First Set of Paintball Shots - Through the Net and not an optimal Setup..

I said what I'm looking for critique on and that's PP..other people in this section have no issue with that request..but I'm not sure what I'm supposed to get out of "use different angles" and "you should be getting better results out of your setup" when I already addressed both. I'm taking to heart the critiques that I find relevant..I'm not being defensive really either, I'm just asking people to please read before they post..sometimes it's hard to read a message how it was intended over the internet without tone and emphasizing.

i'm curious as to why you couldn't change the angle? i dont mean that in a judgmental way. just genuinely curious.

SnapShot Photos wrote in post #11022321
Mostly looking for critique on the PP and shooting style/timing.

I guess you should be more specific when you say "shooting style." That's a very broad term to me.

I'm not necessarily saying you should get better results from your set-up, but don't use it as an excuse.

These are essentially photo-journalism style shots. I realize that they are specifically Paintball photographs, which is a genre that has it's own status quo when it comes to images. The idea of photojournalism is capture the subject as it is, without too much manipulation, which is more or less what you've done.

You said very little about what PP you had done, if you want C&C on it, tell us in depth what you've done. These shots don't need much PP, which is why everybody critiqued other elements. Unless you are going to be doing major compositing, or changing the background through photoshop, it doesn't really matter what you do with the PP. The content matters.

The reason people post about your angles and getting results is because most of your images aren't worth post-producing, and you need to accept this, move on, and make better images. You will be a stronger photographer for it.

I wasn't using the setup as an excuse, that was directed to whoever said "You should be getting better results out of a 30D and 70-200" as the first post says I was using a school set up..if it helps more I wasn't allowed to take the setting off of auto, which is unfortunate. I've already learned quite a bit about angles in the past and I know my style from video, I guess this thread was pointless for the people that don't play/understand paintball, but the posts from people that do were a big help.

what do you mean you weren't allowed to take the setting off of auto?

SnapShot Photos wrote in post #11028866
I wasn't using the setup as an excuse, that was directed to whoever said "You should be getting better results out of a 30D and 70-200" as the first post says I was using a school set up..if it helps more I wasn't allowed to take the setting off of auto, which is unfortunate. I've already learned quite a bit about angles in the past and I know my style from video, I guess this thread was pointless for the people that don't play/understand paintball, but the posts from people that do were a big help.

I don't play/understand paintball, but TomCross's images are exactly what I said you could have done with your stock lens.

what exactly is that?

mltn wrote in post #11023409
There is a little too much depth of field in most of these pictures, and all of them but the pan-blur shot are more or less the same picture. I would be more interested in a shot from behind the guy, so you can see his perspective on the battlefield, which would be a shot where deep DOF would come in handy, which stock lenses are good at.

That being said I am a fan of the pan-blur shot, to me it's the most successful. It has the kind of action I would expect to see in a Paintball picture, and it shows a little more of the battlefield, to give it more context.

I won't quote Tom's images, you know where to find them.

just for future reference, this style of paintball isn't really associated with war or battle, we just call it a field, but I'll definitely keep it in mind to include more than just the subject in the scene in general shots. thanks

I'll keep that in mind. You're welcome.

AmandaMarie wrote in post #11028817
i'm curious as to why you couldn't change the angle? i dont mean that in a judgmental way. just genuinely curious.

He wasn't inside the net that surrounds the field, which limits how close you can get to the action, especially with a shorter lens.

okay well since no one is giving me information i'll just let you continue on in your bliss.

I'm a fellow paintballer who has played since 1999 and in the NPPL Super 7. As a paintballer and a photographer, I like the style and the overall post processing. The high contrast and punch of colors demonstrate what a paintballer sees with his goggles on. The post processing really brings out the paint in each photo, that's what I appreciate because that's technically (equipment wise) what paintball is about, the paint.

As a photographer and knowing about paintball, I feel that paintball is about tension and 2 opposing forces (teams) or individual players. The photos lack that and I don't blame you because of the restrictions on your shooting style. What makes great paintball photos are shots of action and battles. Like I said earlier, demonstrate the heat of the battle. Don't worry about it for now but keep that in mind once you get a better chance.

I've shot through netting and it's no fun. Try to sneak yourself into the arena next time and be sure to post again.

AmandaMarie wrote in post #11028817
i'm curious as to why you couldn't change the angle? i dont mean that in a judgmental way. just genuinely curious.

The field is a rectangle sort of like a tennis court except there's a 20 foot thick black net wrapped around it so spectators don't get shot while watching. Photographers are usually allowed on the field and they use a lens filter and a raincover to protect their equipment from getting shot and paint. I think in his case he didn't want to go onto the field because it was the schools equipment. He was limited to what he could shoo because of that and the only shot you can get through the net is from the side. If he shot from any other angle the netting would have just turned into a black backdrop.
I hope this answers your question.

As a side note, thanks for the kind words on my shots. I took those the first week I had my camera and didn't know how to set custom white balance and didn't know exactly how av worked. I like using the kit lens because I'm not afraid to get shot with it - it's cheap enough to replace. I think in my situation it works out because I'm getting s different perspective than the other photographers with the famous 70-200s.

I'd be interested in shooting with you sometime Mike- Itd be beneficial for me and I can learn a lot. I live in central Florida and I went to paintball world sports complex once to shoot a practice. No one seemed interested in the outcome of my photos (until tonight) so I decided not to shoot paintball anymore. But now is prime time because world cup is in a few weeks and I'm a bit more experienced with my camera.

Thanks again.

sorry amanda, I swear your posts weren't showing up before..very confusing..but they said it right..in this case the netting was only on one side