Assessment 1, Activity 7 - Sports Shooting

Sports photography is often faced paced with a lot of action and fast moments to be captured. For this experiment, I have chosen Rugby League to focus on. 

Part 1:
Some of the equipment needed to shoot an NRL game includes:

• a DSLR camera body with relatively low digital noise levels at higher ISO levels
• a fast telephoto lens of 300mm to 600mm that is capable of an aperture of at least f2.8
• a lens mount capable of holding the weight of said telephoto lens
• a monopod for easy and fast transportation (and so it's not in the way)
• spare batteries
• spare memory cards
• lens cloths
• in case of bad weather shooting outdoors - an umbrella, waterproof camera bag and rain cover/casings for camera body and lenses
• ideally a second lens with a shorter focal length for close ups and portrait or feature shots

IMAGE 1: http://www.nrl.com/Portals/NRL/images/35/35774_32_1.jpg

Both the above and below image were found on the official NRL website: www.nrl.com.

Image 1 very successfully captures the excitement and action of the game.The main subject (the player scoring a try) is framed by his opponent and the corner post and is poised in the horizontally in the middle of the frame. His outstretched leg leads the eye to the secondary focus of the image (his opponent) who is not quite as in focus. The depth of field is relatively short so as to distinguish the players from the background but not so blurred that the context is lost.

Some challenges I can see the photographer may have encountered is the bright overhead sunlight. This has caused shadow to fall across the faces and underside of the players, while there is the danger of overexposing the exposed skin, audience and white corner post.

Another challenge is the angle - the players would have been running directly towards the photographer which would make focusing quickly a challenge from that angle. They would also have been quite close at this stage.

Timing would also be crucial - had he waited another half a second, the player would have crashed into the corner post, drawing attention away from the try and more to the flattening of the post.

IMAGE 2: http://www.nrl.com/Portals/NRL/images/35/35792_32_1.jpg

Image 2 I believe is an important one as the game is not only about the impact and action but about the emotion and the sense of team spirit that comes with it all and the photographer has captured this well.

This could not have been easy to capture as there are so many people to fit into the frame and to organise at one time. The photographer has crouched down to a lower angle to get the shot, making the players look bigger and more victorious.

Another challenge is the bright stadium light in the top left of the image over the coach's head. It means a bit of loss of detail to the coach's head and is rather distracting. As it looks to be getting later in the day by this stage, the stadium lighting would have made exposing the player somewhat difficult also.


Part 2:

Image 1: 191mm, ISO 1600, f/10, 1/4000

The light was going fast when I took these pictures towards the end of the day so the ISO was at 1600 which unfortunately meant some digital noise in the images. Shutter speed was fairly fast to accommodate for the fast movement of the ball and the players to freeze the motion. 

Image 2: 300mm, ISO 1600, f/7.1, 1/4000

Advanced Camera Settings - Central Focus Point

For this activity, I experimented with the Central Focus Point on my Canon 550D. This means the camera will focus solely with the central section of the lens.

I used a small owl in good light to take these shots and showed the effects the central focus can have on focusing an image.

IMAGE 1

IMAGE 2

IMAGE 3

IMAGE 4

Findings:
In this experiment, I found that centre focus is much more precise than the automatic selection option. If you were not very careful about where you wanted to place focus in the image, it would focus on the wrong part of the image.

In image 1, I focused on the beak of the owl, depressed the shutter half way, then moved the camera to include more space to the right, while trying to keep my focus on the owl's beak. It worked well and the owl stayed in good focus.

In images 2 and 3 I used a similar technique but from different angles, again to good effect.

In image 4, I wanted to see what would happen if I allowed the camera to focus where it wanted to after I had moved the camera and it focused on the centre of the tree outside the window in the far background, leaving the owl in obscurity.

Understanding Exposure

ISO is the measurement of how sensitive a camera is to light. A higher ISO is used in darker settings to make the camera more responsive to light, while lower settings are used in light conditions. The lower the ISO the better as high ISO numbers lead to a grainier image.

Below is an experiment conducted, one inside and one outside, using varying ISO levels on my Canon 550D.

IMAGE 1: Outside - ISO 100 - shows a clear image free from "digital noise"

IMAGE 2: Outside - ISO 200 - not quite as clear as ISO100, but still an acceptably clear image

IMAGE 3: Outside - ISO 400 - when magnified, image shows signs of graininess

IMAGE 4: Inside - ISO 800 - similar to images 1 - 2 as inside was slightly darker than outside

IMAGE 5: Inside - ISO 1600 - more digital noise beginning to show

IMAGE 6: Inside - ISO 3200 - more noise again. Beginning to see loss of detail when magnified

IMAGE 7: Inside - ISO 6400 - much more loss of detail and evidence of noise than previous images

Findings:
Images shot at a lower ISO proved to be clearer with more detail available on magnification. Image 7 showed graininess and digital noise and altogether a harder image to work with post-production. 

