Some Skiing Photos

Here are two shots from this weekends NET Telemark Festival at Sunday River. The first is a shot of the Bumps Competition:



This second is a just a cruising shot of a very good skier:



Both are with my Canon S3 IS shooting in a burst mode at full zoom. Shutter speed is 1/640, F4.0, ISO 100, and I had a polarizing filter on.

-dave-

The top photo would be more dramatic were the skier’s outline not lost against that padded post and other things in the background.

Otherwise, I like the first picture’s point of view. Comin’-at-cha action shots always create tension and excitement.

Dramatic posterization (of a natural sort) is nicely demonstrated in the second photo, as the skier is cleanly separated from the background.

The second photo very nicely violates a “rule” of composition. Ordinarily, we would suggest leaving more space to left, so the skier has someplace to “go” into the scene. But in this case, the plume of powder in the skier’s wake adds to the sense of motion, and the sense that the skier is running toward the edge of the frame adds tension – all of which heightens the sense of excitement that an action photo like this is supposed to generate.

Your timing in both photos is solid, as it catches the action at a solid peak in each case.

G.

I can barely see the skiers...can you post bigger photos????

I notice that the skier (and you) are on the downhill side of the orange rope. You guys skiing out of bounds??????????? Say it isn't so.



- darren

I like to see the snow fly, that's why they're so big.

The area was roped off for the competition. We were the only ones allowed in there.

I found shooting this to be rather interesting adventure. I positioned myself to shoot directly uphill at the skiers, that was great for some good shots. I was right next to the first jump, and those shots were less successful, but I still got a few. The shots from behind as they went past were the least interesting.

-dave-

I like the action and the flying snow in both shots. Both are dramatic. The background in the first, bumps photo is a killer, although in action photography it is often forgiven. Looks like you were having great fun.

What follows is not so much a critique of this photo, but more an inquiry on the opinions and expertise of the others in the forum. For my tastes I would prefer that the skier be higher on the bump. Perhaps elevated above it, even if that means losing some of the flying snow. People who watch these events understand what is happening. But to the general public viewing a still photo it might appear that the skier is wiping out. I also tend to prefer an athlete at the high point rather than a lower point in their motion. There are always exceptions to that general rule, and maybe this is such a case. Ignoring the background, I could see that this photo might be very publishable in a skiing publication, but perhaps less so as a newspaper or general publication photo. IIRC Grumpy shoots such events for newspapers, so I would defer to his assessment. I see Grumpy noted that the action in both photos was at a "solid peak". I can accept that some peaks may exist at a relative low point in some sports such as freestyle skiing.

Dave: I like in the first photo how the skiers tips are reflected back in his goggles. That's awesome! Too bad that danged padded pole and orange rope are in the way -- maybe you can airbrush those out???

Here are some others with less of a background issue. Even though he's not completely in the frame I like the second one for conveying action. The last one, while in the air, is a pretty static shot IMO.

Action shooting is a whole new world for me. All the prep work has to be done in advance, you have essentially no time to think while shooting.

-dave-

Dave – Is there a way you can post the photos smaller, so we can see them without having to scroll around the screen?

Distracting background plays into all three of these latest pix, but in at least two cases some cropping can help minimize that problem.

In the first one, crop into a vertical, trimming to the (viewer’s) right of the skier so just a part of the farthest lift chair on the right remains in the scene. Crop to the left so you eliminate the lift tower, but leave in the “gawker.” Crop slightly up into the mogul on the bottom. Also do some tonal adjustments to bring out more detail in the skier, but be careful that in so doing you don’t block up the light areas in the snow.

The second photo begs for tighter cropping, especially to the (viewer’s) left of the skier. (There’s nothing to crop out at the right!) Crop all the way in to almost the highest part of the snow plume kicked up by the ski pole. Then, crop the bottom of the frame to just below the skier’s right foot – just where that ski disappears behind the bump. This will help balance the crop job on top of the subject’s head. Some careful image adjustments to bring out more detail in the skier’s torso area and face makes a huge difference, but be careful that you don’t make it look too manipulated. I really like that puff of fine snow particles in the air behind the skier that forms a sort of halo around him.

Both of these images would have benefited from using a flash to "open up" (lighten) and reveal more detail in the dark shaded areas facing the camera. Flash used this way is a powerful tool for bringing high contrast scenes like these under control.

Try cropping the third image a few different ways to see which best gets rid of the background interference and helps you say what you want to convey with this photo. I tried is as vertical, and a horizontal.

This third one also strikes me as a natural for a couple of different shooting techniques. The first is to go with a very high shutter speed and large lens aperture to soften the focus on background objects.

The second is to use a slow shutter speed and pan with the moving subject. Static elements in the frame then will appear as blurred streaks. The risks of getting a real dud in doing the panned action trick are high, so make sure you have a good conventional shot in the can before trying it. Flash can be combined with the panning technique for different visual effects, too.

