Archived posting to the Leica Users Group, 2003/08/07
[Author Prev] [Author Next] [Thread Prev] [Thread Next] [Author Index] [Topic Index] [Home] [Search]frank theriault asked: > Hi, Ted, > > Since you mention sports photographs, let me ask you, in most cases are you > taking a few frames of an event, trying to capture the perfect moment? Or are > you simply following the action with your camera with your motor drive pounding > out as many frames per second as possible? > > It seems that most sports PJ's are doing the latter, figuring that in a 10 > second 100 meter dash, they'll have at least one keeper (or more importantly, > one to publish) out of 80 shots taken in that race. If that's the way one > photographs a sports event, then shutter lag isn't really an issue, is it? > > If you really are aiming at the "ultimate peak" in action, I wonder if you're in > the minority among sports photographers. > > Or am I completely wrong here?<<<<< Hi Frank, I'm in the minority, as I follow along and as the peak is beginning to happen I shoot one frame when it does! And if necessary I follow along letting the motor pick up the aftermath of whatever happens. Motor drives, as much an asset as they are for sports, can also be the worse thing invented for shooting them. Many of the younger lads and lasses rely on the machine gun effect of letting the motor rip off 8-10 frames a second, sounds cool, but a hell of a waste of film. What happens in far more cases than not, the motor actually misses the "peak moment" while changing frames. Yes even at 8-10 frames a sec! If one is a practiced sports shooter you know the sport and the moment where best action usually happens, therefore you're prepared and follow the athlete leading up to where it should happen, if it looks good, "click!" Then the motor can be used to follow through with the post action if any. However, that still doesn't mean one squeezes off an AK47 burst of frames, a total waste of film, period! I use the motor as a quick advancing of my re-actions to the action and each one of those exposures are one frame at a time or my finger tip twitching at what I'm motivated by and not blasting away. Old guys like me shot sports with 4X5 Speed Graphic's or Graflex's one sheet at a time long before motor drives were thought of, so it helps having that experience of good reflects to the action of the happening. In many cases I believe sports photographers' must have equal or better re-action to athletes' action than the athletes themselves. I know lots of people think all we do is stand on the sidelines and blast away with motor drives and it's a piece of cake shooting sports. Can't any idiot with an all auto everything camera do it? I suppose some shoot like that, but I like to point out, " I use Leica manual focus cameras with a motordrive for rapidly advancing the film at "my discretion to the action I'm re-acting to." And not wildly blasting away wasting a ton of film! Response is usually, "Oh! That must be hard then." ted - -- To unsubscribe, see http://mejac.palo-alto.ca.us/leica-users/unsub.html