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Carnival snaps - learning the 100-300.

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Louis_Dobson

Louis_Dobson

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It's a huge step changing systems (one reason why I sneer at people who say "if you you don't like X, sell it and buy Y!"), lots of new kit to learn. So I went to one of the smaller carnivals to have a play with moving people and the 100-300. Vert different technique with no C-AF, the occasional brush to keep in rough focus, so that at the vital moment you can mash the button and shoot and focus in one go. Lens was too long, roll on the 75mm f1.8. I've shot this carnival with the D3 before, you can tread on people's children, set fire to their dog, everyone assumes you are part of the organisation and let's you get on. This trip we were in a near continual fight with other spectators, so one quick loop round and we popped off to the bar. That which is good for street photography is less good for event photography.

































--
http://www.flickr.com/photos/acam
http://thegentlemansnapper.blogspot.com
 
Totally serious.

I mean...I was going to mention the poor skin tones in 4/12 and 8/12 but then realised that you can fix these in PP....but unrecoverable blown highlights are far more serious so I thought I'd mention them instead.

:-)

--
kind regards

Nick

http://www.zenfolio.com/nickjdavis
 
Hi Louis,

I fully agree with your comments on the use of the M4/3 system for events. Together with BIF and Sports it’s probably the situation where it’s not the right tool, (yet).

I went this year to the local carnival with the GH-1 + 45-175 and came back with nothing worth while showing.

You did a remarkable job isolating the subjects from the background: at F5, 100-150mm, with M4/3 sensor you have to select the background rather than count on DOF to get rid of it, like one can do at F2.8 with the same equivalent focal length on a FF. The only way is to move around, which is hardly possible if you haven’t got big equipment to have a pro look, or catch the right moment, which is also difficult given the limits of the AF/LVF tracking possibilities in today’s M4/3. Even with the GH-2 which is for the moment the best choice for this sort of exercise.

My go at the Battle of Oranges shown in an earlier thread was in fact an easier job than a classical carnival, there was the risk of being hit but with the advantage of enough elbow room and the action was always going on in a well determined volume of few cubic meters and no background could get in the way. That was with two cameras: GH-1+45/1.8 and GX1+45-175.

The IQ of your images is very good, the subjects are nice, but not being able to shoot a burst of half a dozen captures in less than a second deprived you, I presume, of the opportunity of choosing that particular pose or light or expression which can make 3 great pics out of 300. Not more needed in a slideshow or thread or article.

Thanks for sharing this effort and compliments for the result in such a difficult situation.

Regards, Vittorio
 
great shots as usual Louis - always enjoy your posts !! where the heck dya live - i know on one side is the 'rock' but hesitate to mention the hard place with those latest !!
 
Louis_Dobson said:
It's a huge step changing systems (one reason why I sneer at people who say "if you you don't like X, sell it and buy Y!"), lots of new kit to learn. So I went to one of the smaller carnivals to have a play with moving people and the 100-300.
Click to expand...
Ah yes, a carnival parade is always a challenge to ones skills ;)
Louis_Dobson said:
Vert different technique with no C-AF, the occasional brush to keep in rough focus, so that at the vital moment you can mash the button and shoot and focus in one go.
Click to expand...
Indeed. But don't dismiss the AF-C of the GH2 too quickly. If it works as well as on the GH1 it's definitely usable. Brushing the focus and then shoot quickly works, too, of course. Especially with face recognition. I'm still scanning the 35mm shots I did. Can't yet say if the EOS-3 with AI-Servo and a 100mm f/2 was the better combination. But my shots with the GH1 are already processed and online ;)
Louis_Dobson said:
Lens was too long, roll on the 75mm f1.8.
Click to expand...
That's what I'd have expected. The 45-200 is the perfect lens for that. If it was a stop faster ... Even just a constant f/3.5.
Louis_Dobson said:
I've shot this carnival with the D3 before, you can tread on people's children, set fire to their dog, everyone assumes you are part of the organisation and let's you get on. This trip we were in a near continual fight with other spectators, so one quick loop round and we popped off to the bar. That which is good for street photography is less good for event photography.
Click to expand...
Totally correct.

