2019-20 Basketball.

[ronlane]

Ron,
I gotta ask, HOW do you use a 70-200 at a basketball game?
For me, your shot #5 would be with a normal or slightly wide lens, not a short tele, a couple feet back of the end line, just to the right of the key.
Or, is there a LOT of space behind the end line? It looks like a nice arena.

I am on the baseline about 3-4 feet from the end line but I typically am out by the 3-point line to shoot. I have been shooting for MaxPreps this year and they want tight shots, and they suggest the 70-200mm, so that is what I am shooting with. I do on occasions use my 300mm with the 5D3 for shots on the other end of the floor, but again, I am looking to fill the frame with the player.

I should try that.
I usually shoot wide, then crop as needed for individual players.
My logic was I can always crop in post, but I can't get something that is not in the frame. But I do loose IQ when I crop.

I find it easier to follow fast sometimes unpredictable action when I shoot a bit wide.

I need to up my skill to shoot tight.​

And probably too many years of shooting the play, rather than individuals. So my brain has been conditioned to shoot the play.

As you said MaxPreps (and parents), wants the individual, rather than the play.
There was a year when I was wondering WHY a parent was shooting a 70-200 on the volleyball court floor. He was right next to the side line. I finally figured out that, he was shooting HIS daughter, and did not care about the play or any of the rest of the team.​

And the final problem, I have to leave room for the editors to crop the pic, as I rarely know the format of the layout where then will put the pic.

One year I shot basketball primarily in vertical format, which seemed natural to me. Then the yearbook editor asked me to shoot in horizontal format. huh Turned out that the layout was all horizontal, and my vertical shots would not crop well into the horizontal layout.
However, when I shoot for the AD, I have freedom in the format, and I can shoot as tight as I want to.​

I understand what you mean. It is taking me some getting used to shoot tight and not get the entire body of a kid. But it is helping me learn and improve my images. There are times that I'd like to shoot some wide shots but they don't sell so I've learned to limit them.

 

[mnmcote]

I use a zoom and a wide lens shooting basketball. I like to fill the frame when I'm hunting a particular athlete, trying to be mindful all the time of how I can edit and crop a finished shot. Many times, I'm just chasing the action... Depends on wether I'm shooting offense or defense too.. When I shoot wide, I like the perspective to appear as if I'm one of the athletes on the court. Sometimes, that takes some creative crop work.. :")

 

[ac12]

Ron,
I gotta ask, HOW do you use a 70-200 at a basketball game?
For me, your shot #5 would be with a normal or slightly wide lens, not a short tele, a couple feet back of the end line, just to the right of the key.
Or, is there a LOT of space behind the end line? It looks like a nice arena.

I am on the baseline about 3-4 feet from the end line but I typically am out by the 3-point line to shoot. I have been shooting for MaxPreps this year and they want tight shots, and they suggest the 70-200mm, so that is what I am shooting with. I do on occasions use my 300mm with the 5D3 for shots on the other end of the floor, but again, I am looking to fill the frame with the player.

I should try that.
I usually shoot wide, then crop as needed for individual players.
My logic was I can always crop in post, but I can't get something that is not in the frame. But I do loose IQ when I crop.

I find it easier to follow fast sometimes unpredictable action when I shoot a bit wide.

I need to up my skill to shoot tight.​

And probably too many years of shooting the play, rather than individuals. So my brain has been conditioned to shoot the play.

As you said MaxPreps (and parents), wants the individual, rather than the play.
There was a year when I was wondering WHY a parent was shooting a 70-200 on the volleyball court floor. He was right next to the side line. I finally figured out that, he was shooting HIS daughter, and did not care about the play or any of the rest of the team.​

And the final problem, I have to leave room for the editors to crop the pic, as I rarely know the format of the layout where then will put the pic.

One year I shot basketball primarily in vertical format, which seemed natural to me. Then the yearbook editor asked me to shoot in horizontal format. huh Turned out that the layout was all horizontal, and my vertical shots would not crop well into the horizontal layout.
However, when I shoot for the AD, I have freedom in the format, and I can shoot as tight as I want to.​

I understand what you mean. It is taking me some getting used to shoot tight and not get the entire body of a kid. But it is helping me learn and improve my images. There are times that I'd like to shoot some wide shots but they don't sell so I've learned to limit them.

