Archive for the ‘Photos’ Category
Knowing Your Subject
Michael Burgess of the Daytona Cubs (Scott Jontes)
I was recently asked as to how I was able to get this shot Michael Burgess of the Daytona Cubs hitting a home run during a recent game. To tell the truth I usually do not try to get shots like this because normally when you shoot these kind of shots you can not see the players face. To get a shot like this all you need to know is your subject and the sport that you are shooting. I try to pay attention to a players tendencies and I also pay attention to the situation in the game. The players all come of out of the batters box a certain way or like in the picture below the way they throw their bat. This can all lead to some pretty inserting shots.
Jae-Hoon Ha of the Daytona Cubs (Scott Jontes)
As I had also said, knowing the situation in the game helps a great deal when shooting. In the photo below I knew that their was going to be a play at the plate. One thing I paid attention to, as I assumed this was going to happen, was the third base coach waving the player home. I also paid attention that their was a runner in scoring position and that he would probably try to score if their was a base hit before the play had even started.
Mario Mercedes of the Daytona Cubs (Scott Jontes)
By having familiarity with the game, the sport and the people in it, I am able to capture action photos much easier when I am shooting. These are just a few things that I try to look for when I am shooting baseball and any other sport
Scott
Daytona Cubs All Stars Program Cover Shoot
All Stars L-R Matt Cerda, Evan Crawford, Michael Brenly, Justin Bour, Aaron Kurcz, Frank Batista
As the team photographer for the Daytona Cubs, one of my jobs is to photograph the covers for the programs that are given to all the fans as they enter the games. The cover shots are anything from action shots to planned photo shoots. For this particular cover the Daytona Cubs media director Robbie Aaron called me up and said that he wanted to do a cover that would highlight the six Daytona Cubs all stars. He asked if I had any ideas for the shoot and if we could shoot it that afternoon before the game. I talked over some ideas with one of my photographer friends and came up with the idea to do a relaxed shoot. The idea was to make it look like a self portrait by balancing the camera on the bat.
I knew that this shot would present a small challenge with making it look both appealing and also including six subjects in the shot. I decided to use sylights.com to help with the layout of the shoot. It is a great tool for laying out your photo shoots and coming up with new ideas before you even arrive on location. I ended up using a fisheye lens for the shot which may not be the ideal portrait lens, but I knew that it would give me the flexibility to shoot this shot plus give me the look I was trying to achieve. I had planned two other positions and poses but with one of the players being delayed for the shoot I had only time for a few shots before they had to be ready for the game. This happens a lot with shoots, where you may not have a s much time as you thought. That is why I like to try to use sites like sylights.com so that I already have a few ideas in mind and setups before I even arrive for the shoot.
Scott
PDFT Training Day 2
Ian Bobo of the Performance Designs Factory Team
Day 2 of the shoot turned out to be great lighting and weather so we were able to capture the shots that we had been hoping for. My goal for this day was to capture as many water drags as possible with a few other shots of them landing mixed in.
Ian Drennan of the Performance Designs Factory Team
Thomas Dellibac of the Performance Designs Factory Team
Pablo Hernandez of the Performance Designs Factory Team
To capture these shots I slowed down my shutter speed to between 1/200 and 1/125 of a second and just panned with the swoopers as the went by to give a nice motion blur to the shots. I was really happy with the way these turned out and I can not wait for the chance to use the photos for our upcoming projects.
After I finished the water drag shots I moved to the end of the course and decided to shoot some of the landing shots. The discipline that they were doing on this day is called Zone Accuracy. The idea is to drag the water through the gates and to land in the zones at the end of the course for points. These shots always seem to offer up some interesting photos and faces when they are trying to land in the zones.
Brian Vacher of the Performance Designs Factory Team
Ian Drennan of the Performance Designs Factory Team
Ian Bobo of the Performance Designs Factory Team
The day ended up being a lot of work and a lot of fun and I think the shots turned out the way I had hoped they would. Which made up for the 4:00 am wake up and 2 hour drive to the shoot.
