Photoshop Insider

Shooting Major League Baseball

By Scott on Monday, July 21st, 2008 at 3:03 am | Photo Shoots, Photography.

Yesterday I flew up to Atlanta for the day to shoot the Atlanta Braves vs. the Washington Nationals at Turner Field. Despite the sweltering heat (and the Braves loss), I had a blast shooting, and hanging out with Braves team photographer Paul Abell.

I didn’t really have time to go through all the shots, since my flight got home last night, but here are a few that caught my eye upon import in Lightroom (the shot of me above was taken by Paul with my iPhone). Click on any photo to see a larger view—I think they look much better larger, too)

I also didn’t have much time to really do anything to these except sharpen them and tweak the exposure a bit.

I was shooting my Nikon D3, with a 200-400 f/4 VR lens, mounted on a Gitzo monopod. I shot wide open at f/4 most of the day in Aperture Priority mode. I wanted to keep my shutter speed around 1250 to 1600 of a second (to freeze the action), so I had my ISO set between 200 and 320 most of the day, based on the light at the time. Most of the shots were taken from the 1st base dugout, 3rd base dugout, and behind home plate. Later in the day I went up to the first deck to set a few shots shooting down, but most were taken from field level.

Two interesting things to note:

What a difference a year makes: The Nikons outnumbered the Canons (only by one, mind you, but come on—that’s sayin’ something).
Turner Field recently instituted a policy which a lot of ballparks have started to enforce and that is they no longer allow fans to bring in pro cameras with lenses longer than 5″. Apparently, some fans were literally coming to game with 400mm and 600mm lenses; shooting the game from the stands, and then selling the images cheap online, so the ballparks have started cracking down across the Major League.

Thanks to Paul, and everyone at the Braves for a really great day !

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^#1

Great shots! Nice and clean.

Christian on July 21st, 2008 at 3:45 am
^#2

Help me messages are not going through

Chad Pennington on July 21st, 2008 at 3:52 am
^#3

Scott for the longest time I have been trying to post comments and everytime they seem to not go through until now but when I try to post my website it doesn’t let me so I won’t do that part any more. This is the Guy that was at the Jacob Javits Center in NY with your first book and then I meet you again at B&H. Scott thanks just for being a secret mentor for me and a stand out Christian. You Rock !!!. Can you post more off camera flash set ups I just bought 2 pocket wizards and the umbrella set up and when I shot - the light is on;y catching half of the photo (if that makes sense) what am I doing wrong?

Chad Pennington on July 21st, 2008 at 4:04 am
^#4

Really cool images Scott!
Maybe now is the time to change from Canon to Nikon. =)

Love your work!

//Robin from Sweden

Robin Hedström on July 21st, 2008 at 4:22 am
^#5

Hi Scott,

Its interesting to note that Baseball actually allows fans to take cameras into the Stadium at all, and only now are waking up to the fact that a “long lens” could be used for unofficial pictures - and by unofficial, I mean ones that are not making money for the team. Is the same true for all American sports venues?

For a long time in the UK (where I’m from), cameras have been outright banned in Premier League Football (soccer) Stadiums, and even taking photographs with Cameraphones is not allowed - on more than one occasion I have been asked to delete pictures taken with a camera phone by over zealous marshals, enforcing the rules….

cheers
Dave

David Harris on July 21st, 2008 at 5:01 am
^#6

Nice images, I have to ask why you would shoot fast action in aperture priority. Whenever I shoot sports I use shutter priority. ( I do a lot of drag races at night) I set the ISO do get the aperture I want ( so much easier than pushing Tri-X to 800). If I happen to get a slightly darker composition, I know the image will be crisp because the speed is locked in and I probably can recover the exposure a little in post.

I’m just askin’

By the way, really enjoy the 7 steps book and the online training. Now I have to go back and reprocess a bunch of images. I always knew they could be better, just did not know how to tweak ‘em.

