The CSUF Titans were victorious over the Delaware Blue Hens in a 5 set match at Titan Gym.

First event with 4 Whitelightning X1600s mounted in the ceiling.

Images shot with MK1 and MK2, 70-200, 300 2.8 IS

C&C welcomed and appreciated.

#1

great shots.

Whats up with photographers listening to music while shooting, that has become an epidemic lol What happened to being in the moment while shooting, sights, sounds etc..

msauk +1 for headphone comment (Maybe it's like the Olympians getting in the zone or maybe it's just a way of breaking up the bordom on dull assignments.)

Bryan-

Great shots. The extra lighting really seems to help. In a few shots (esp #3) it is a bit on the harsh side, but I don't know what you can do about that.

Great emotion in #12 just wish the background was less bland/distracting.

#5 and #6 are the best of the bunch for me.

#5 has great intensity in the two blockers eyes, shame the other blocker wasn't there for balance. Also great emotion/context in the back row.

#6 the lighting here is less distracting than in #3 and the context of the opposing team gives a sense of place and competition.

Thanks for sharing,

Nick

msauk wrote:
great shots.

Whats up with photographers listening to music while shooting, that has become an epidemic lol What happened to being in the moment while shooting, sights, sounds etc..


Matt,
Thanks for the feedback. Actually Michael isn't listening to music. He's on call 24/7 with the state .... so he never knows when the Govanator may call.........

Shot the Tourney final tonight which the Titans lost to the Pepperdine Waves. I'm having no luck shooting from the floor. I'll have to work on that.

#13

NickMatheson wrote:
msauk +1 for headphone comment (Maybe it's like the Olympians getting in the zone or maybe it's just a way of breaking up the bordom on dull assignments.)

Bryan-

Great shots. The extra lighting really seems to help. In a few shots (esp #3) it is a bit on the harsh side, but I don't know what you can do about that.

Great emotion in #12 just wish the background was less bland/distracting.

#5 and #6 are the best of the bunch for me.

#5 has great intensity in the two blockers eyes, shame the other blocker wasn't there for balance. Also great emotion/context in the back row.

#6 the lighting here is less distracting than in #3 and the context of the opposing team gives a sense of place and competition.

Thanks for sharing,

Nick

Nick,
Thanks for the feedback. I discovered a problem with the amount of light from one end of the court to the other. Thus the inconsistent exposure. We set the lights up to only light the court itself to increase the fall-off. Hope to get it straighted out before basketball starts. The ambient there is 1600 F2.8 1/250th- 1/320th.

Good stuff Bryan.

Being up in the ceiling I take it those are direct fired and not bounced?

The fall-off is great, really helps with the backgrounds.

Nice to be able to drop to ISO 200 from an ambient of 1600 heh?

Are they your lights, or some deal with the school?

Do you get to leave them there permanently, or do you have to setup before each game?

Thanks,

Scott

Bryan,

Some nice shots here, too many to single out. I agree that the variable light makes for varying success with exposure, but I'm sure these are much better than they would be without the strobes. 3 and 6 are cool shots, and I'm thinking I'd like #3 even more if you could somehow tone down the level of foreground exposure--they don't need the bright light to stand out, and a more subtle blending of the near/in-focus with the far/out-of-focus would be stellar. I'm trying to work up the nerve to give vball a try at the U of Utah. I've got access, now I just need gumption .



Edited by Russ Isabella on Sep 03, 2008 at 07:26 PM GMT

S_Dreslinski wrote:
Good stuff Bryan.

Being up in the ceiling I take it those are direct fired and not bounced?

The fall-off is great, really helps with the backgrounds.

Nice to be able to drop to ISO 200 from an ambient of 1600 heh?

Are they your lights, or some deal with the school?

Do you get to leave them there permanently, or do you have to setup before each game?

Thanks,

Scott




Scott,
The lights will stay up for the year. Last season we set them up each game.

If we drew a few more fans the fall-off would not be so important.

Bryan

Looks like all that work pays off, BC-- these are sweet! I like the foreground/background juxtaposition you got going on in some of the shots, and some really nice popping with the dark bg. 16 and 17 are cool, but 18 and 20 are easily my favorites-- love the symmetry.

Good yob, mate.

Russ Isabella wrote:
Bryan,

Some nice shots here, too many to single out. I agree that the variable light makes for varying success with exposure, but I'm sure these are much better than they would be without the strobes. 3 and 6 are cool shots, and I'm thinking I'd like #3 even more if you could somehow tone down the level of foreground exposure--they don't need the bright light to stand out, and a more subtle blending of the near/in-focus with the far/out-of-focus would be stellar. I'm trying to work up the never to give vball a try at the U of Utah. I've got access, now I just need gumption .

Thanks Russ,
I will work on stopping down to bring the opponent into focus. September 10th I'll have another chance when UCLA visits.

This is a very nice use of strobes and a great example how to isolate your subject and to freeze motion using light instead of shutter speed.

I understand fully what you mean by having to hide empty stands as women's volleyball here may draw 100 epople or so spattered throughtout the stand. The use of the light here to hide the emptyness is very well done.

Thanks for taking the time to post them.