Scott
PDFT Training Day 1
Ian Bobo of the Performance Designs Factory Team
After a long hiatus I have decided to get back on the wagon and get caught up on my blog. I am covered the Performance Designs Factory Team training camp this week for my work and I decided to share a few shots from day 1. The lighting was not ideal for shooting the shots that we are looking for the first day, but we will be posting another blog with a different discipline in swooping.
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I did however want to mention that although sometimes the lighting is not what you hope for when shooting. You can always experiment a little with your shooting and step out of you comfort level and try new things. You really have nothing to lose and you can always take something away from the shoot.
Jonathan Tagle of the Performance Designs Factory Team
Scott
Surf Sequence 2
Here is a another sequence that I shot on Saturday while capturing more surfing action. Once again If you click on the image it will display the full size sequence. Look forward to more of these in the future.
Scott
New Smyrna Beach Barracudas Vs Spruce Creek Hawks
Stephen Jackson (24) of the New Smyrna Beach Barracudas breaks the tackle of Terry McMillon (23) of the Spruce Creek Hawks. During the varsity football game at New Smyrna Beach Sports Complex in New Smyrna Beach on Friday, November 12, 2010. (Scott Jontes)
I got a call on last Friday to see if I could cover the Cudas and Hawks football game for the Daytona Beach News Journal. I told them that it would be no problem to do the game and I was given the assignment. The assignment asked for 4 action photos from the game and to get individual photos of 3 specific players. The deadline was 10:00 pm and the game was to start at 7:00, so I could only really shoot till about halftime then I would need to get my selects together, tag and caption them and get them sent in to be put into the system.
I got to the stadium a little early to try to get the individual players photos done and out of the way. I was able to get all 3 shots at that time and then once the game started I had to get the action photos to be sent in from the game. About halfway through the second quarter I was able to capture the photo above that was used on the front page of the sports section in the News Journal. It was also a good feeling to shoot at game at the same field that I had played football on myself. Even if it was a “few” years ago.
Scott
Surf Sequence
Here is a sequence I shot on Sunday while capturing some surfing action. If you click on the image it will display the full size sequence. I have a few more of these types of shots that I would like to post in the future.
Scott
Lowepro Classified 200 AW
Classified 200 AW in action photo ©Scott Jontes
I have been searching for a new camera bag to use on location while I am on an assignment. I own a Lowepro Compu Trekker back pack that I really like. In fact I love the bag, it has been a great bag for me. However I need something smaller once I am at the shoot that I can use on the baseball field, or for street and Equine photography.
My main requirements that I look for in a bag are:
1. I do not want it to be bulky for moving through the crowds at the ball game to do fan photos . I also want it to be out of the way while I am on the field.
2. For the hot summers in Florida I want a bag that will not be to hot while I am wearing it.
3. Quick access to my gear.
4. All weather protection is key with the rain storms that pop up in Florida.
5. I would like for the bag to hold a non pro body and a few extra lenses (17-40, 24-105 sizes) my 580ex flash, off shoe cord, a few filters, extra memory cards, and a rain cover for my 300mm 2.8 lens and Mark 3.
I have recently tried some of Lowepro products to try to see which one would fit my specific needs for the different types of photography that I do. I tried the Inverse 200 AW, Outback 300 AW, and the S & F Deluxe Waist belt with harness. I originally thought that I would like a belt pack so that I could put it behind me to have it not interfere with my shooting. I will try to explain my thoughts on the bags and my decision on the Classified 200 AW.
I really liked the Inverse 200. It was small and compact so I could easily move it out of the way when it was not in use.I did feel that the bag when loaded with that amount of gear that I use that it was not my best choice.
The next product I tried was the S & F Deluxe Waist belt with harness. I am sold on one of those and I plan on getting one for photo trips when I do not need an extra camera with me. I found it to be a bit bulky when I added extra SlipLock cases for a camera, extra lenses, flash, memory cards etc.. This is my opinion on my types of shooting with extra gear. This setup is definitely comfortable and distributes the weight very well.
