3" limit at NFL games

jayadeff wrote in post #10808137
I don't get it. Every time someone posts pictures they took at a football game, all I see is a bunch of football players piled on top of each other. They are the most boring pictures I've ever seen. Why would anyone go to a sporting event to see it live, and then spend the entire time with a camera glued to their face? Watch and enjoy the game. What on earth are you going to do with a bunch of boring pictures of football players taken from far away???

I think it's probably because it's a great way to wind down, after the exhilaration of shooting macros of flowers and insects...

.

Flowers and insects ... and dogs, sunsets, kids, birds, landscapes, street scenes, architecture, portraits, sports ...

... what's boring to one person is fascinating to another, and if someone "don't get it" it only speaks of lack of imagination, or self-centeredness.

jayadeff wrote in post #10808137
I don't get it. Every time someone posts pictures they took at a football game, all I see is a bunch of football players piled on top of each other. They are the most boring pictures I've ever seen. Why would anyone go to a sporting event to see it live, and then spend the entire time with a camera glued to their face? Watch and enjoy the game. What on earth are you going to do with a bunch of boring pictures of football players taken from far away???

its fun sometimes. ive gone to practically every home game for college football in the past 6 years. i spent probably 3-4 games last year (especially the early games where you play joke teams) doing a lot of photos. Was it fun? Yeah. Was my gf pissed that I didn't watch with her? Yeah. But I was there in the stands screaming my lungs off for the big games where we won and rushed the field. I ran around with my camera when it didn't matter

Anders Östberg wrote in post #10809572
Flowers and insects ... and dogs, sunsets, kids, birds, landscapes, street scenes, architecture, portraits, sports ...

... what's boring to one person is fascinating to another, and if someone "don't get it" it only speaks of lack of imagination, or self-centeredness.

Great comment! You could take that guys statement and apply it to any type of photography. Here is his same statement in reference to people taking pictures at the zoo.....

I don't get it. Every time someone posts pictures they took at a zoo, all I see is a bunch of animals laying around. They are the most boring pictures I've ever seen. Why would anyone go to a zoo to see live animals, and then spend the entire time with a camera glued to their face? Watch and enjoy the animals. What on earth are you going to do with a bunch of boring pictures of zoo animals taken from far away???

With this kind of thinking, why take pictures of anything, ever?

n1as wrote in post #10767575
When I go to watch an event, I always leave the camera home.

I'm more and more inclined to agree with this sort of thinking. I used to try to take action shots from the stands with a long zoom, but the results are inevitably disappointing and I have to lug my gear around. Now what I do is go to Camden Yards (closest stadium to me) right when the gates open and shoot from behind the dugout. I get some pretty good shots of the visiting team (which is fine because I'm not an O's fan) warming up, taking BP, that sort of thing. When the game starts I just go back to my seat and put the camera away.

For anyone interested, Camden Yards doesn't seem to have any policy against equipment. I've carried in my 70-200 F4 IS several times and nobody has hassled me or tried to measure it.

To The OP;
Now that you complained to management about some people being able to use pro gear. I am sure they will enforce the rule more stricktly and who knows.... maybe ban cameras all together.
Thanks Bro.

jayadeff wrote in post #10808137
I don't get it. Every time someone posts pictures they took at a football game, all I see is a bunch of football players piled on top of each other. They are the most boring pictures I've ever seen. Why would anyone go to a sporting event to see it live, and then spend the entire time with a camera glued to their face? Watch and enjoy the game. What on earth are you going to do with a bunch of boring pictures of football players taken from far away???

you don't have to have your camera glued to your face to get off a couple snaps of the game...it's kinda like asking why do people go to the game, and yet get up during it and go to the concession stands...in the amount of time most people are waiting in line scarfing down hot dogs, i can take a couple pictures...what am i going to do with them?...probably nothing...but who's it really hurting to take the camera?

FlyingPhotog wrote in post #10808172
It's so people can post here and prove they "stuck it to the man..."

umm...so since i'm the only one that has a shot from a game posted here...i'm assuming this is intended towards me...i could really care less about "sticking it to the man"...my shot was done cause i was at the game...basically a random snapshot that i'll probably never look at again...does that mean it's a waste of time to take it...probably yes...but it's just as big of a waste of time as going to the game was in the first place...not everything has to serve a purpose

DreDaze wrote in post #10814083
umm...so since i'm the only one that has a shot from a game posted here...i'm assuming this is intended towards me...i could really care less about "sticking it to the man"...my shot was done cause i was at the game...basically a random snapshot that i'll probably never look at again...does that mean it's a waste of time to take it...probably yes...but it's just as big of a waste of time as going to the game was in the first place...not everything has to serve a purpose

In point of fact, my comment was directed at any and every post we see here that essentially asks the same damn question over and over and over:

"The <Team, Stadium, League> say no cameras allowed so how can I get my camera into the <Stadium, Arena, Club> anyways?

Screw the rules because they apply to everyone else but not to me...

Sorry if you felt singled out. Not my intention.

I don't understand why folk don't just buy something like this:

http://www.canon.com.a​u …al-Cameras/SX210IS-Camera

Small, inconspicuous and has a monster zoom on it

Thank goodness I am in Tampa... the rule for Raymond James Stadium is Cameras – lens/body/filter longer than 12”. Not that anyone would want to take pictures of the buccaneers.

Spacemunkie wrote in post #10815230
I don't understand why folk don't just buy something like this:

http://www.canon.com.a​u …al-Cameras/SX210IS-Camera

Small, inconspicuous and has a monster zoom on it

For all of the same reasons that people use SLRs instead of superzooms under any other condition you can think of. The biggest one that comes to mind is that the shutter lag on those things will pretty much ensure that the only shots you get are the dogpile after the play and not any action. There's also the ability to switch to a 50/1.4 lens to get shots of your friends without using the flash.

It seems stadiums vary in policy. I checked camera policy at my stadium website and it is quite vague/generic. I did not see any mention of a 3" limit at all.

Watching the game at the stadium is definitely a different "experience" than watching on TV. It can be a challenge (I think) to see what kind of shots you can get with your gear (that you can get by security).

Just have fun and shoot away!

krb wrote in post #10816232
The biggest one that comes to mind is that the shutter lag on those things will pretty much ensure that the only shots you get are the dogpile after the play and not any action.

Mate, you're up in the stands taking snapshots. Heinz Kluetmeier will hardly be cacking himself will he?

On occasion I take my SLR and 70-200 or 300mm to a Tiger game. Some of you are saying that a lens that size is rude to people sitting around me. I don't think so. For the 1st 4 inings of the game I have to tolerate people who can't manage to get to the game before it starts so families are constantly blocking my view because they have to get everybody around to their seats then stand in the aisle for 10 mins deciding who goes in the row first, second, etc. Then each inning 47 people around me have to get up after each out and go get hotdogs, beers, chips, nuts, etc.

I'm there to watch the game and take a few pics. My lens bothers nobody, if it does it is way less than everybody around me constantly running to the snack rack. I miss more pictures because of idiots getting up during an inning.