DH Jump

[BLS439]

Went on a shoot with a buddy today. Here's one of my favorites from the shoot. I still can't believe people are clearing this gap.

Anyway, enjoy and C&C please.

Cheers.
Dave

[desmo13]

Amazing.

Dave, I think it is time for you to go on the World Cup Circuit. need someone to carry your gear?


Tech question, if are into sharing more secrets...How to you get such a crisp rider, and foreground, but motion blur on the background? is this a function of a fisheye lens?

[BLS439]

Thanks! Now that I come back and look at it...feels a bit contrasty to me.

Anyway, I'm always game to share secrets - it's how we learn and gain creativity.

Here's the EXIF:

Exposure: 1/80th @ f4.5
Focal Length: 15mm
ISO: 200
Flash: Did not fire (But, you can see from the picture that they did - damn PW's tricking the system)

I always use spot metering from my camera body. I pick a point in the background that seems pretty neutral (not dark and not blow out). I meter it and drop the exposure about 1 to 2 stops. The flash by the top of the jump was set to "M" mode and 1/8th power if I recall correctly. The flash at the bottom was set to "M" mode and 1/4 or 1/2 power - not too sure about that one.

Between the pop of the flashes, exposure, and panning I'm able to get a crisp rider with the blurred background.

Get home and pop .CR2 file into Lightroom. Play a little with the white balance, sharpening, and curves. Send it over to CS3 for the final touches. USM at 120, 0.7, 1 convert to sRGB, put on my border and watermark, resize for web and bingo - got a winner.

I wish I had set up a third flash though to light his helmet. There's a gnarly shadow that drops across his face from the bottom flash being blocked by his arm. It still works, but I was hoping to at least see the goggle line.



That's about it for me.

[tadrscin]

He's panning the rider. He used a shutter speed of 1/80 and followed the rider with the camera while he shot the pic. I've been practing this lately. I did some at the Ironman race and a bunch at the dirt track last Saturday. You have to experiment with what sutter speeds work with what subjects. My question is what are the 2 bright spots? I was thinking they were flashes going off, but the Exif says no flash was used.

[BLS439]

My question is what are the 2 bright spots? I was thinking they were flashes going off, but the Exif says no flash was used.

When I use Pocket Wizards on my camera to trigger remote flashes, my EXIF always reads that no flashes went off. I'm not exactly sure why, but I think it probably has something to do with the circuit of Canon flashes and Canon bodies.

The upper flash is a Canon 580EX and the lower flash is a Nikon SB-24 (great cheap remote flash).

[tadrscin]

Yeah I saw your answer right after I posted. Flash photography is one of the things I really need to work on. I've been trying to find a good class in Seattle, but so far nothing that doesn't cost an arm and a leg. Do you know of any good books on using flashes that deals with setting up multiple flashes?

[BLS439]

Yeah I saw your answer right after I posted. Flash photography is one of the things I really need to work on. I've been trying to find a good class in Seattle, but so far nothing that doesn't cost an arm and a leg. Do you know of any good books on using flashes that deals with setting up multiple flashes?

No. Honestly, I'm all self taught. For me that's the easiest way for me to learn and retain the information. I get bored in classes and books pretty easily. I suggest you experiment and play with your flashes for a while. I still screw it up all the time and trying new things is how I get creative new lighting I never really would have thought of.

I also steal ideas left and right. I check out MTB magazine, surf, and skate magazines all the time for their photos. I look at what their photogs are doing and then try to build on that idea or use something to my advantage. I don't try to re-create their shots though - big no-no in my book.

[desmo13]

Dave, anything worth going out and shooting this weekend in the bay area? new lens, new flash, looking to get some time in.

[BLS439]

Hmm....I'm not to sure. When it's slow like this I got out to skateparks/bike parks. How far do you want to drive? Isn't there a MX thing at Sand Hill? I love shooting MX....just not much of it down by me.

[tadrscin]

No. Honestly, I'm all self taught. For me that's the easiest way for me to learn and retain the information. I get bored in classes and books pretty easily. I suggest you experiment and play with your flashes for a while. I still screw it up all the time and trying new things is how I get creative new lighting I never really would have thought of.

I also steal ideas left and right. I check out MTB magazine, surf, and skate magazines all the time for their photos. I look at what their photogs are doing and then try to build on that idea or use something to my advantage. I don't try to re-create their shots though - big no-no in my book.

I agree with you about learning by doing. I'd just like to find some good info to start with. I do well with books as long as they have some sort of tutorial that you can do and follow along with. Right now I just have the 430EX, but I'm thinking about getting a 2nd flash and some sort of remote trigger. I've heard that those cheap wireless remotes that you see on ebay like this actually work pretty good. http://tinyurl.com/2fftho and that you can use pretty much any older flash like a Vivitar 285 with them. Do you know anything about that setup. Since this is just a hobby for me, I can't justify buying something like Pocket Wizards right now.

[BLS439]

I've heard good things about those remotes. I love the 430EX - great bang for the buck. I wish I hadn't gotten rid of mine.

Check eBay for older Nikon speedlights(SB-24,25,27,28). I like them better than the Vivitars. Just my personal preference.

There is some flash work information here at photography review. There is also more at www.photography-on-the.net under the lighting/flash forum. I think between the two...there's enough free information/tutorials to help you out. Have you checked out www.strobist.com? They also have some good free information.

[tadrscin]

Thanks for the links. That Strobist site looks it has a lot of good information. I'll take a look at the Nikon flashes too.

[jorgemonkey]

Dave, anything worth going out and shooting this weekend in the bay area? new lens, new flash, looking to get some time in.

If you ever want to go out on a shoot to practice technique for cycling, I live in the Bay Area & would be willing to be a test subject.

[tadrscin]

Well after doing some more research I've gone ahead and ordered the wireless triggers from the site that the Strobist suggested and then bought some inexpensive stands/flash mounts off of ebay. Now all I need is an inexpensive flash and I'm all set. I should end up with a remote 2 flash system for under $200. Just need to go out and start playing with my new toys once I get everything. I really shouldn't be doing this now since it's still prime riding season, but I just got so excited.

[Photo-John]

Do I sense a Bay Area sports gathering brewing? That would be cool. Might be able to tempt me to make the trip for that. Especially if we can do some riding, too! We could all take turns shooting and being the subject :thumbsup:

Dave, I think the photo is a bit contrasty, too. It's not bad. But I think it might look better if it wasn't quite as hard.

I love this gap. I've seen a bunch of guys hit it and I have a few good photos. I've only taken a couple that do the size justice. And I've yet to take one that I really like. Your angle is completely different than any photos I've taken there and I like it a lot. I always shoot looking down the trail, from the opposite side as you. I would really like to see some good video of the whole thing. Because part of what makes the jump so cool is the steep, tiny landing.

I'm psyched about how good your photos are getting!

[BLS439]

John, thanks that means a lot to me.

I would be stoked for a Bay Area sports gathering. I could probably wrangle up some subjects to shoot also. This is guy is a semi-pro rider for Specialized. He asked me to shoot some pics for his sponsor and possibly the '08 catalog.

I re-worked it with a bit less contrast and using LAB for color and I've never really done that before. It looks better to me.

I experimented with the angles. I shot standing next to the take off looking down the trail, on th opposite side that I shot, and then a few from this angle. This was by far the best shot I took out there from all the angles.

I also wish I had used a third flash to try and get the shadow out of his helmet/goggles, but I think the shadow also adds a bit to the photo - I'm torn.