Tourney Soccer

[Jim Bryant]

Had to shoot a sports feature CLO photo (cutline only, no story) of the Kitsap Kickoff 2009 soccer tourney. Rained pretty much of the early morning hours, but didn't during the game......thank god However, I did get a wet butt sitting on the grass to the right of the goalie. I shot these sitting down with my 400mm f2.8 or 300mm f2.8 lenses. Sometimes...well, most of the time for me, it's better to shoot at a lower angle than standing, besides, it's more comfortable as well. My wife says I have a job like George Jettson. "I sit on my ass and press a button!"

[leonaashlee]

Wow, those are great action shots. Nice work.

[fstopMike]

Well you might sit on your ass and push a button, but there's something to knowing which button to push and exactly when, so there's a reason they pay you to do it as these shots show!

[private]

I love the third one - the guy looks like he is afraid of the ball...

[Jim Bryant]

How true! There was this soccer mom there with a kit camera and lens (i believe a 70-200mm something to 5.6 nikon lens) complaining that her camera didn't follow focus very well and wanted to know why. It was hard to be to explain that there was a big difference in the pro gear I was using and her kit camera, but I tried to be as gentle as I could. Just told her that the consumer type camera she had would only do so much and shooting fast action sports wasn't one of them as her camera couldn't follow focus fast enough, but she could anticipate when the action would occur and to press the shutter button before the action happened and hope to capture at least some of it. You know..get the ball in the frame and in focus. Hell......even with my gear I have to press the shutter before the action. It's a sixth sense that you learn when shooting sports.

[WVCoalMiner]

Great shots Jim, I always look forward to your posts as I know I will be amazed at your work!

[Jim Bryant]

You know sometimes I amaze myself too! You want to know what the secret is? "70% being there, 25% having the right equipment and 5% dumb luck."

[corry]

those are great shots.......I guess i'm one of those soccer mom's with not pro gear LOL but i have gotten a few great shots and i LOVE the facial expressions on the kids most of all......someday I'd love a real sports lens to try capturing my son in action.

[Jim Bryant]

All you have to have is a required knowledge of the sport you're shooting and the timing as to when to press the shutter. The equipment really doesn't matter, but it helps.

[WVCoalMiner]

Originally Posted by corry

.someday I'd love a real sports lens to try capturing my son in action.

You know you can RENT lenses off of the internet to try out and use for special occasions. MUCH cheaper than buying one. Just google "DSLR lens rental"