Category Archives: Photography

A New Sports Photography Website

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I just created a new website exclusively for my sports photography. You can view it here.

My opportunities and experience in sports photography have taken me to places I never dreamed. It is a blast to face the challenge of “recording” the game with my camera. I always say that every game tells a story and we photographers have the privilege and honor of capturing the game’s story with our camera. I am a huge sports fan and always have been my entire life. I guess I came by it innocently enough. You see, my dad played Semi-Pro Football back in the days when this level of play was the stepping stone to the pros. I’ve been watching football games probably since I was inside my mother’s womb! I still enjoy seeing a game in Philadelphia or wherever some 45 years later! I also played sports most of my life and still enjoy playing as opportunities present themselves.

I also coached sports for over nine years. I may be getting back into coach a little bit in the near future, but my years of coaching experience have paid off huge dividends when I am behind the camera. For example, when I am photographing a baseball game and a runner gets on first base, I can often predict where the action might next take place depending on the number of outs, the count on the batter, the score of the game, who is pitching, and who is at the plate. Certainly there are many variables here but my coaching experience surely helps me anticipate where I should point my camera.

My interest in sports photography began slowly some years ago when I was attending one of the baseball instructional clinics that my son was attending. Like many dads, I had my camcorder with me. But I also have training in communication with a Journalism degree from Temple University, so I took my interest to a higher level. It just so happened that I had recently received an iPod as a gift. My new goal was to use the camcorder to record the instruction and then edit it to put on my iPod. My reasoning was that players and parents could use the instruction throughout the year even after the clinic was over. I thought this might of interest to the coaches as well. That project didn’t turn out completely as I hoped, but it definitely laid the groundwork for what was about to happen in the coming months. God is so good to us if we just pay attention and follow!

Some months went by and then my son made it onto a tournament baseball team. The Lehigh Valley Baseball Academy was starting to grow and add more teams and they hired me as their sports photographer. Around the same time I also started photographing the Pleasant Valley Baseball team. These opportunities helped me gain some experience and try some new things out.

Check out my new website, look at the photos, and let me know what you think. I’d love to hear your feedback. And if you know of anyone looking for a sports photographer for their team or event, please pass my website and contact information along to them.

Thanks!

-Bob

50mm f/1.4 Nikon Lens Just Arrived!

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I only had to wait two days for my new Nikon Lens to arrive from B&H Photo. I love ordering from them!

The UPS driver delivered my package late this afternoon and I immediately opened the outer box to find the familiar Nikon lens box. This lens is small and compact and I couldn’t wait to try it out. I’ve been reading David Ziser’s book, “Captured By the Light” where he talks about using this lens in detail at weddings. Inspired by his book and knowing that I have a wedding to shoot this coming Saturday, I attached the 50mm lens to my Nikon D70. I plan on using this older camera as my second camera at the wedding so I figured it made sense to try my new lens on this body first.

Well, let me tell you, I was not disappointed! This little baby is sharp and has an attractive bokeh even at f/2.0. My fast lenses had been my Nikon 70-200mm f/2.8 and my Nikon 24-70mm f/2.8. I was eager to try this f/1.4 lens so I started walking about the house and making some photos. Here are a few that I took for you to see. I really like this lens, but what do you think?

Blackberry Phone

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Well, it was time to upgrade my cell phone and I bit the bullet and got a Blackberry. Overall, I am very pleased with it. It replaced both my old cell phone and PDA into one very nice small tool. There is a learning curve, but I am doing fine and I do like electronic toys!

The camera is boasts 3.2 megapixels. This surprised me because the very first digital camera I used was exactly 3.0 mp. However, I don’t think I will use the Blackberry camera very often. Having the Nikon D300 has spoiled me big time. I guess it will be nice to have a camera with me all the time but I would sooner have the Nikon camera to take any serious photography.

Do any of you photographers use a cell phone camera? If so, when do you find yourself using it?

Using a Monopod

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Most photographers know the importance of using a tripod to steady their camera on a photo shoot. And many photographers have also heard about or have even seen monopods, but I wonder how many photographers actually use them?

I find a monopod to be especially useful for sporting events like baseball or football. The monopod steadies the camera and with two feet you can create a tripod of sorts. I like to kneel when shooting sports to get lower angles, so using my knees and the monopod creates my self-made tripod. It works well.

I like the monopod beacasue I can easily swing my camera into several positions just by turning it over the monopod–it’s like a swivel. I can easily focus on the batter at the plate but then swing the camera to catch the base runner trying to steal second base.

If you haven’t tried a monpod yet, I encourage you to do so. It is lighter than a tripod but works very well in some specific situations.