Shooting sports action is a lot of fun, and challenging. The easy part is that you don’t need to go looking for subjects! The hard part often is anticipating where (and sometimes what) the action will be, getting locked onto it and shooting at just "the" moment. It pays to know something about the type of action (sport) you are shooting. Today’s good auto-everything camera, lens and flash systems are a boon to action shooters. Imagine what things were like as recently as 15-20 years ago, or maybe even 10!

G.

If you are using Firefox, click on the image and you'll get the bare image, which by default is resized to fit in the browser's viewport.

If you are using some other browser you are on your own ;-)

Tim

Your secound and last image I like the best. The backgrounds in the rest are way to busy. This can be very tough on location to improve much of the time in a sports shoot. If you open up your aperature and "Fuzz Out" the background even if it is busy your foreground (subject) will be what your eye will be drawn too. Be careful of things growing out of the back of peoples head like in the first shot. When shooting sports spare no film or memory. Fire up the motor drive and let it rip...you might be surprised what you get. For movement effect try panning with your subject while shooting. There is always Photoshop but cloning out backgrounds can be tedious.

Better?

I've recropped two of them, as per Grumpy's recommendations and they feel much more active to me.




I shot about 2 Gig at the bumps competition, pretty much just shooting as long as they were skiing. I didn't shoot in Av or Ae mode, I'll experiment more with those next time.

-dave-

Nice Job Dave...especially the secound one! Kudos to Grumpy !!

I do like the action better in these later photos. With the tighter crops the backgrounds also appear less distracting.

I have not photographed downhill skiing, but I often photograph equestrian and whitewater events. I appreciate the difficulty in finding a spot with a decent background. I usually circle the course several times before settling on one spot with a marginally acceptable background.

Looking at (or editing) photos I invariably think about how they would look if cropped to their essentials. In many cases, cropping can markedly improve composition by eliminating or suppressing the superfluous and putting the viewer’s eye where we want it. I do not like being locked into “standard” frame shapes or proportions, such as 4x6, or 4x5 or 5x7 or 11x14, and so on. Sometimes the camera’s format is just right, but then, sometimes a square does it best, sometimes a short and very wide horizontal or tall and very skinny vertical is the right ticket.

Of course, the old advice to “crop in the camera” is excellent. The idea is to visualize the final product and make maximum use of the film or digital sensor dimensions as you shoot. In the “good old days” my SLR cameras were equipped primarily with plain ground glass or etched-grid focusing screens without any distracting focusing aids (split-image or fresnel type). Thus I could focus aross the entire screen AND compose without distraction.

Often these days, the autofocus systems on cameras I use interfere with or inhibit achieving the sought after optimized compositon in the camera. It has to do with how the focusing sensors are placed in the frame. To me, this is a sort of deal with the Devil in which I’ve given up one element of control (precise composition) in exchange for opportunity to stay in the game (with decently focused images).

G.

Crops r good.

I like the crops, Dave. Very effective use of space and presentation of subject.

I've not photographed alpine race skiing, . I've photographed CycloCross bicycle racing, track, etc - those have some of the same elements. But I think skiing's alot more challenging to cover given all the distances, reflective surfaces (i.e. snow) and flying debris.

---Mike

I like the second picture in post #1, agree that the subject need not be to the right of center, looks like great technicals to me.

In post#7, I like the second shot because you've transported me to the scene, so the "issues", such as the orange line through the head of an onlooker, matter not. The lift and the onlookers help to paint the picture.

Incidentally, I like the style of the skiier. He's not pretty and shiny. Instead, his flat, dull helmet and clothes, and the leather work gloves, somehow accentuate the overall feeling I get that this is an expert skiier in total control.

Thanks so much for the help with these. I'm shooting these festivals semi-professionally so I'm very motivated to improve my technique. Here are a few more, comments are most welcome.

This one is another jump photo from essentially the same angle, but the skier is much more active, with the skis at an angle. Still not a very good shot, but it's going to make me concentrate on backgrounds a lot when setting up.



This skier has a much better background then the others, but I prefer it when they're coming right at the camera.


I never would have cropped this one like this, but this is what came out of the camera. I like it, but I never could have done this on purpose.

David I love the third shot most.

I guess, my first advice would be to shoot wide open (F2.8 if you have it on your tele) to blur the background.

Second advice would be to get a video tripod with a turning head and try panning shots which would add even more blur and invoke a sense of motion. For shots where it's impractical to shoot with a tripod I would try a monopod. I shoot a lot of hockey and a monopod goes a long way.

Third advice would be to come closer and not be afraid of wasting a few shots to get a good one. Lot's of times it is not necessary to show the entire skier.

Dave - I like the tighter crops. It does help reduce the distracting background. The jump shot in post 17 is cool. I like the crossed skis.

What are the settings of that shot? You were shooting in a ton of light, but it is surprising that you shot fast enough to stop the sction with no blur but you still have a ton of DOF (the trees in teh background are sharp). The sharp trees are distracting and it would be nice if you could blur them out. What is the max f stop on your camera at that focal length?

Nice stuff.

- darren