It helps if you mount a flash :) Highly recommended anyway if you have to shoot against the sun. Dynamic range of the GH1 is barely enough to avoid blown highlights in faces and costumes and the GH2 is in the same ballpark there.

It also helps if you wear an impressive backpack.

--
Everybody loves gadgets, until they try to make them
http://www.flickr.com/photos/thinkfat
http://thinkfat.blogspot.com
 
thinkfat said:
Louis_Dobson said:
It's a huge step changing systems (one reason why I sneer at people who say "if you you don't like X, sell it and buy Y!"), lots of new kit to learn. So I went to one of the smaller carnivals to have a play with moving people and the 100-300.
Click to expand...
Ah yes, a carnival parade is always a challenge to ones skills ;)
thinkfat said:
Vert different technique with no C-AF, the occasional brush to keep in rough focus, so that at the vital moment you can mash the button and shoot and focus in one go.
Click to expand...
Indeed. But don't dismiss the AF-C of the GH2 too quickly. If it works as well as on the GH1 it's definitely usable. Brushing the focus and then shoot quickly works, too, of course. Especially with face recognition. I'm still scanning the 35mm shots I did. Can't yet say if the EOS-3 with AI-Servo and a 100mm f/2 was the better combination. But my shots with the GH1 are already processed and online ;)
thinkfat said:
Lens was too long, roll on the 75mm f1.8.
Click to expand...
That's what I'd have expected. The 45-200 is the perfect lens for that. If it was a stop faster ... Even just a constant f/3.5.
thinkfat said:
I've shot this carnival with the D3 before, you can tread on people's children, set fire to their dog, everyone assumes you are part of the organisation and let's you get on. This trip we were in a near continual fight with other spectators, so one quick loop round and we popped off to the bar. That which is good for street photography is less good for event photography.
Click to expand...
Totally correct.

It helps if you mount a flash :) Highly recommended anyway if you have to shoot against the sun. Dynamic range of the GH1 is barely enough to avoid blown highlights in faces and costumes and the GH2 is in the same ballpark there.
Click to expand...
You need to use lr4 with gh2, blown highlights can be pulled back much better, but it does depend on subject, but you should definately see a massive improvement in hl.
thinkfat said:
It also helps if you wear an impressive backpack.

--
Everybody loves gadgets, until they try to make them
http://www.flickr.com/photos/thinkfat
http://thinkfat.blogspot.com
Click to expand...
 
--
Bob (formerly bobmax)
 
I'd never thought of using my 100-300 on the street. For most situations I think I'd feel a bit constrained, even at 100mm.

--
Cheers,
Edward
http://amphigory.smugmug.com/
 
Nicely done. Desirable though it is, the 100-300 is a little too long at the short end for me. Looking at the information that came with your photos, perhaps the Olympus 40-150 or Panasonic 45-200 would have given a more useful focal range for the situation?

Edit: Oh, and moving between cameras in the same system can be fraught. Moving from the E-510 to the E-30, I had to re-learn how to get optimal exposure (they really are very different at ISO200 upwards).

--
Regards
J

Follow me on Twitter: http://twitter.com/jasonhindleuk
Blog: http://jasonhindle.wordpress.com



Photos: http://www.flickr.com/photos/jason_hindle

Gear in profile
 
Thanks.

maybe I was unlucky with my sample, but I found the 45-200 dire, and passed it on to a friend as a present as soon as I could.

Or maybe I'm a sharpness snob - I've downsized these thanks to DPR's gallery space allocation, but trust me, they are tack sharp. Well done Panny! They've produced some stellar lenses, and this is one of them. Very similar to the 50-200 with 1.4TC.

But yes, too long. 75 f1.8 please - I'm actually in more of a hurry for that than the OM-D.
tinternaut said:
Nicely done. Desirable though it is, the 100-300 is a little too long at the short end for me. Looking at the information that came with your photos, perhaps the Olympus 40-150 or Panasonic 45-200 would have given a more useful focal range for the situation?

