Volleyball player

[txtinman]

I'm a beginner at this, so help me take better pictures at my daughters volleball games.

Nikon D50, Nikkor 35-70 F2.8, 1/400, No flash - Shot in RAW and processed in Gimp on Linux.

[MattSoave]

First of all, I like the way you set up the volleyball nets on the right side converging into the middle of the picture. In fact, the net seems to complement (by symmetry) the girl hitting the ball. I also like how the ball is slightly motion-blurred. Next time, I might suggest taking this further; leave your shutter open even longer to get even more motion so that the viewer gets a sense of the action.

My next suggestion would be to try some other angles. It might not be possible depending on the venue and everything, but maybe try getting low to the ground or close to the net to get a new perspective. For example, taking a shot looking up at the player would make her seem giant and powerful.

My only complaint would be that the background is a little too focused, which kind of distracts me. It's probably not possible with the zoom setting you're at, but if you could shorten the depth of field, it would blur the background a little more, drawing more attention to the action in the front.

[txtinman]

Thanks for the coments. I'll try some of the suggestions. The lighting in the playing arena has me shooting wide open to catch as much action as I can, but to be honest, I haven't tried anything except 2.8. I'll give it a try at the next event. I am limited to just a few places I can shoot from, but I'll give the differen angles a try. The action is so fast, I often just point and hope I get what I think is happening.