Jay Mann on July 21st, 2008 at 5:03 am
^#7

Great work! Your shooting GUN looks pretty killing

ilya on July 21st, 2008 at 5:03 am
^#8

great images

thanx for sharing with us an thanx for yout great books too.

Joerg from germany

Joerg on July 21st, 2008 at 6:32 am
^#9

Scott, great pictures.

It is really a sad statement that MLB is cracking down on Joe Fan that wants to take some shots from the statnds with a long lens because they may miss getting a few bucks. The millions they make just isn’t enough. The average amateur that can barely afford a decent camera and a lens powerful enough to get a shot from the stands will never be able to compete with the guys down on the field with their $10K+ setups.

Going to baseball games with my cheap 200-400 was one of the things I really enjoyed. I have never sold any pictures I have taken and really don’t ever intend to. I do it for fun. Now MLB’s greed will be putting that to an end.

Wayne on July 21st, 2008 at 6:41 am
^#10

Very nice shots.
The lens is also very nice, is it yours ?

Laurent on July 21st, 2008 at 6:55 am
^#11

If I had known you would be in Atlanta shooting the Braves I so would have gone to the game. I have taken my camera and lens (100 - 300) to the game a couple times this year, to shoot from the stands, and no one has ever tried to stop me from bringing in my lens. But I also always go in to the stadium with my 50mm lens mounted (which i bought after reading your book) and my 100-300 in my bag or in my girlfriend’s purse

matt on July 21st, 2008 at 7:21 am
^#12

Great shot Scott.

The few games I’ve been at I allways brught my Nikon camera but only with my 17-55 lens and they never ever asked me or sad anything about it to me. But i think it’s good that they start banning long lenses since there are tons of sites where you can sell you photos today and I have seen pictures from istockphoto for example show up more and more even in newpapers.

It’s fun the hear that the Nikons outnumbered the Canos even if it only was by one camera. I didn’t think that was possible yet in many years.

Take care! Mattias

Mattias R on July 21st, 2008 at 7:23 am
^#13

Hey Scott - thank for the beautiful images. i don’t care for baseball too much (don’t hate me now) but I dug the images.
Question - if you are not the team shooter, what is the process to get in there close as a pro shooter ? - (unless you are the great Scott Kelby and have friends in high places - literally !!)

Arun on July 21st, 2008 at 7:37 am
^#14

Scott… We enjoyed having you yesterday!!! Glad to see you made it home safely!!!

Jay… Shooting in as much light as we were shooting yesterday, it really did not matter if you were in A or S Priority. I shoot manual, so again, it really does not matter, as long as your shutter speeds stay above a certain amount. During day games, I try to stay between 1600 & 2000. At night, I drop to whatever I have to, but will do all I can never to drop below 1/800. I never underexpose, unless it is by mistake… I would rather be a little hot than under… Just make sure you are not blowing out all of your highlights, and you should be good to go. There are times you have to loose some detail in white pants, etc…

Wayne… While you may be the casual fan that shoots the game for fun, there is a lot of shady practices going on right in the park. Once fans are away from the park, who knows what it going on. These teams are worth a lot of money, and they must protect their image. In addition, companies pay for rights to sell photos, and when fans are doing this, it cuts into their profits, eventually affecting the working photographers.

FYI, late in the game yesterday, we witnessed a fan photograph a small child holding a sign… After he was done, he proceeded to take a card from his gear bag, introduce himself to the child’s mother and hand her his card. Unfortunately, this is not the casual fan, and it is situations like this and selling of photos that is causing the issues for the real fans. In addition, cheap 200-400 lenses produce decent images and there are fans that are using their photos as a means or making money beyond selling on Ebay.

The new policy was implemented to cut down on these issues, and this past weekend was the last weekend that a fan could bring in a lens that was over 5″ in length.

Paul Abell on July 21st, 2008 at 7:40 am
^#15

Hello,

Great shots !
I Also asked me why you take picture in aperture priority ?
Maybe with so much luminosity you would have a shutter speed more that 1/1000 of a second, but with some bad whether ?

