p.1 #1 · Photographing a friend's daughter in a Paso Fino horse show ... some questions
My good buddy has two young daughters who compete in Paso Fino horse shows and competitions. It's not high speed but more about the gait and elegance of the horses. That's all I know.
I have a R5 and a R6II. I'm thinking R6II for the improved AF and faster FPS.
The only lenses that might even be useful for this that I have are the Canon RF 200-800mm and the Canon EF 70-200mm f/2.8L IS II. Since I don't know but I expect that I won't be close, I'm leaning towards the 200-800mm.
Questions...
1) For AF tracking, animal or people? I want it to find the girls' eyes and focus on that if possible, but I understand the horse will make a larger target.
2) For shutter, mechanical or electronic? I'd love to have the full 40FPS to find the optimal pose as that is what these shows are about. There shouldn't be any distortion for horses and people, right?
3) If all goes well I would love to gift him a 24x36 print of each daughter performing. At 24MP I should be fine with the R6II right? Or am I shooting myself in the foot for leaving the R5 behind?
4) Any other recommendations if you're familiar with this kind of show?
p.1 #2 · Photographing a friend's daughter in a Paso Fino horse show ... some questions
Max_Pain wrote:
My good buddy has two young daughters who compete in Paso Fino horse shows and competitions. It's not high speed but more about the gait and elegance of the horses. That's all I know.
I have a R5 and a R6II. I'm thinking R6II for the improved AF and faster FPS.
The only lenses that might even be useful for this that I have are the Canon RF 200-800mm and the Canon EF 70-200mm f/2.8L IS II. Since I don't know but I expect that I won't be close, I'm leaning towards the 200-800mm.
Questions...
1) For AF tracking, animal or people? I want it to find the girls' eyes and focus on that if possible, but I understand the horse will make a larger target.
2) For shutter, mechanical or electronic? I'd love to have the full 40FPS to find the optimal pose as that is what these shows are about. There shouldn't be any distortion for horses and people, right?
3) If all goes well I would love to gift him a 24x36 print of each daughter performing. At 24MP I should be fine with the R6II right? Or am I shooting myself in the foot for leaving the R5 behind?
4) Any other recommendations if you're familiar with this kind of show?
I have shot a million horse shows and horses over the years dating back to the beginning of DSLR's. The old 5D was even sufficient enough for equestrian jumping so you will be more than fine with either of your bodies. It depends where you are allowed to shoot from but I would bring your 70-200 and either body. If you want it to focus on her face then human face detection will work fine. I would strongly suggest however bringing your 85L as that's what will bring home the money shots compared to anything else you are going to use. At the right distance and right angle (about 30 to parrallel)you can experiment shooting between f1.4-f/2.2 and your 85 shots will stand out best for any wall art. You can mount your 200-800 on your other body if you want to and shoot her near the far end, but the 200 of your 70-200 is usually plenty if you are trying to get the full rider and horse for this type of show. I use a 300 f/2.8 a lot but that's for jumping. If you can, shoot your 85mm from the ground with your LCD pointed up to blur the foreground for the money shots. Good luck.
p.1 #4 · Photographing a friend's daughter in a Paso Fino horse show ... some questions
The 70-200 f2.8 is the holy grail for photographing horses. Unless you are really far away and truly need the reach of the 200-800 I would leave it at home. If you are close enough check out the location where the show will be and see what you'll need. I can't speak about the 85mm as I don't own one, but it would probably be a better second lens on the other body if you don't mind having two setups. Good luck!
