At the gun range - fast shutter speed help

[mwatson]

Camera Pentax K10D
Exposure 0.001 sec (1/1500)
Aperture f/5.6
Focal Length 113 mm
ISO Speed 200

This was taken while out shooting last month. I just now got around to processing it We were under a cover so I had very little light which made this photo extremely dark. I shot at such a fast exposure because I wanted to get the shells expelling from the pistol.

I went into light room and bumped up the fill light considerably and had to play around with my greens and blues to get them back to semi natural.

We are going back out there (it is about an hour drive to get to this range) in a couple of weeks and I want to try something like this again.

My questions are...
Where should I place my focus on a shot like this?
Should I turn up my ISO to 400 and close my aperture a little more or is this bokeh effect okay?
Will turning up my ISO and closing my aperture negate each other and still cause not enough light to fall on his face?
Finally, this was cropped down significantly, should I have gotten more of his body and head in the photo?

[dlambert]

I've done shots like this and found that a little fill flash can help a lot -- you're shooting from behind with light coming from in front of you (and the subject), so the flash will lighten these shadows a bit. I really like the composition in this photo, though, and the DOF is a little nicer than my examples.

This one is 200 ISO, f/7.1, 1/200 with flash firing.

[Hill Country Hack]

Great timing on you shot!

Your stated intent was to capture the ejecting the shell. Therefore, try a crop with more negative space on the right side of the frame for the shell to fly into while still maintaining the rule of thirds. Also, less of the shooter may be worth a look. Crop to the front of the ear or all the way to the edge of the eye?

It appears there is some shimmer in the tree above the pistol. I'm betting that is the gasses from the pistol. Would it be cooler to highlight better by having a deeper DOF? That may be worth exploring.

A cooler yet more difficult shot would be to freeze the action of the slide in motion with the casing JUST exiting the pistol.

Good luck and post the results!

[autofocus]

My questions are...
Where should I place my focus on a shot like this? I would say on, or near the the hands/gun
Should I turn up my ISO to 400 and close my aperture a little more or is this bokeh effect okay? I like it as is
Will turning up my ISO and closing my aperture negate each other and still cause not enough light to fall on his face? yes, if you do the same amount of increments on both they will offset each other. So one stop increase in ISO will be offset by one full stop of aperture reduction. You will neither gain or lose any exposure differences, however the DOF will be effected
Finally, this was cropped down significantly, should I have gotten more of his body and head in the photo? Once again, I like the current crop. As noted above, use of fill via the flash or a reflector will help as you are basically shooting into the light.

[Doug Sundseth]

Definitely agree with dlambert on the use of flash. The very short duration of the flash will freeze the brass nicely.

DoF is a style issue. I think I'd probably try for sharpness through the subject, but I think that focusing on the shooter's face and picking up the weapon and brass OoF works as well.

I'd very much like to see the target in the frame, though getting the target and the shooter's face at the same time is going to require a much shorter focal length. If you don't have a really wide lens, it probably won't be possible.

[Gulf Coast Girl]

Nice shot! I've been thinking about taking my camera to the range to get some shots like this but I've been trying to figure out how to get the shot. Tripod (obviously) but how do you take the shot? I'm guessing using the timer unless you shoot one handed and can use a remote with the other. I shoot two handed so it would have to be on the timer.

Also how do you setup the focus for the shot? Did you have someone stand in to get focus? I usually shoot alone at the range so not sure how to setup focus

Also, whatcha shootin there? With the exception of the hammer it looks a lot like my Star .45

[mwatson]

Wow, a lot of solid adivce here.

I did not have my external flash and was afraid to use my pop up. Would a pop up work in this situation?

Gulf Coast Girl,

This is not one of my self portraits. I am behind the camera and this is my father. I am not totally positive what you could do in your case. I guess it just depends on what your range allows. As for the self portrait focus issue, I am sure there are many ways to succeed in this but I place a hat on a collapsible stand I have been using to get my focus before I step in front of the camera.

[sk66]

I think you've gotten solid advice so I'll only comment on the placement of focus.

It depends on the purpose of the photo.
As a picture with "shooting at the range" as the subject the shot works very well as is.
If the subject is the individual, then I would prefer to see more of him.
If the subject is the gun (as if for an article) then the focus should be further out.

[zona5101]

Originally Posted by Gulf Coast Girl

I usually shoot alone at the range ...

GCG - you need to find an IDPA match in your area.
International Defensive Pistol Association - Affiliated Club State and Country List

[Gulf Coast Girl]

Originally Posted by zona5101

GCG - you need to find an IDPA match in your area.
International Defensive Pistol Association - Affiliated Club State and Country List

Yep... we have them here and I'm going to start shooting in them likely this year but maybe not until the beginning of next. I have pistols in .40, .45, 9mm and a .357 revolver. I'd like to shoot competition with the 9mm because ammo is cheaper and it's what I tend to put the most of downrange on a regular basis (that and my .40). Problem is the only pistol I currently have in 9mm is my Glock 26 (my carry gun) and while I'm accurate with it, the barrel is just too short to make it a good choice for competition.

My next 2 purchases will be upgrading my carry to a Glock 19 and a Glock 34 for competition. I'd like to get these in the 3rd generation because I absolutely detest the new grip on the 4th generation. They definitely weren't thinking of us ladies with soft hands when they designed them