those points should be fine.

Here is another shot from the same meet but with a different angle. Suggestions?

IMAGE LINK: https://troybracker.sm​ugmug.com …2017/n-8KxT69/i-RJgwX33/A

I would get down lower more to their head level if possible. Shoot across them rather than down on them. The other suggestion I have is to place yourself, if possible where there aren't parents on the other side, just scenery. I know it's hard because parents mill around everywhere. If you had moved down just about 50' to the right, you would have had pine trees as the background with just the runners, it appears, other than that lone umbrella. This is where the getting down a bit helps, the runners can hide the folks on the sidelines sometimes.

I hated it when my kids ran in those conditions. There is always this one school we go to where it invariably rains during the meet, and there is a turn on a hill. After a couple of races, the grass is nothing but slippery mud, and kid after kid would make the turn and wipe out. Our girl knew to cut that corner really wide, it slowed her down, but not as much as slowing down for the turn or falling down.

Thanks for the input. I was on the uphill side for that shot, so I can see how I could have gotten lower. This is a tough course to find any areas where there are not spectators in the background as it is a large park and quite accessible along the course but I see what you mean.

It is actually a tough sport to really shoot. There are so many people at these events, and rarely is the scenery any good. It just takes time to walk around and pick your spots.

This was the first season that I have shot XC, so now that I have seen the courses once, I might be able to get some better positions next year!

These photos were all shot in Tv mode with a Canon 18-135mm STM lens. I am trying to learn/experiment with Av mode as well but I wanted to make sure to freeze the motion. My other lens is a Canon 70-300mm USM, but I did not have that lens yet during the XC season.

In the first post they are already past you and you are getting mostly back of heads. Lower angles and faces will help create a sense of being there.