Softball C&C

This was my first time shooting sports with a dSLR (I've taken more than my share of crappy P&S sports shots in the past!), and I'd be most grateful for any C&C. Camera was a 50D, using 70-200 2.8L IS and Sigma 28-70. Photos were cropped/resized, minimal PP done in LR2. Thanks!

1.

very nice

I like 1 and 2.

On the first only major attention to avoid a cut on the left foot.
On the second perhaps a crop more big will be better.

In addition to what's already been posted, I'd plumb the light pole in the second shot and then crop it tighter. Also with the second shot, if you're getting 1/2000th second exposure times at f/4 with depth of focus that goes on for days, I'd think about shooting at f/2.8 to see if I could separate the subject from a background like this with the two uninterested parties looking off away from the action in the background.

I like #3 too!

Regards,
Jeff

#3 for the win! Awesome shot!

Thanks for the feedback so far, greatly appreciated!

#3 was probably my favorite image out of the whole day, even though it may not be a "technically perfect" shot....you can see that it was shot through the chain link fence behind the backstop, and even at f/2.8 I couldn't completely get rid of it.

This shoot gave me a whole new appreciation for those of you who are proficient at sports shooting - it's a fast-paced environment and I missed focus on a number of shots as I tried to simultaneously switch subjects and zoom to get my framing right....got a few "great" pics of blurry fielders and razor-sharp fences in the background! Back-button focus was a huge help - I tried both ways, and liked the versatility of the back button vs. using the shutter button for AF.

Jeff - I definitely had a few issues with tilt, but didn't notice that one until you pointed it out - thanks! Had my share of cut off feet, bats, tilted horizons, etc. as I flailed around trying to catch everything I could. I was surprised by how much DOF I got at f/4, too - I thought it would be fairly shallow even at 70mm, but I wasn't able to isolate like I thought I would. I just punched the numbers into the online DOF calculator and saw how wrong I (obviously!) was.

I want to thank all of you who have posted tips here and in the "Sports Talk" section. I did a search and spent hours before this shoot reading all the threads containing various tips, tricks, lessons and sample photos, and it was a tremendous help.

Here's one more image for consideration:

# 3 is my favorite!

#3 is great.

I guess I can be the bad guy in this situation.

1. cut off left foot, looking at the amount of light it looks like you could have gone with a faster shutter speed to stop the bat and ball.
2. the image needs to be cropped tighter... no excuses... make sure your subject is isolated. thats the whole point.
3. Honestly no point in this shot.. it doesnt really do anything. you dont know if the ball is going down and he swung early, or if he actually hit it. no faces in the shot... also needs to be cropped tighter. not to mention the fencing that interferes with the shot.
4. crop tighter... seems like practice because no one is running to second. not any real action here. but is the nicest out of the group...

also fix your horizons some of them are crooked.

canonnoob wrote in post #8652439
I guess I can be the bad guy in this situation.

1. cut off left foot, looking at the amount of light it looks like you could have gone with a faster shutter speed to stop the bat and ball.
2. the image needs to be cropped tighter... no excuses... make sure your subject is isolated. thats the whole point.
3. Honestly no point in this shot.. it doesnt really do anything. you dont know if the ball is going down and he swung early, or if he actually hit it. no faces in the shot... also needs to be cropped tighter. not to mention the fencing that interferes with the shot.
4. crop tighter... seems like practice because no one is running to second. not any real action here. but is the nicest out of the group...

also fix your horizons some of them are crooked.

I have to agree with Dave's suggestions except for #3.
Of the 4 shots you posted #3 has the best commercial potential. That one image has the capability of being interrupted many different ways simply based on the experience of the person looking at it and their relationship with the sport. Which is why #3 is a winner.

As a general rule of thumb (in my limited experience) a more abstract image like #3 has much more longevity than standard images like #1 and #2.

Overall the shots are a great start. Tighter cropping is necessary on all of them, horizon is easy to fix in LR2 and will come naturally with experience. Do your best to avoid cutting off limbs, especially with a solo subject and although difficult do most of the time try to avoid background clutter like #2 which actually looks to me like the focus was on the fence. #4 is the sharpest out of the bunch but it was shot with your 70-200 so that's what is to be expected. I think if you cropped #4 to show the left arm and his head you would have a winner there too... goes to show that it doesn't matter if you are 5 years old or 45 years old that tongue just won't stay in the mouth when playing sports.

Keep shooting and have fun....

Dave and Scott - thank you for the detailed critiques and advice. I appreciate you taking the time to review the pics and give your thoughts.

Dave, I didn't take it as you being a "bad guy" - your points are helpful and well taken. Improvement only comes from discovering what you did wrong and trying to do it right next time!