Edit: Oh, and moving between cameras in the same system can be fraught. Moving from the E-510 to the E-30, I had to re-learn how to get optimal exposure (they really are very different at ISO200 upwards).

--
Regards
J

Follow me on Twitter: http://twitter.com/jasonhindleuk
Blog: http://jasonhindle.wordpress.com



Photos: http://www.flickr.com/photos/jason_hindle

Gear in profile
Click to expand...
--
http://www.flickr.com/photos/acam
http://thegentlemansnapper.blogspot.com
 
tinternaut said:
Nicely done. Desirable though it is, the 100-300 is a little too long at the short end for me. Looking at the information that came with your photos, perhaps the Olympus 40-150 or Panasonic 45-200 would have given a more useful focal range for the situation?
Click to expand...
Or the Panasonic X 45-175, if you can get a good one. From what I can tell, each of these three lenses has fans and detractors. Each has its own strengths and weaknesses. That, plus sample variation, complicates matters.
tinternaut said:
Edit: Oh, and moving between cameras in the same system can be fraught. Moving from the E-510 to the E-30, I had to re-learn how to get optimal exposure (they really are very different at ISO200 upwards).
Click to expand...
Shoot RAW, expose to the right, adjust in post. Why wouldn't this work with all competent cameras?
tinternaut said:
--
Regards
J

Follow me on Twitter: http://twitter.com/jasonhindleuk
Blog: http://jasonhindle.wordpress.com
Photos: http://www.flickr.com/photos/jason_hindle

Gear in profile
Click to expand...
--
http://fruminousbandersnatch.blogspot.com/
 
It does works, but "exposing to the right" without blowing highlights requires an intimate understanding of your camera.
richarddd said:
tinternaut said:
Nicely done. Desirable though it is, the 100-300 is a little too long at the short end for me. Looking at the information that came with your photos, perhaps the Olympus 40-150 or Panasonic 45-200 would have given a more useful focal range for the situation?
Click to expand...
Or the Panasonic X 45-175, if you can get a good one. From what I can tell, each of these three lenses has fans and detractors. Each has its own strengths and weaknesses. That, plus sample variation, complicates matters.
richarddd said:
Edit: Oh, and moving between cameras in the same system can be fraught. Moving from the E-510 to the E-30, I had to re-learn how to get optimal exposure (they really are very different at ISO200 upwards).
Click to expand...
Shoot RAW, expose to the right, adjust in post. Why wouldn't this work with all competent cameras?
richarddd said:
--
Regards
J

Follow me on Twitter: http://twitter.com/jasonhindleuk
Blog: http://jasonhindle.wordpress.com
Photos: http://www.flickr.com/photos/jason_hindle

Gear in profile
Click to expand...
--
http://fruminousbandersnatch.blogspot.com/
Click to expand...
--
http://www.flickr.com/photos/acam
http://thegentlemansnapper.blogspot.com
 
In all seriousness, I came dressed as a mean old biker, and it kind of worked. I'd have stood no chance otherwise.
Hen3ry said:
...between your knees. it's not the camera, Louis, they recognized you from last year and thought: "Stuff the old goat -- I gave him a good go last yar, this year it's my turn!" Particularly when virtually bare bottoms were on offer. :)

Cheers, geoff
--
Geoffrey Heard
http://pngtimetraveller.blogspot.com/2011/10/return-to-karai-komana_31.html
Click to expand...
--
http://www.flickr.com/photos/acam
http://thegentlemansnapper.blogspot.com
 
Louis_Dobson said:
I've shot this carnival with the D3 before, you can tread on people's children, set fire to their dog, everyone assumes you are part of the organisation and let's you get on. This trip we were in a near continual fight with other spectators, so one quick loop round and we popped off to the bar. That which is good for street photography is less good for event photography.
Click to expand...
Agreed. That is why I shoot with the E-5 for business instead of the E-PL3. As the song goes: R-E-S-P-E-C-T.
 
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