What's your biggest weakness as a Sports Photographer?

Marketing.

^good one, Thats another to add to my list.

canonnoob wrote in post #8884152
I must admit that timing seems to be my biggest fault also... most of the time I will take my eye off the camera for a second to actually watch the play... WHY IS IT THAT ALL OF THOSE TIMES THE BIGGEST PLAY HAPPENS??? URGH... I need to stop doing that.

OMG, i just got back from shooting youth league football and this exact same thig happened to me. not only did i stop to watch the play, i got up and screamed at the ref i was so infuriated. luckily one of the refs was a high school friend and i spoke with him. man sometimes i just get too into it. the downside to being so into the sport your shooting.

I'm going to gently nudge everyone back on topic.

1. What is your biggest weakness?

2. What are you doing to correct it?

um, I like to watch

kauffman v36 wrote in post #8887081
OMG, i just got back from shooting youth league football and this exact same thig happened to me. not only did i stop to watch the play, i got up and screamed at the ref i was so infuriated. luckily one of the refs was a high school friend and i spoke with him. man sometimes i just get too into it. the downside to being so into the sport your shooting.

^^^^^^^
kauffman,
You may want to add talking to the refs and players as something to work on. This is normally a NO NO.

#1 I have things I should work on also and like Danny the biggest one is marketing and making more sales and booking more events. Networking and talking more to parents and subjects possibly distributing promotional products to take to the event aimed at some of the most atheletic participants parents and hope they can help promote sells that way???

#2 And like Dave and others I have also missed some big plays by getting caught up in the action. Most recently shooting V-ball and being new to this sport may attribute to that, I have missed some digs and saves that I should have got but wrote off as the team member was not going to be able to get it or the equipment (lens) was hindering my getting the shot (to close to the acton) for a prime. Use of better placed light and use of zooms getting closer to the action and finding the best locations to shoot from.

#3 Lastly I feel my use of AWB increases my work load in pp. I will start to get my custom WB down in camera more.

Im sure there is more but thats a good start to work on. Most of these item have crept up since starting to shoot V-ball this year and I can see it as needed in the fast approcing B-Ball season.

napier, your absolutely correct but sometimes one just cannot control their emotions. the other team's coaches was telling their players to go after a specific player and make him hurt, and leave the game. later they gave a concussion to another player by helmet to helmet contact. i am trying not to be involved but after shooting the same team for a whole season, u get to know everybody and feel as if you're part of the league.

1. Watching the game instead of shooting. I especially fall victim to this in sports I've shot a lot or after shooting a game for a while. My mind wanders. It doesn't help that I'm a fan at heart.

2. Dropping the camera after peak action. I shot some volleyball, and after every kill I would lower the camera and watch the girls celebrate. I kept thinking "shoot them celebrating the point" but I kept forgetting to.

Definitely taking my eye off the game (either to watch whats going on or to go to edit and send on the laptop) and missing a goal, or a big tackle, or a shot.

Horizons I can straighten, WB I can correct, but if I dont have the big play, then I dont have anything!

Of course, there are those times that it's out of your hands...

Ie. Last tuesday, Bristol City v Plymouth at Bristol (so it's my "local" club and I've shot a lot there over the years)...I move to get Bristol attack in the second half of the game, and choose to sit on one side of the goal thinking "every time they've scored at this end they've run back over towards the bench, so they'll be facing me when they celebrate"...I did have a think about going over to the other side of the goal, but law of averages etc made me choose that spot.

3 goals go in in 7 minutes, and for each goal they went the opposite side of the goal to celebrate...worst thing was, there wasnt a tog that side of the goal, so if I'd sat over there, I would have had the only shots of celebrations.

It's not that I didnt think about it, I went for the Law of Averages, and instead got hit with Murphys Law.

jamesb84 wrote in post #8896862
3 goals go in in 7 minutes, and for each goal they went the opposite side of the goal to celebrate...worst thing was, there wasnt a tog that side of the goal, so if I'd sat over there, I would have had the only shots of celebrations.

+1 it's so annoying.

I spend most of the build up to 1/2 time considering which side to go in the 2nd half lol

My weakness must be self promotion/following up leads/charging proper money for my work.

I'm sure my business could be doing so much better if I had a better business head sometimes.

I want to get my wife more involved in the back end of it all.

I find it easier when covering football(soccer) games as I have little interest in the sport, but with motorsport I've known most of the guys for years, since they were rookies, and I can be swayed from the hard ball money end of the deal, especially on a Saturday night!

I used to have real problems getting event pics up for sale quick enough, but I have a really good workflow with lightroom, and it's made a huge difference in recent years.

Being a single shooter and missing games (loosing money).

I wish I could clone myself, my wife doesn't like that idea though.

I tend to shoot way too many shots, especially shots that are at the other end of the field (soccer) and out of range of my 70-200. I would keep the camera up to my eye and watch the action at the other end of the field and would end up shooting pics while watching (most of which I end up deleting anyway). To correct this I have been trying to get in the habit of lowering the camera during those instances, which has reduced my long-distance trigger finger syndrome and reduced the overall number of pics that I have to cull.

Same as many others.

I find myself watching the game or talking to others and miss some shots (think I might be a little ADD).

When shooting, have started trying to focus more on faces instead of bodies. I think that's helped some.

I also tend to get so focused on play that miss opportunities to capture emotion/etc on sidelines and elsewhere.

Also, don't enjoy flash photography - but have resolved that will have to improve, because the majority of games I shoot are at night in poor lighting.

another problem i have. being a photographer i shoot for what I think is a good shot and ive come to learn that parents have a totally different view of whats good.

Being in shape...no joke. This is what I am working on now, getting fit to carry gear and long walks. Most if not all photogs are not either young or fit.