Hi Guys.
Well I'm gonna drop an Atom Bomb & I really do hope it starts a s*** show!
I have been a photographer for over 40 years!
I've been through the "deving films under a cover in the bath" to meet deadlines! yawwwn!!
"Shooting" an image of a warm up, after asking a player to remove the track suit top so it looked like it was a playing shirt just in case, because, I had only 20 mins to shoot at a game then to get back, (4 mls) to dev & print images to roller wire down to London.
Onto Didgi, oh, forgot to say, I've now had to invest in new cameras at £7,000 + per camera!! + lap top? +mobile?, (didn't work half the time) to compete.
Things where ticking on nicely, I upgraded to Nikon D2h's, images where getting used all's tickety-boo until a new camera's introduced..... Nikon D3, ok all the staffers got them free but I carried on with my D2hs, I was covering a Yorkshire sport paper for Sheff Weds, Hudd's Town etc. Suddenly I found I was being told my images where " just a little bit hot on night games".
Invested in D3's & by then D3s's!, another kidney investment.
That Yorkshire Post paper folded & so I embarked on a line of Freelance sports agencies which was brilliant, (cos I was good, lol), however again Tech moves on & again I had to upgrade to newer models of cameras to compete.
To cut a long story short I cannot & will not continue to play catch up with modern gear, hence my retirement! its not because I'm a worse photographer, it's because any Tom, Dick ,or Harry can now with the funds capture publishable pictures with the modern gear & do so sometimes for nothing but cudos.
I realise that times have changed & that is why I've dropped out of the race but to poo poo someone that respects the essence of what sports photography was all about, ( ie capturing the moment) is totally disrespectful!
If anyone doesn't believe me I'll lay down a challenge! I'll take on any "modern" sports snapper to cover a game with me on 35mm film camera, 1 film, (35 frames) on a manual camera & lens, (135mm) for charity loser pays £100! Regards Graham.
I would love to take you up on that! Not to prove a point, but to learn from watching you prove your point. Please believe me, I've little doubt that you would do so. Also, please believe me that I'd learn from you. I'd match your setup. 135mm is a real sweet spot for me, and I keep a Takumar with adaptor as part of my digital kit.
I was a passionate cricketer for decades, and now that passion finds expression in my photography. I'll pass on my experiences so far as a keen amateur with reasonable and modern gear (A Fujifilm XT-5 with Fujinon as well as vintage glass)
Firstly, the only cricket photography I've had a chance to play with was at a test match in Lord's this summer. To anyone who is interested, here is what I found:
Firstly, anything above 200mm of glass is considered "professional" by the ground authorities and is not allowed without advance permission. Check your ticket before leaving home.
Secondly, a test match ticket means you don't have much range during play. The ground staff like to keep people in their seats in their allotted section of the grandstands.
Thirdly, be aware of the ambient light. Floodlights were in use during the day, and I probably should have kept a closer eye on white balance. I was in an upper stand and quite close to one.
Fourthly, the ground staff don't realise that an APS-C with a 200mm lens is actually 300mm equivalent. Yay!
Fifthly, yes, you can crop if you have 40Mp or higher. You probably can with 20 too, but being new to digital I've never tried.
But now to the reason I searched for experienced views on this topic. I was just dipping my toes this summer. I plan to travel from here in France and to possibly catch a few county matches next season. In the main, because I'm hoping for more freedom to roam, and (with advance notice), to be allowed to take in some longer glass and multiple bodies without being cornered and asked for credentials. But - and here's the rub: the other thing I want to do is to be a bit more expansive, and possibly to bring my SINAR along for some large format work.
However... I have my doubts as to the viability of that approach. My concerns are that if, for example, I am to try to broaden my reach and take a nice elevated shot using my tilts to maybe select for foreground and background fine focus, will the mid-ground lose focus? The cricketers will provide natural focal points, but I worry that the type of focal plane I'll be laying down might omit some swathes of the area between the foreground and the background. It is something which is easy to cater for in broader landscapes, but perhaps that approach won't work for the different sweep of a cricket sward.
Has anyone tried large format in the context of cricket? Obviously, I'm not speaking of action shots, but of establishing shots/wider angle/vibes stuff.
