Spent a great weekend with the Hammy Family again shooting some Cheer in San Antonio..

Since I have yet to post any of my Cheer shots from the last few shows I did with him, I figured I would share a little.

Here's a very small sampling:

1)



2)



3)



4)



5)



6)



7)



8)



9)



10)



11)



12)





Wide angles were shot from remote MKIIn w/ 12-24mm at 3200 ISO 1/320 @ f/8 while I was shooting my MKIIn w/ old school 80-200 f/2.8 L at 800 ISO 1/400 @ f/2.8

Thanks for looking!

#3 is one of the coolest photos I have ever seen!
Great job on all the rest. The flexibility of those kids is amazing!

#3 ROCKS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! That is one hell of a shot! Why is the girl standing in the background though? 10 is pretty cool too.

Edited by John P Mulgrew on Mar 11, 2008 at 07:17 AM GMT

Grear pictures in genral.
#3 is really cool. Very good timing.
I also like #10

Hey Dan,

These are some awesome shots! and I agree #3 is great! perfect timing!

nice work

Paul.

All are very cool, but 3 really stands out! Great stuff!

Dan,

An overall excellent series of shots.

The wide angle shots are awesome. Great timing. #3 is a home run.

Scott

I agree with everyone else... they are all good, but #3 is simply amazing. I really like #10 as well.

- Britt

My favorite is #3. Great job!!!

#3 for me also. It looks like they are floating in mid air

#3 is simply amazing. What a capture.

#3... about as good as it gets from the WA
#6... nice hand Detrick*
#10... a different from the norm WA mid stage pop pop that I would only expect from a Level 6. Nice!

*Detrick: Any digital atoms coming at the camera other than the face.

Beats the hell out of shooting wheels and planes. Then again, maybe not.

Send wood JPGs to...

wow. #3 is amazing, 10,11,12 are rad as well.

Well I was going to say that #3 just knoced my socks off, but it looks like everyone else beat me to it, so I will just sit here and lurk some more. (grin)

#3 is the bomb... great shot

I have to let you all know that image 13 through 8,725 from Dan are also outstanding - and that doesn't include the night shots from The Alamo or Coyote Ugly!

He did a great job managing both cameras simultaneously - I know of less than a handful that can do it successfully and get the shots timed right with both cameras! (CB and weeezel, you're both included).

Hammy.

@JPMulgrew....# 3 is spectacular...the girl standing in the back is most likely prepping for a tumbling pass.

Ditto on #3 and #10. Best images I have seen for cheerleading.

One thought/question...

As great of a shot as #3 is, a bit of fill light on the front guy's face would have made the image from excellent to excellent+. The trick is to how to do it without sacrificing the safety of the Cheerleaders. I am not suggesting a flash from low angle just wondering about the reflective nature / reality of those blue mats.


PS: As for the girl on the left corner, it is mostly a situation where she may not have that jump nailed.

2 Thumbs up!

Francis.

Regarding #3, the girl at the rear left most likely cannot complete the required skill (toe touch). She wouldn't be preparing for a tumble pass while the entire squad is in the middle of required jumps. These are all-stars, which means this shot is the first, second, or even third of a series of consecutive toe touches. The girl would be standing at the rear too long to be prepping for a tumble pass. Besides, you would never see a solo tumble pass during jump sequences. Those two skills conflict with each other.

If this were high school, there would be a 1/4 or 1/3 point deduction for a missed group skill. However, this is all-stars and the rules vary widely from cheer company to cheer company so it's unknown what kind of penalty, if any, this squad would endure.

This angle also reveals that the strongest jumpers are at the front where roughly the first six rows or so are able to achieve an overextended touch. The cheerleaders at the rear can do only straight horizontal touches. Nothing wrong with either one as both count as executing the required skill. But the judges aren't sitting on the floor at this same angle. The angle from where they are sitting is dominated by the best jumpers at the front, a good way to conceal "average" jumpers.

(No use providing C&C since I agree with most comments)

Indy

Indy... always look forward to reading your responses to cheer posts because I learn more and more about the sport. Everything you said makes sense. Thanks for sharing your knowledge.

#3. Wow. 'Nuff said.

*nods at Paul*

Thanks for all of the positive comments everyone!!

Hammy- Thanks for another fun weekend.. it sucked getting home, but looking at the images on Monday made it worth while. I told you not to say anything about Coyote Ugly!!

Indy - I was wondering about the girl in the back after someone mentioned it.. honestly, I didn't even notice it until then. I looked up some rules, and couldn't find an answer. Thanks for the input.

GIB PIX OF COYOTE UGLY PLZ!!1

Dan,

Nice images. I also agree that #3 is great.

How was the lighting here. It looks pretty well lit. Is that my imagination. I thought I had read no flash was allowed at cheer events. Is that true?

Rich