Ron

bryanlc wrote:
Russ Isabella wrote:
Bryan,

Some nice shots here, too many to single out. I agree that the variable light makes for varying success with exposure, but I'm sure these are much better than they would be without the strobes. 3 and 6 are cool shots, and I'm thinking I'd like #3 even more if you could somehow tone down the level of foreground exposure--they don't need the bright light to stand out, and a more subtle blending of the near/in-focus with the far/out-of-focus would be stellar. I'm trying to work up the never to give vball a try at the U of Utah. I've got access, now I just need gumption .

Thanks Russ,
I will work on stopping down to bring the opponent into focus. September 10th I'll have another chance when UCLA visits.

Hey Bry, I think I didn't explain myself well. I like the DOF exactly as you have it. What I suggested was that you PP to tone down the exposure of the foreground to slightly reduce that lighting contrast between near and far. I'll bet it'd look cool in B&W as well.

Russ Isabella wrote:
bryanlc wrote:
Russ Isabella wrote:
Bryan,

Some nice shots here, too many to single out. I agree that the variable light makes for varying success with exposure, but I'm sure these are much better than they would be without the strobes. 3 and 6 are cool shots, and I'm thinking I'd like #3 even more if you could somehow tone down the level of foreground exposure--they don't need the bright light to stand out, and a more subtle blending of the near/in-focus with the far/out-of-focus would be stellar. I'm trying to work up the never to give vball a try at the U of Utah. I've got access, now I just need gumption .

Thanks Russ,
I will work on stopping down to bring the opponent into focus. September 10th I'll have another chance when UCLA visits.

Hey Bry, I think I didn't explain myself well. I like the DOF exactly as you have it. What I suggested was that you PP to tone down the exposure of the foreground to slightly reduce that lighting contrast between near and far. I'll bet it'd look cool in B&W as well.


You've just proven what the " Little lady " tells me every day....... I never listen

exposure still needs work.......

Greetings Bryan!
Niiiiiiice!! I take it these were shot with WL? How were the lights positioned? Hight etc? The light is really nice, great vball shots. I will be strobing HS vball this year and your tips would give me a nice head start.
Thanks!!
Lee

Lee,
Will you be bouncing or direct ? Will the lights stay up for the whole season ?

Yes, Yes, No. I will be shooting several different schools. Could be as many as seven. A few have low ceilings but most have huge warehouse ceilings. I'm switching to strobe as most are poorly lit and have suffered many years of available (or should I say unavailable) light.
Lee

grenadier2002 wrote:
Yes, Yes, No. I will be shooting several different schools. Could be as many as seven. A few have low ceilings but most have huge warehouse ceilings. I'm switching to strobe as most are poorly lit and have suffered many years of available (or should I say unavailable) light.
Lee
Last season I shot low bounce, high bounce ( Lights close to the ceiling) and direct. I prefer direct but you need the lights to be out of the line of sight. Often you will get complaints from fans even though the players are unaware of the strobes. There have been some people here who got amazing results with bounce.... I was hit and miss. Much depends on the ceiling in the gym.

Great shots, nice light--#9 in the first set is my favorite--eyes, hands, and ball. Great combo for me to try for this season. In CT high school, flashes are prohibited, much to the photographers' frustration, as several gyms and field houses were designed with the sleep-deprived in mind. By the way, has Elena Delladonna started playing vball yet? Our UConn Huskies will be missing her this winter.

Bry... these look great and the second set is even better than the first. Great use of lighting. I saw the Foo shot on SS Fun Pix.

these shots are awesome Bryan. I was on the opposite side of Michael shooting my 300mm. I was going to post some of my pics, but after seeing these..... I'm embarrassed.......

next time I see you guys out there, I'll probably be peeking over your shoulder.

Love the shots! as stated above, the lightning is exceptional! Nice to see something from back home while I'm off at college =]

bryan,

Are these editorial, for wire or online? Portfolio? Here are my assessments of each photo.

1-No go. It's okay stock, maybe for media guide, but I pass. Btw, and this applies to all photos, your copyright logo tends to draw unwanted attention.
2-No go. Good emotion, but this type of shot is dime a dozen. Boring, ball not frozen. There is no reference to the floor so I can't tell if this was a standing serve, jump serve or jump float. The tight cropping renders this as blah.
3-No go. Not sure what's happening here. Either 1) They're about to start a new game, or 2) team in the background won a point, team in foreground does the quick regroup huddle.
4-Interesting but average. The lack of an opponent in the frame detracts from the action. For later reference, no one knows who hit the ball, other than #23 made a solo block (although #19 gets a block assist). Ball not frozen, but for this type of net action, the defenders are in focus. Never let the attacker(s) be in focus from the back.
5-No go, nothing happening.
6-Ditto #3 except you reversed in-focus subjects.
7-Fun pic.
8-Action is good, but neither defender or attacker is in focus. The net and ball are in focus, which ruins the rule I say where from this perspective the person (defender or attacker) facing the net should be in focus.
9-No go. Just going for an unusual perspective, right?
10-No go. Dime a dozen. Stock or media guide at best.
11-Nice editorial shot. I like this one.
12-Set point? I would like to see full body shots on all subjects. A wider shot here would be better.
13-No go. Stock or media guide.
14-Nice shot, but ball not frozen. I like this because all the experts will argue whether this was a block or not.
15-Not bad. Good editorial shot.
16-Good shot. I like this. The middle, right side and setter and all focused on where they think the serve will go. Strong editorial shot.
17-Average. Outside is about to win a point on a kill attempt. A setter blocking an outside usually loses one-on-one.
18-Great shot! Why? All three blockers have their eyes open. You don't see that too often but Pepperdine always has great tall blockers. They're always one of the tallest D1 teams in the country. The ball not frozen can be forgiven on this one.
19-Standard serve receive, average at best though you get a few points for shooting through the net unobstructed. Ball not frozen.
20-Attacker tips over the block. How do you know? The ball is frozen. The ball would be blurred if it was struck at 40-55mph. I like this one.