Thanks again for your great pictures !

Frédéric on July 21st, 2008 at 7:45 am
^#16

Hi Scott,

Fantastic shots! I really like the one with the pitcher and the ball coming right at you! Great shot! I just wish I could afford a lens that size … :-).

Thanks for sharing.

Dennis

Dennis Zito on July 21st, 2008 at 8:02 am
^#17

Those are some wonderful images, Scott.
I always get jealous when I see people working with the 4/200-400. I use Canon and love my 4/500 but Canon should really come up with a 4/200-400, too.

One question: How do you think the AF of the D3 compares to the D300?
Is there a difference? The system should be the same, but the D3 has more processing power.

Markus Jais on July 21st, 2008 at 8:04 am
^#18

Is there anything you can’t do??? These photos are awesome!

Leslie Siller on July 21st, 2008 at 8:13 am
^#19

Hi Scott,
Would you kindly, using your infinite wisdom - or failing that, give us all the benefit of your ‘opinion’ on what is meant by the term “Fine Art Photography”? I have been giving this matter a fair amount of thought of late and one of the definitions that I have found is here. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fine_art_photography.

Now by this definition I guess that most of my images could be classified as ‘fine art’ because I am attempting to fulfill a creative vision. I am not a photojournalist, neither a commercial photographer and most certainly not providing visual support for stories in the print media. The Wiki definition also seems to imply that images can only be termed ‘fine art’ if they are being used to convey beauty and to raise the publics awareness regarding conservation.

With all the above in mind, I suppose that I too could lay claim to being a ‘fine art photographer’ although I wouldn’t call any of my work particularly fine. To confuse the issue even further I also recently watched a video where Jeff Schewe makes mention of ‘Fine Art Printing’.

Now I’m totally confused - what’s your take on this expression ‘Fine Art Photography’ please Scott.

ElliR on July 21st, 2008 at 8:16 am
^#20

Good stuff Scott, how do you get all the cool gigs?

-Bob

Bob DeChiara on July 21st, 2008 at 8:22 am
^#21

Hi Scott,
the shots from the game are extaordinary!

I really envy you for being there. The last time i have been in the
US watching a baseball game in Baltimore, i only had a P&S with me!
I played ball for several years here in Germany and had the chance
to see games in Arlington, Houston and Baltimore. My active part
stopped some years ago and now i support the teams being umpire
and scorer.

I would like to support a comment made before:
How do you got access to the field with your equipment?
(In case someone did you a favor: Lucky You
The next time i am at the states i would like to take some better pictures
at a baseball stadium since i’m a huge fan and if there is a chance
to get a press pass, i would really love to do that. I never intend to
sell any pictures, it’s just my hobby and i would love to have some
decent pictures of my favorite sport!

Here in Germany the game play level is really not on par with the US…
so the pictures tend to be less dramatic than yours.

Many thanks for your superb blog and especially these pictures,
Marc

Marc on July 21st, 2008 at 8:32 am
^#22

Nice pictures.

But, more Nikons then Canon, if you didn’t bring so many cameras with you it would have been as usual!!

Cheers and thanks for the post. Really like these kind of post where I can see your composition, technical…

Gilles

Gilles on July 21st, 2008 at 8:34 am
^#23

Incredible photos! I am a big fan and have a couple of your books. Love your work!

Jenny
http://www.shutterbugkeepsakes.com
http://www.shutterbugkeepsakes.blogspot.com

Jenny on July 21st, 2008 at 8:37 am
^#24

Scott!!! WHOA!!! Those are some awesome shots! That is some great work; you’re a natural at this stuff. Very nice.

I really don’t know what else to say… just amazing.

Terry Reinert on July 21st, 2008 at 8:39 am
^#25

Hi Scott,

As ever I’m very impressed with these shots, even at a smaller size they look really crisp and clean!

