Skateboarding On The Roof | I Hate Orange Safety Nets!!!

MichaelHenson

No longer a newbie, moving up!
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I got out for the first time and messed with some skateboarding shots. It was incredibly bright out and I was afraid I'd feel conspicuous so I left my flash in the car...shouldn't have. Regardless, I got a couple decent shots...It was a close, crowded rooftop with a safety net to save people from flying skateboards that made the bulk of my shots turn out busy and obnoxious. I did my best with processing to minimize the background, get rid of some shadows, and keep the focus on the skater.

Anyway, let me know what you think. The background kills some of the shots I'm afraid but I'm open to feedback and whatnot.





 
if i could like this more than once i would. i don't see much here to criticize. it is near impeccable.
 
Sweet! I was very disappointed with my set as I got home and started working through them...Fortunately, by doing a fair amount of cropping and some dodging/burning and B&W conversions I was able to get some that I'm not displeased with.

Thanks for the positive feedback!
 
As a skateboarder, and a photographer, I'll offer you some critique. It's important to give some idea of what they are skating on. Also it's better to shoot them from the front if you can. Back up a bit, or use a wider lens to show more of the scene
 
As a skateboarder, and a photographer, I'll offer you some critique. It's important to give some idea of what they are skating on. Also it's better to shoot them from the front if you can. Back up a bit, or use a wider lens to show more of the scene

Yeah, I understand this. I had a 17-50 that was plenty wide. Unfortunately, my sight lines were fairly limited and the background was prohibitively distracting so I felt the need to crop in close to keep the focus on the skater...Not the best venue for a legit skate shoot unfortunately...

Thanks for the feedback! I'm definitely going to keep this in mind when I have a bit more control over the circumstances.
 
yeah, I understand these events can limit your options for shooting. If skate photography is something you'd want to do more of, I'd google Atiba Jefferson's skate photos, he's one of the best in the biz and would give you an idea of how to approach it.
 
Cool. I'll check him out! It is something I'd like to do more of...thanks for the tips, critique and info!
 
As a skateboarder, and a photographer, I'll offer you some critique. It's important to give some idea of what they are skating on. Also it's better to shoot them from the front if you can. Back up a bit, or use a wider lens to show more of the scene


Exactly. The setting is often more important than the trick. A kick flip off a curb is boring but one over a huge gap is impressive.
 
As a skateboarder, and a photographer, I'll offer you some critique. It's important to give some idea of what they are skating on. Also it's better to shoot them from the front if you can. Back up a bit, or use a wider lens to show more of the scene


Exactly. The setting is often more important than the trick. A kick flip off a curb is boring but one over a huge gap is impressive.

Yeah, I get it. I have the original files at home and may be able to include more of the take off/landing points but I'm afraid it's likely to result in weird crops...like super thin portrait shots in order to keep the background madness to a minimum.
 
As a skateboarder, and a photographer, I'll offer you some critique. It's important to give some idea of what they are skating on. Also it's better to shoot them from the front if you can. Back up a bit, or use a wider lens to show more of the scene


Exactly. The setting is often more important than the trick. A kick flip off a curb is boring but one over a huge gap is impressive.

Yeah, I get it. I have the original files at home and may be able to include more of the take off/landing points but I'm afraid it's likely to result in weird crops...like super thin portrait shots in order to keep the background madness to a minimum.

It's hard for folks who never done it to understand. I rode BMX for many years so I have the insight.
 
So, would a tall, skinny portrait that shows more of the take off/landing be preferable to the style of cropping I have here?
 
So, would a tall, skinny portrait that shows more of the take off/landing be preferable to the style of cropping I have here?

yes.

So, is it safe to say that, with action photography of this sort (BMX, skateboarding, etc.), that the trick is the primary subject while the person performing the trick is a secondary subject?
 
So, would a tall, skinny portrait that shows more of the take off/landing be preferable to the style of cropping I have here?

yes.

So, is it safe to say that, with action photography of this sort (BMX, skateboarding, etc.), that the trick is the primary subject while the person performing the trick is a secondary subject?

The setting is important. For example, same trick different setting.

Boring
http://lucashaff.files.wordpress.com/2014/05/mason-skateboard.jpg

Exciting
http://www.thesurfchannel.com/newwa.../2013/10/ryan_sheckler_Skate_Streetstyle_.jpg

The setting adds to the degree of difficulty.
 
No, the person is the primary subject. Obviously it's important to show what trick they are doing, but it's also important to show the whole scene to give a frame of reference as to what's going on. Like I said, look through some professional skate photographers work on google
 

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