Ron,
For MaxPreps, the the shot have to be the "full frame," or can you crop before uploading?
I've done tight images, but almost always by cropping.

 

[ronlane]

Ron,
I gotta ask, HOW do you use a 70-200 at a basketball game?
For me, your shot #5 would be with a normal or slightly wide lens, not a short tele, a couple feet back of the end line, just to the right of the key.
Or, is there a LOT of space behind the end line? It looks like a nice arena.

I am on the baseline about 3-4 feet from the end line but I typically am out by the 3-point line to shoot. I have been shooting for MaxPreps this year and they want tight shots, and they suggest the 70-200mm, so that is what I am shooting with. I do on occasions use my 300mm with the 5D3 for shots on the other end of the floor, but again, I am looking to fill the frame with the player.

I should try that.
I usually shoot wide, then crop as needed for individual players.
My logic was I can always crop in post, but I can't get something that is not in the frame. But I do loose IQ when I crop.

I find it easier to follow fast sometimes unpredictable action when I shoot a bit wide.

I need to up my skill to shoot tight.​

And probably too many years of shooting the play, rather than individuals. So my brain has been conditioned to shoot the play.

As you said MaxPreps (and parents), wants the individual, rather than the play.
There was a year when I was wondering WHY a parent was shooting a 70-200 on the volleyball court floor. He was right next to the side line. I finally figured out that, he was shooting HIS daughter, and did not care about the play or any of the rest of the team.​

And the final problem, I have to leave room for the editors to crop the pic, as I rarely know the format of the layout where then will put the pic.

One year I shot basketball primarily in vertical format, which seemed natural to me. Then the yearbook editor asked me to shoot in horizontal format. huh Turned out that the layout was all horizontal, and my vertical shots would not crop well into the horizontal layout.
However, when I shoot for the AD, I have freedom in the format, and I can shoot as tight as I want to.​

I understand what you mean. It is taking me some getting used to shoot tight and not get the entire body of a kid. But it is helping me learn and improve my images. There are times that I'd like to shoot some wide shots but they don't sell so I've learned to limit them.

Ron,
For MaxPreps, the the shot have to be the "full frame," or can you crop before uploading?
I've done tight images, but almost always by cropping.

MP has a specific crop ratio that they use. They want you to shoot tight and fill the frame. I've just went to cropping all of my images to that ratio because it minimizes the cut for all print size. They want all images to be 3,000 x 2216, so I have set up a crop of 7.22 x 5.33 on LR and PS for it.

 

[ac12]

Ron,
I gotta ask, HOW do you use a 70-200 at a basketball game?
For me, your shot #5 would be with a normal or slightly wide lens, not a short tele, a couple feet back of the end line, just to the right of the key.
Or, is there a LOT of space behind the end line? It looks like a nice arena.

I am on the baseline about 3-4 feet from the end line but I typically am out by the 3-point line to shoot. I have been shooting for MaxPreps this year and they want tight shots, and they suggest the 70-200mm, so that is what I am shooting with. I do on occasions use my 300mm with the 5D3 for shots on the other end of the floor, but again, I am looking to fill the frame with the player.

I should try that.
I usually shoot wide, then crop as needed for individual players.
My logic was I can always crop in post, but I can't get something that is not in the frame. But I do loose IQ when I crop.

I find it easier to follow fast sometimes unpredictable action when I shoot a bit wide.

I need to up my skill to shoot tight.​

And probably too many years of shooting the play, rather than individuals. So my brain has been conditioned to shoot the play.

As you said MaxPreps (and parents), wants the individual, rather than the play.
There was a year when I was wondering WHY a parent was shooting a 70-200 on the volleyball court floor. He was right next to the side line. I finally figured out that, he was shooting HIS daughter, and did not care about the play or any of the rest of the team.​

And the final problem, I have to leave room for the editors to crop the pic, as I rarely know the format of the layout where then will put the pic.

