Ropin!

[sgriggs2006]

Hello all,
Another sunless, late afternoon gig....
A fun afternoon!
comments always welcome!
cheers,
sue.

[NoKnees]

Nice series... I always feel bad for the poor cow being roped, but it's still fun to watch... Kinda like a car wreck, but less expensive...

Great action in first shot. Nice timing... 2 is good too, rope back and ready, cow at full run... 3rd, impending doom... Rope is in place, but not cinched yet... All great...

[Old Timer]

Boy you caught the drama and action of this sport! That first shot is a real winner in my book. Thanks for sharing these with us.

[sgriggs2006]

Thanks for the comments, but how to do BETTER? I always see Old Timers and NoKnee's posts and think, dang....I just can't seem to get to your level of clarity and composition.....
These should be the original images out of the camera (if I grabbed the correct file) - so nothing has been done. On the final versions, I have had to run them through noise ninja...
Perhaps if I had the ability to pick the times that I wanted to shoot, instead of shooting when the clients can shoot...it would be better?
I am having to shoot on Manual (vs. Shutter or AP priority) so that I can trick the camera into using a smaller aperture to increase the depth of field...THEN, I have to up the exposure compensation (on camera) to compensate for the inherently darker pictures......
Does taht show up in the EXIF data? I can't figure out how to LOOK at anyone's EXIF data when they are posted online..... Can someone clue me in on that?
cheers,
sue.

[NoKnees]

Hey Susan, thanks for the positive comments, but so you know, I look at your shots and think the same thing... I won't even begin to dream that I have the experience or talent as OT and others around here, so it's with a little hesitation that I even think to suggest improvements...

Outside of straightening the horizon lines and a little Ninja work, I wouldn't know what to do. I don't know how you could have achieved better results in those conditions... When you can't pick the time and weather, you are stuck... Hopefully someone else here has some ideas of how you might be able to get more out of the conditions you were given to work with... I don't know, what you tried (and accomplished) sounds right to me... Sure, picking the time of day and hoping for good weather would make it easier, but that's just not always an option......

As for the EXIF... There are various plug-ins available that will let you see the EXIF data of photos through your browser.. Only catch is not all hosting sites preserve the EXIF data.. (yours does fine) Here's a quick list that I picked up from someone else... And I use the free Exif Viewer by Alan Raskin with Firefox myself.. Seems to be pretty reliable..

For Windows only, try Opanda IExif. You'll need to install the main program for Windows first. Then, install the Firefox extension (it relies on the main Windows Explorer program to work):
http://www.opanda.com/en/iexif/download.htm

Personally, I use the free Exif Viewer by Alan Raskin instead.. It's cross platform (works with Windows, Mac, Linux versions of Firefox), and I use it from within Firefox under both Windows and Linux. Here's a link to it:
http://addons.mozilla.org/en-US/firefox/addon/3905

Here's a different EXIF viewer I've used in the past with Firefox that is also cross platform (should work with Firefox on Windows, Linux or Mac operating systems):
http://addons.mozilla.org/en-US/firefox/addon/5673

Opanda's IExif is good. But, it's not a cross platform product (requires Windows).

Your EXIF data shows up just fine:

Camera Make: NIKON CORPORATION
Camera Model: NIKON D90
Image Date: 2009:04:21 07:30:43
Flash Used: No
Focal Length: 135.0mm (35mm equivalent: 202mm)
Exposure Time: 0.0020 s (1/500)
Aperture: f/8.0
ISO equiv: 1250
Exposure Bias: 4.00
White Balance: Auto
Metering Mode: Matrix
Exposure: Manual
Exposure Mode: Manual
Comment: (c)2009 Susan Griggs Photography

[sgriggs2006]

Day two...a little earlier...different horse....just so happens that the same calf ("Nacho Cheese")- MORE DUST....
Better light!!
noknees- thanks for the info on the EXIF stuff...I'm going to look into that!!!
s.

[ciddog91]

Congrats on the POTW....

I love that pic...

Phil

[NoKnees]

Yep, big congrats on the POTW... :thumbsup: Well deserved..

Now I have a craving from some veal.... j/k...

[sgriggs2006]

Thanks for the POTW kudos!! I just noticed, and let out a whoohoo!!
cheers,
sue.

[tuanmark]

Nice shoot