Volleyball these days has become a game of specialties. Kids train to become setters, hitters, or defenders. The best action shots are those where the DS or libero are digging kill attempts. It takes knowledge of the game to know when to capture those types of shots. Jump serves are near the top, as are top notch outside/right sides and middles on the attack taken from upper level looking down at net position.

Otherwise, all other types of action shots are average at best. Volleyball does have its rules, like all other sports. The ball has to be frozen before a shot can be considered compelling. And based on how the game is played, the most difficult type of shot to obtain where you can get the subject and frozen ball in focus is that of a libero or DS getting her hands on a 55mph kill shot. If you have intimate knowledge of the game, you can set yourself up to capture a handful of these shots in a match, but there is considerable luck involved too.

Rather than expand in several other areas, I'll stop here.

Overall, you have a few keepers, bryan.

Indy

indyjones wrote:
bryan,

Are these editorial, for wire or online? Portfolio? Here are my assessments of each photo.

1-No go. It's okay stock, maybe for media guide, but I pass. Btw, and this applies to all photos, your copyright logo tends to draw unwanted attention.
2-No go. Good emotion, but this type of shot is dime a dozen. Boring, ball not frozen. There is no reference to the floor so I can't tell if this was a standing serve, jump serve or jump float. The tight cropping renders this as blah.
3-No go. Not sure what's happening here. Either 1) They're about to start a new game, or 2) team in the background won a point, team in foreground does the quick regroup huddle.
4-Interesting but average. The lack of an opponent in the frame detracts from the action. For later reference, no one knows who hit the ball, other than #23 made a solo block (although #19 gets a block assist). Ball not frozen, but for this type of net action, the defenders are in focus. Never let the attacker(s) be in focus from the back.
5-No go, nothing happening.
6-Ditto #3 except you reversed in-focus subjects.
7-Fun pic.
8-Action is good, but neither defender or attacker is in focus. The net and ball are in focus, which ruins the rule I say where from this perspective the person (defender or attacker) facing the net should be in focus.
9-No go. Just going for an unusual perspective, right?
10-No go. Dime a dozen. Stock or media guide at best.
11-Nice editorial shot. I like this one.
12-Set point? I would like to see full body shots on all subjects. A wider shot here would be better.
13-No go. Stock or media guide.
14-Nice shot, but ball not frozen. I like this because all the experts will argue whether this was a block or not.
15-Not bad. Good editorial shot.
16-Good shot. I like this. The middle, right side and setter and all focused on where they think the serve will go. Strong editorial shot.
17-Average. Outside is about to win a point on a kill attempt. A setter blocking an outside usually loses one-on-one.
18-Great shot! Why? All three blockers have their eyes open. You don't see that too often but Pepperdine always has great tall blockers. They're always one of the tallest D1 teams in the country. The ball not frozen can be forgiven on this one.
19-Standard serve receive, average at best though you get a few points for shooting through the net unobstructed. Ball not frozen.
20-Attacker tips over the block. How do you know? The ball is frozen. The ball would be blurred if it was struck at 40-55mph. I like this one.

Volleyball these days has become a game of specialties. Kids train to become setters, hitters, or defenders. The best action shots are those where the DS or libero are digging kill attempts. It takes knowledge of the game to know when to capture those types of shots. Jump serves are near the top, as are top notch outside/right sides and middles on the attack taken from upper level looking down at net position.

Otherwise, all other types of action shots are average at best. Volleyball does have its rules, like all other sports. The ball has to be frozen before a shot can be considered compelling. And based on how the game is played, the most difficult type of shot to obtain where you can get the subject and frozen ball in focus is that of a libero or DS getting her hands on a 55mph kill shot. If you have intimate knowledge of the game, you can set yourself up to capture a handful of these shots in a match, but there is considerable luck involved too.

Rather than expand in several other areas, I'll stop here.

Overall, you have a few keepers, bryan.

Indy

Indy,
First of all I want to thank you for taking the time to critique each individual image. I would like to see more of that here and should try to do it myself for others.

My goal is twofold, some editorial and some portfolio. What if anything can I do to improve ball freeze. The team shooter has 11K in strobes and his aren't freezing the ball consistently.

What is the DS and the libero ?

Thanks,

Bryan