All right.. hugs all around!!

Dan N wrote:
All right.. hugs all around!!

Okay, cool. I'll get my ladder.

Just curious as my daughter is getting into competitive cheer and I am looking to get some experience here as most of what I shoot right now is football & baseball.
1) Is 17 or 24mm at the wide end wide enough for a group shot that would have maybe 15-20 kids?
2) Normally I use Center Point focus but for shots like #3, what focus points to you use? All of them or still center?

Cbrus, you won't be close enough unless your working with the organization hosting the event to worry about wide angles. Also wide angle shots only work if your dead center infront of the judges. A 70-200/2.8 will be your best bet.

AI servo, center focus.

Now I need to go pack, we have 2500 cheerleaders to shoot this weekend..


Edited by luketrot on Mar 28, 2008 at 12:53 PM GMT

Thanks luketrot - luckily I do have a 70-200 2.8 and ya, I won't be working these events..yet! When both of my kids are older I plan to dive more into making money from this. Now, just learning while taking their photos. Are you referring to AI instead of Al Servo? If so, why?

Let's assume at practice that I can get up front & center (which I will be allowed to do) I can use a wide angle. Would I still be at center point focus from that close?

Thanks for responding.

IA Servo..

Cbrus,

Center point will work, but make sure that you are at a small enough aperture to get the entire squad in focus. Also, remember that DOF is 1/3 in front and 2/3 behind the focus point, so if the squad is set up deeper than they are wide, you may have to manually focus somewhere more toward the middle of the group.

AI servo will help to do it quickly, but I would recommend using the "back button" focus technique. Here's why:

You focus on your subject just before they are ready to jump, all the time holding down your focus button. The group jumps, and now they go OVER the focus point you have selected... the camera will immediately focus on the back wall.

If you back button to set up, then get off of the button, (essentially now in Manual Focus), they focus plane will remin as is until you hit the button again, and you should be fine.

It's kind of hard to explain here, I hope I made it clear enough.

They're all good except #3 really.



Well ok #3 is the best of the bunch, but there's a girl in the back row who didn't get quite in synch for the shot! I had to find some way to be different here.

I also dig #4, 6, 10, and 12. Nice series, great punchy shots.

dj dunzie wrote:
there's a girl in the back row who didn't get quite in synch for the shot! I had to find some way to be different here.

Sorry to disappoint ya, but the second person who responded beat ya to it..

Honestly, I didn't even notice it until someone he mentioned it.

People suggested I clone her out, but I can't ... completely unethical in my book. It is what it is.

Dan, I think DJ is referring to the girl just above the star who doesn't quite make it to 180 degrees. Regardless, it's a great shot.

Paul,

You could be right.. I thought he was talking about what I like to refer to as "The Stander"

Heh... Paul's right about what I meant, but tongue firmly in cheek, it's a great shot regardless... although now that you mention the stander, yeah you're right the shot stinks! I kill me...

.. I needed that smile this morning!

Great stuff. Color, sharpness, action are all spot on. Well done.

Dan i jsut wanted to jump in and say that my mouth literally dropped when i saw some of these ... wowzza!

they are phenomenal and you made alot of girls very happy with these shots i am sure