I would like to know, just out of curiosity mind you how you were able to get permission to shoot that game, considering you weren’t a paying fan. Unless of course you were shooting for someone official and that was how you got in.

I’d just like to answer Markus’s question about the AF focusing on the Nikon D3/D300, I’ve had a go of both cameras (fitted with Nikon’s latest lenses) and there is no difference as far as I’ve been able to tell. They BOTH lock on to a subject in a mere instant! They also share the very same processing circuitry, and the same AF system as far as I know.

Paul Guy on July 21st, 2008 at 8:43 am
^#26

It will be a SAD day when I cant take my canon 100-400 into Fenway up here in Boston. I take baseball pictures for me not to sell, so I can see the argument from the other side like Paul pointed out in his comment. I have just been glad that baseball in general has allowed fans with pro style gear to shoot, where as up here in Boston Hockey and Basketball you cant. They don’t want to chance someone coming in with a pocket wizard and screwing up someone else’s lighting system. On the bad side of the baseball coin, a couple of weeks ago I was at a game and while leaving there was a guy with his family, he didn’t have a media pass but did have two Canon 1D mark 3’s with a 70-200 and what looked like a 300 on it, he had no media pass or bags so he was definitely just shooting from the stands with his kids to make a buck, I can see how that can get aggravating seeing how even I was aggravated by it….oh and great shots scott

Jeff

Jeff Tamagini on July 21st, 2008 at 8:47 am
^#27

Hi Scott. Great shots as usual. For the first time this year, I have tried doing sports photography. I’m mainly shooting road bike races and wishing I was in France for the Tour.

Is there any chance of getting a great sports photographer ( hint…Paul Abell) to do some lessons on Kelby Training? It would be great to have someone like Paul open the doors like Moose did for landscape and Joe did for small flashes.

I’ve asked about this before but I’m going to keep asking as long as my shots keep stinking.

Les

Les on July 21st, 2008 at 8:48 am
^#28

Scott,
How do you generally get a photography pass for a sporting event?
who in the office would you have to speak with?

Nate Benson on July 21st, 2008 at 8:53 am
^#29

Scott - In the Sunday NYT, July 20th, under technology there is a great article on taking pano shots with a new “novelty” addition to any point and shoot camera that will soon be on the market. What do you think?

http://www.gigapan.org

Larry on July 21st, 2008 at 8:54 am
^#30

Scott,

This year I’ve been visiting ballparks in each major league city that I have visited during my business and family travels. On my last trip, I rented a 600mm f/4 Canon from LensRentals to take to the games. I was in Pittsburgh for a day game and it seemed like a good idea! It came with a backpack case which I used to carry it in.

When I got to the gate, the attendent checking bags took one look and called his supervisor over, saying “You should check this out”. “Man, what a great lens!”, the supervisor said, “Do you have good seats?”. When I showed him our tickets (7 rows back from the visitor’s dugout, front row for my section) he said “Wow, you’re going to get some great shots”, helped me zip up the backpack and commented on my monopod and how even he (6 foot 3 and full of muscles) couldn’t hand hold that “Bazooka”.

It was a great experience and I was able to enjoy shooting and getting some great shots. I was as curteous as I know how to be and was treated with respect by fans and staff. I did get some curious glances from the pros in the photographers pit though, but I just smiled and tipped my hat to them.

Thanks for everything, all the time.

Richard on July 21st, 2008 at 9:09 am
^#31

Hey Scott
Great shots - my favourite is the 5th one of the catcher bloke sliding into base - or whatever it is you Americans call it in this crazy game… looks like rounders to me! (google it if you have to - a better version we Brits play lol)

Loving the fact that Nikon cameras are starting to get more recognitions too, when I first bought my D70 several years ago I could see the look I got was ‘why?’, won’t catch me buying anything else though - even my compact is a Coolpix S2

Keep up the great blogging and book writing… oh and the tv show and everything else you do… but don’t forget to find some time to sleep…

Tanya on July 21st, 2008 at 9:10 am
^#32

Hi Gang:
Just to quickly answer a few questions here:

About the Aperture Priority; it was such a bright sunny day, I probably could have shot in Auto mode (if the D3 had one), so it just really didn’t matter. If it had been a late afternoon or night game, I would have shot in Shutter Priority, but I would have turned on Auto ISO. That way, I could set my shutter speed to 1200/sec, and then if the shutter speed feel below that, the camera would automatically adjust the ISO upward to make sure if never falls below that 1200/sec threshold.