The 3rd product that I tried was the Outback 300 AW. I liked this bag the most out of the other 2 systems that I tried with plenty of storage space. I did find it a little to big for the shooting that I do, other than that it is a great bag. I really liked the extra lens cases that come with the bag.
The last product that I tried was a suggestion from Lowepro’s photography evangelist Derrick Story. He had written a small post on the Lowepro fan page about the Classified 200 AW. I contacted Derrick and explained what I had tried and how I plan to use the bag. He wrote me back hours after I sent the email to him and explained to me how he thought it would be a good fit for me.
I have been using the bag for about 3 weeks now and I could not be happier with how well it is working out for me. I have loaded the bag with a Canon Mark 3 with a 70-200 2.8 attached, Canon 5D with a 24-105 attached, a 580Ex flash, 50mm 1.8, and all my extra small gear. It makes the bag a bit on the heavy side fully loaded, but I would expect it to be with all of that gear. I mainly have a Canon 5D and the 24-105 or my 70-200 plus my flash and other small items in the bag. It is quite comfortable to me. I am really happy with the top access that makes it very fast to get your camera in and out of the bag.
Classified 200 AW at work on the Baseball Field/Photo ©Sean Mcneil
One of my main uses for the Classified 200 Aw is on the baseball field. I need to be able to carry an extra body and a shorter focal length lens with me to take photos for head shots to be used on baseball cards and for closer action shots. Most of my action shots are with my 300 2.8 but sometimes I like to have the variety in my card photos. I really do not like having an extra body hanging on my shoulder so I leave the bag unzipped and then I have quick access to the other camera in the bag. The Classified has a camera keeper on the shoulder strap that does come in handy when I do not have time to slip the camera back in the bag. The way I wear my bag is cross shoulder so I reversed my strap and camera keeper around so it works on my opposite shoulder. If you watch the video on the Classified 200 product page you will see why I reversed the strap and keeper for using it cross shoulder. I use the extra storage in the bag to hold the roster sheets and line ups and any media guides that I pick up in the press box. My other 2 big concerns while on the baseball field is the heat in summertime in Florida and the rain storms that pop up. The Classified 200 AW has a all weather cover so it should be no issue with the rain. I got caught on one of the back fields at the Atlanta Braves training complex in Orlando and I had to walk through the rain back to my car. My Compu Trekkor had a all weather cover and my gear stayed dry. Since that day I have been sold on the All Weather Covers. The other biggie is the heat. Yesterday I shot a day game at 1:00pm and it was a little warm. I did not really notice the bag adding to much extra heat while I was wearing it. So it is looking good so far for baseball.
Equine Photography with the Classified 200 AW/Photo ©Scott Jontes
The other big part of my photography is Equine Photography. The bag does a great job for this type of shooting for me with quick access to my extra body for close up shots. I usually use my 300mm 2.8 or my 70-200 2.8 when doing my equine shoots. If I have the 70-200 as my main lens I generally just use the bag to hold a few extra lenses and equipment. When I am doing the Equine photography I use the 3 point strap that comes with the bag, because of how much I move around. I like that it keeps the bag in one place.
The Classified 200 Aw is a great bag in my opinion, it can be used for various types of shooting and if you are looking for a camera bag that does not look like a camera bag this could be a good choice for you. The other models in the Classified series are 140, 160 and 250. The 250 is made to hold up to a 15 inch laptop with the 160 and 200 you could fit a smaller device such as an iPad.
Scott
Sunny Afternoon
I had a equine portrait shoot with a client yesterday afternoon that ended up with a nice little bonus. After I was done with the portrait shots I had a chance to take a few photos of a little foal that is only a few weeks old. It was a quick session but with the perfect sunny afternoon light the photos turned out great.
Scott
Shuttle Launch
Well it is not the greatest photo I have taken but considering I had about 2 minutes to set my tripod and camera up it did not turn out that bad. It was a really nice looking launch today and I am just happy I got a chance to see it. It is really sad that there is only a couple of them left.
Scott
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