One year I shot basketball primarily in vertical format, which seemed natural to me. Then the yearbook editor asked me to shoot in horizontal format. huh Turned out that the layout was all horizontal, and my vertical shots would not crop well into the horizontal layout.
However, when I shoot for the AD, I have freedom in the format, and I can shoot as tight as I want to.​

I understand what you mean. It is taking me some getting used to shoot tight and not get the entire body of a kid. But it is helping me learn and improve my images. There are times that I'd like to shoot some wide shots but they don't sell so I've learned to limit them.

Ron,
For MaxPreps, the the shot have to be the "full frame," or can you crop before uploading?
I've done tight images, but almost always by cropping.

MP has a specific crop ratio that they use. They want you to shoot tight and fill the frame. I've just went to cropping all of my images to that ratio because it minimizes the cut for all print size. They want all images to be 3,000 x 2216, so I have set up a crop of 7.22 x 5.33 on LR and PS for it.

3 x 2.216 = 6.6MP
That is about 1/4 of a 24MP frame, so doable in a crop.

 

[ronlane]

Honestly, I don't pay attention to how much it is. I just select that crop ratio and move it around to make the best composition and then move on to the next image.

 

[ac12]

Just got back from a BB game.
Shooting TIGHT, get some neat shots, but it was HARD.
The problem that I had was situational awareness for tracking fast moving action. The tighter the zoom, the harder it is to track the fast moving action, especially when another player or the ref gets in the way.
I settled on this method: zoom wide to track, zoom in to do the tight shot, then zoom back out again to track.

The problem with doing that is, the zoom ring has to be EASY to turn.
Constantly working a stiff zoom ring was tiring and made holding the camera more difficult.​

 

[ronlane]

Agreed, it is hard. But I like the challenge.

 

[ronlane]

Tuesday night was my game this week. Not too many more left for me. All but the last one was with the 1Dx and the 70-200mm, the last was with the 5D mk III and the 300mm

 

[ac12]

Agreed, it is hard. But I like the challenge.

OK, I'm impressed.
I am editing some basketball pics shot with the Tamron 35-150 on an APS-C camera. I was able to get farther and tighter shots than I had before, with the shorter lenses. Some of the far court and tighter shots are NEAT, and getting more of the face in the image is cool. Much less cropping required.
Of course, there were a LOT of misses, but the good ones made up for all the misses. Using a new lens and shooting tight, that was expected.

I think the players and parents are going to love some of the pics.
Thanks for the idea of shooting tight.

My other problem was using the unfamiliar Canon T7i.
I could not get consistent exposures, like I do with my Nikon D7200.

Senior game on Friday.
My last basketball game of the season. And it is a quad; JV+Var, boys+girls. 315 to almost 9pm The old man is goina be tired and sore.

 

[ronlane]

Nice @ac12, glad it helped. Yeah, the keeper rate will go down a lot with this method but all I've ever heard was about a 10% keeper rate is good. I can live with that myself.

Hope it goes well for you. I still have 2 home games left on the schedule but not sure if I am going to go or not.

 

[ac12]

Nice @ac12, glad it helped. Yeah, the keeper rate will go down a lot with this method but all I've ever heard was about a 10% keeper rate is good. I can live with that myself.

Hope it goes well for you. I still have 2 home games left on the schedule but not sure if I am going to go or not.

The first 10-15% of the cuts is easy, the goofs: OOF usually focused on the background, ref ran in front of me, another player blocking my subject, arm up can't see the face, my foot, etc.
It's in the middle, when I start organizing by number that I realize most of the varsity shots are of the same 5 or 6 players

If I do it right, this feeds back to the next game, were I TRY to get more shots of the other players. The team is more than just those 6 players.​

Then I have to cull by number, so I don't have 30 shots of one player. How many free throw shots do I need of the same player?

In the end, I'm down to about 20%. I would like to get it down to 10%, but cutting that last 10% is hard.

I have a higher keeper rate for games like soccer, where there are more active players. So the keeper rate goes up just because of the number of players.