Images 1-2 and image 4 were relatively similar having adapted to the darker scene indoors and captured a clear image while compensating for lack of light by using an ISO of 800.

My Lenses

This is a list of my lenses and their specifications.

Lens 1:
Focal range - 18-55mm, 58mm
Aperture range - 1:3.5-5.6
Macro distance - 25cm
Focal length multiplier - 1.6x
Focal range with FLM conversion - 55 x 1.6 = 88mm
Image Stabiliser: Yes

Lens 2:
Focal range - 70-300mm
Aperture range - 4-5.6
Macro distance - 1.5m
Focal length multiplier - 1.6x
Focal range with FLM conversion - 300 x 1.6 = 480mm
Image Stabiliser: Yes

Lens 3:
Focal range - 50mm
Aperture range - 1:1.8
Macro distance - 0.45m
Focal length multiplier - 1.6x
Focal range with FLM conversion - 50 x 1.6 = 80mm
Image Stabiliser: No

Assessment 1, Activity 6 - Shutter Speed and Motion

The aim of this experiment was to discover the effect shutter speed has on capture of motion. Three techniques were used including a fast shutter speed to freeze motion, a slow shutter speed to blur motion and panning to create a blurred background with the subject in focus.

IMAGE 1: A fast moving subject using a high shutter speed to freeze the motion

Freezing: 80mm, ISO 100, Aperture 4.5, Shutter 1/4000

IMAGE 2: A photo of a moving subject while panning the camera (keeping the subject in focus while moving the camera) to create a blurred background

Panning: 35mm, ISO 100, Aperture 4.5, Shutter 0"4

IMAGE 3: Photo of a moving subject using slow shutter speed to blur the motion

Blurring: 35mm, ISO 400, Aperture 4.5, Shutter 0"3

Findings:
In image 1, I used my 70-300mm telephoto lens to get in close to the action from the fence at the rodeo. I used a shutter speed of 1/4000 to capture the motion as the bull tried to buck its rider. I also used the continuous shooting mode to capture frames very quickly so as not to miss the action taking place. With the shutter this fast, there was no blurring of the movement at all.

In image 2, I photographed a moving bike. On my tripod, I used a relatively slow shutter speed of 0"4 and used the tripod swivel top to move the camera to keep the subject in the middle of the frame while the shutter was open. The background has a nice blurred effect, however the subject is not as in focus as I would have liked. Next time I will try handheld as opposed to the tripod.

In image 3, I rolled a bright candle stick holder across the floor and photographed it from above using a 35mm lens, a tripod and a relatively slow shutter speed of 0"3 seconds. The effect was a movement blur of the orange candle stick while the background remained stationary. The longer the shutter was left open, the more blue was produced. 

Assessment 1: Activity 5 - Effect of Focal Length & Aperture on Depth of Field

This experiment aimed to discover the effect focal length and aperture have on the depth of field in an image. 

The following photos were taken roughly 2 metres from subject (the blue cruiser), on a tripod with the background over 10 metres away.

IMAGE 1: 50mm, ISO 100, f/4, 1/100

IMAGE 2: 50mm, ISO 400, f/8, 1/80

IMAGE 3: 50mm, ISO 800, f/16, 1/50

IMAGE 4: 28mm, ISO 100, f/4.5, 1/80

IMAGE 5: 28mm, ISO 200, F/8, 1/40

IMAGE 6: 28mm, ISO 400, f/16, 1/40

IMAGE 7: 85mm, ISO 200, f/4, 1/125

IMAGE 8: 85mm, ISO 800, f/8, 1/125

IMAGE 9:  85mm, ISO 800, f/16, 1/30

Findings:
The above photos have shown that as the aperture decreased (higher f stop number), the depth of field became larger. More of the background was in focus and there was less emphasis on the subject. With the larger aperture of f/4, the background produced a soft and blurry effect which trained focus to the subject. 

The varying focal lengths also had a large impact on the image. The 50mm fixed lens was cropped in to a medium amount. There was not a wide expanse to either side of the subject. The 28mm lens showed a wide expanse to the sides of the subject and looked oddly distorted and out of proportion. And the 85mm telephoto lens cropped the image in very close, leaving very little in the background and focusing solely on the subject.  

Assessment 1, Activity 4 - Exposure

This exercise aimed to show the effect of altering exposure on an image in different lighting circumstances. 

Task 1 involved shooting an object with a strong back light, an object with a very dark background and a light toned subject.

TASK 1:

IMAGE 1: A subject with a very light background

(50mm, ISO 100, f4.0, 1/500)

Image 1 was taken with the sun in the background of the object and the sky was very bright. Consequently, the side of the pig without sun was very dark (left image). I lightened the image by a third of a stop (+1/3) as seen on the right so as to lighten the shadows but try not to overexpose the sky.

