ironbelle wrote in post #4043770
Dennis, I'm shooting a HS football game this Friday and will use my flash. I have a bracket that I used for a red carpet shoot which places the flash off the shoe and next to the camera. Do you think that would be acceptable? Also, I have a monopod and will be using a 70-200mm f.28 so I wanted to know if I should handhold or use the monopod. I can handhold a 70-200mm on my 30D and I am use to the weight of the L series lens.
Belle,
There are several current threads that describe the various HS football flash options, so rather than retyping all this, give the search a go and see what it yields.
Handholding a 70-200 is a personal decision. Heck, I see people with Rebel XT's and kit lenses on monopods on the sidelines (no offense intended to anyone who does this, by the way), so anything is possible. You shouldn't need a monopod for stability, as your shutter speeds should be > 1/(focal length), however if you want to use it to relieve your arms and back, it's up to you.
Personally, I hand hold anything shorter than a 300 just because it's a LOT more flexible to not have a monopod attached to my camera/lens. I know shooters who hand hold a 300, even, but that's a little much for me.
Regarding your flash bracket, while separating flash and lens by a distance is a good way to reduce redeye, the problem with putting the flash on the side is it can create some un-natural looking shadows. The eye is used to seeing shadows cast from above (you know, the big flash in the sky?) but it looks funky to us when the flash goes sideways.
That's why most HS football shooters use flash brackets that either pivot the flash or the camera, to keep the flash above the lens. Some also mount their flash to the monopod, below and in line with the lens.
Hope this answers your questions,
Dennis
Thanks!