Learning Photography from Other Disciplines

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Yesterday I mentioned that we can learn more about photography from lots of places. One of these places is from other disciplines such as videography. Take for example the movies. Tonight I watched part of an old black and white movie entitled, “One Foot in Heaven.” The movie is about a Methodist pastor and his family who moved several times to different churches in his ministry. The storyline was intriguing to me, but I also enjoyed the images and how the video cameras helped to tell the story.

Watch an old movie sometime and see if you can get some ideas for composition in your own photography. We can learn from other disciplines and it can be fun!

Getting Better

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Are you completely satisfied with the photographs coming out of your camera on every shoot? If you are, then don’t read this blog entry.

Some of us photographers are very good at composition, knowing our camera inside and out, and are even completely knowledgeable about the main subject we shoot. But what about the changing lighting conditions? Or what about when shadows appear unexpectedly? And what happens when you shoot a subject that you don’t know a lot about?

It seems to me that all of us can learn something more about getting better in photography. There is just so much to learn.

So, where do we start? The internet certainly has a lot of information available to us and we should utilize it. But learning from other photographers is probably hands down, the best way we can learn. Attending a workshop or signing up for an in-the-field seminar is highly recommended and will yield great results.

There are plenty of other ways for us to learn how to get better in our photography–reading books, subscribing to magazines, reviewing your own photos, etc.

But in the end, the only way to get better is to admit you don’t know it all and have a strong desire to want to get better!

Don’t Wait – Reformat that flash card now!

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I am a procrastinator and this gets me into trouble in a variety of ways. And as a photographer it does not pay to be a procrastinator.

Take, for example, the simple task of uploading photos from a flash card to a computer. This is a simple step and only takes a few minutes, so why wait to do it? As soon as you get back from a photo shoot it makes sense to start this process. Then, once the photos have been transferred and backed up, reformat that flash card. Don’t wait!

Here’s the danger. Let’s suppose that you have an unexpected photo opportunity early one morning that came from out of the blue. You didn’t know it was coming and your flash cards are full. Did you back up the photos on these cards? Is it okay to reformat these cards or are there important photographs on them that need to be transferred? See the problem? If you had just transferred the photos right after the last shoot and reformatted the cards you wouldn’t be facing this annoying dilemma.

So don’t wait. Process your photos, back them up, and reformat your flash cards as soon as possible. One day you’ll be glad you did!

Keepers

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Here’s a question: Do you keep just your keepers from each photo shoot or do you keep all of your photos?

Photographers have all sorts of strategies in keeping, distributing, and storing photographs. Some only keep their keepers and delete everything else from a shoot. Others, like me, tend to be more like pack rats and keep everything. What is your method?

Here’s the thing, in my opinion. Software seems to get better each and every year. So what might seem like a rather mundane photo today might be editable in the foreseeable future. Besides, I believe that even my non-keepers and really bad photos allow me to learn from them. Seeing them beside my keepers also has a way of keeping me humble!

I do not think there is a right or wrong way in this discussion, but we photographers certainly have opinions. So what is your opinion? Keep just the keepers or keep them all?

Old Fashioned Drawing Diagrams Can Help

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I am a computer geek and prefer using the computer for just about everything possible. In fact, I’m not sure what I would do without a computer!

However, I still know the value of good old pen and paper. Drawing diagrams can help in planning a photo shoot. Where is the main light? Should you add a fill light and where should it be placed? How about your subject–where is it in relation to everything else? What about the camera–should it be at a low angle?

Admittedly, this is quite difficult when photographing wildlife, but just about every photo subject can be better photographed with advanced planning. I certainly am no artist, but diagrams definitely help me in the planning stages of a shoot. These diagrams allow me to think ahead and do some planning before I even get to the location.

I find these diagrams very useful. Give it a try. Before you go to you next photo shoot take some time to draw up a diagram or two and see if they help.

Gone Fishing!

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I took some time off this afternoon to go fishing. My son wanted me to take his friend and him fishing. It was cold and very windy–not ideal fishing conditions to be sure! But we had a good time anyway! James, my son, had a very nice bass on his hook and had reeled it all the way in to the shore. He was just about to land the bass, but it shook its head one more time, flopped a few times, and swam successfully away. I also had a pickerel on my line and was reeling it in when it also got away.

Okay. Now I’m back in the warmth of our house and thinking about photography. By the way, if you go fishing, take your camera along. You never know when you might catch a lunker! And these days where it’s common to catch and release, photos can be taken home to show your family and friends. However, the danger of this method is that it keeps those fish stories honest!

What do you do to relax? Hobbies and recreational activities make great photographic opportunities. The next time you engage in a hobby be sure to take your camera along with you!