 IMAGE 2: An subject with a very dark background

(50mm, ISO 100, f4.0, 1/80)
Image 2 was taken with dark bushes in the background, making the subject appear much lighter than it's surroundings (left image). I lightened the image by two thirds of a stop (+2/3) to make the background less oppressive. 

IMAGE 3: A light toned subject

(50mm, ISO 100, f4.0, 1/400)
This image was shot in good light, however I lightened the image by two thirds of a stop (+2/3) to brighten it up.


TASK 2:

Task 2 involved experimentation with bracketing. Below are 7 images taken on a tripod of a pavilion which had both shadows (inside the pavilion) and light (on the ground in front and on the roof).

As can be seen in the above images, I varied the photo by several stops of light. Image 1 is far too dark and shadowed, while image 7 is far to overexposed and bright. The ground is so bright it disappears. I think the perfect exposure is at +0.7  (image 5). There is enough light to brighten the shadows in the gazebo but not so much that is makes the ground and roof look blown out.

Assessment 1, Activity 3 - Focal Lengths

This experiment aims to show the difference in background focus when using different focal lengths. 

To conduct this exercise, I used my tripod and three different lenses on my Canon 550D: a 18-55mm lens, a fixed 50mm lens and a 70-300mm telephoto lens.

My subject was positioned roughly 4 metres from his background.

IMAGE 1: 24mm focal length, ISO 100, f/4.0, 1/6sec

IMAGE 2: 50mm focal length, ISO 100, f/4.0, 1/6sec

IMAGE 3: 100mm focal length, ISO 100, f/4.0, 1/8sec

Findings:

This experiment has shown a massive difference in both background and foreground across all three lenses.

In image 1, the subject appears somewhat distorted at a focal length of 24mm. As well as this, the background is still fairly focused and appears to be 3-4 meters away from the subject. There is quite a wide view in the background.

In image 2, using a focal length of 50mm, the subject appears less distorted and more in proportion. The background appears to be a lot closer to the subject and is less focused which draws attention to the subject more than image 1. The range of view is also a lot smaller. Only a portion of the painting on the wall can be seen in the top left corner, while in image 1, the entire framed painting was visible in the image.

Image 3 creates a different image again. The background is even more out of focus than in image 2, appearing to be closer again and the field of view to the sides is much smaller. Together, these two effects help to draw attention almost solely to the subject.

This exercise was an eye-opener for me as I would normally use my 18-55mm lens (used in image 1) for the majority of my shots. However, my 70-300mm telephoto lens (used in image 3) took a much more balanced and proportioned image with a smaller depth of field which was perfect for this scene.

Assessment 1, Activity 2 - White Balance

The purpose of this assessment is to extend familiarity with the DSLR camera and its controls. In particular to develop understanding of white balance and how the settings relate to colour in different ambient light conditions.

Images 1-3 were taken indoors, using a tripod, on aperture priority setting in a naturally well-lit room.

IMAGE 1:  Indoor, WB tungsten, 18-35mm, ISO 100, f/5.6, 0"4sec

IMAGE 2: Indoor, WB daylight, 18-35mm, ISO 100, f/5.6, 0"4sec

IMAGE 3: Indoor, WB auto, 18-35mm, ISO 100, f/5.6, 0"4sec

Images 4-6 were taken outdoors, using a tripod, on aperture priority setting in a naturally well lit area.

IMAGE 4: Outdoors, WB tungsten, 18-35mm, ISO 100, F/5.6, 1/60sec

                                   

IMAGE 5: Outdoors, WB daylight, 18-35mm, ISO 100, F/5.6, 1/60sec

IMAGE 6: Outdoors, WB auto, 18-35mm, ISO 100, F/5.6, 1/60sec

Findings:
The white balance setting "tungsten" (images 1 & 4) tends to make the images both indoors and outdoors look like they have been taken under unnatural lighting. It gives the image a blue tinge and gives them a cooler appearance.

The daylight setting (images 2 & 5) worked very well in capturing the true colours of the image both indoors and outdoors as both were shot in natural light. The images have a warmer hue to them than that of the images captured using tungsten.

The two images captured using the auto white balance setting (images 3 & 6) did not differ greatly from the "daylight" setting, only making minor adjustments. The warm colours, such as the orange of the wood, are slightly deeper, both indoors and outdoors. I also noticed the black appears slightly lighter when shot with auto WB outdoors, however the black appears darker when shot on auto indoors. The whites in the background appear brighter in both.

However, overall I believe the daylight WB setting would be sufficient for both the indoor and outdoor images as the auto setting only made minor adjustments in both cases.