The lens wasn’t mine; the folks at Nikon Professional Services (NPS) were gracious enough to let me borrow it for a few days. What a fantastic lens—sharp as a tack!

As far as how I got to shoot the game; Paul and I are friends, and he was able to arrange a field pass for me through the Braves PR dept. Today, getting a field pass for any major sporting event is really tough if you’re not attached for a major newspaper or magazine (in fact, the number of passes they give out are so limited now, that it’s even tough if you are a legitimate member of the press). I was lucky to know Paul, and to have a legitimate reason to be shooting that he could use with the PR dept. I also got a media pass this past weekend for another event I’ll talk about later this week, with more details then.

Hope that helps.

-Scott

P.S. Thanks for your very kind comments about the shots. You guys rock!

Scott on July 21st, 2008 at 9:13 am
^#33

Scott,

Great Shots! Sounds like an amazing time.

A personal note on the “Long Lense Band”, I was denied entry in Philadelphia with my D200 with the 70-200 on it. They said it was a “pro” setup which wasnt allowed. I had to take it back to the car to finally get in.

BTW, a great bunch of posts last week.

Frank

Frank Weichmann on July 21st, 2008 at 9:15 am
^#34

Wow, tack sharp and incredible shots. Thanks for posting your settings, I am always eager to learn others’ tricks.

I’ve never had issues taking my 70-300mm Nikon lens into Turner Field, but expect that as more people attempt to bring in what is considered “professional” equipment that will change.

Paulie [eatl/ga] on July 21st, 2008 at 9:16 am
^#35

Hey Scott,
This is off topic, but while at my mother-in-laws this weekend she found her old Canon AE-1 program 35mm slr camera in a closet. She gave it to me to have. I’m excited about shooting some rolls with it. Manual advance, manual rewind…I’ll be doing it “old school”

Logan on July 21st, 2008 at 9:18 am
^#36

Hey Scott,

Excellent work. As for your secondary post, I attmpted to get a pass for the November NASCAR Race in Texas with zero success. However, one doesn’t know unless you ask. I could only wish.

Thanks buddy,

Mike

Mike on July 21st, 2008 at 9:22 am
^#37

Scott,

I have been asked to do some real estate photographery by some real estate guys.

Please consider doing some blogs or suggestion on this. Flickr has a great group for this, however, your teaching style is simple and lucid.

Kind regards
Ken

Ken on July 21st, 2008 at 9:42 am
^#38

Re: the man who took a shot of the child and handed the mother his card–I did this just the other day. No, I wasn’t selling the shot. The mother asked me to take a photo of her daughter. I gave her my card so she could email me with her email address, so I could send her a copy. For free.

Janine

Janine Smith on July 21st, 2008 at 9:46 am
^#39

You mention that you tweeked the shots a little in Lightroom.
Can you (or anyone else reading) help me with a Lightroom question.
I would guess that you shoot a lot of photos that you put on your laptop, work on them and then transfer them to an external storage so you don’t fill up your laptop hard drive.

If you move the original photos off of the laptop on to an external drive (so all originals live on this external drive)- and you open Lightroom to continue working on them - Lightroom can’t find the photo. Is there anyway to point Lightroom to the new location to find the photos - other than right clicking on the photo’s question mark and finding the photos one by one?

I haven’t been able to get an answer to this and it is really impacting my use of Lightroom.

The goals is take photos - load to laptop - work up in Lightroom and/or Photoshop - get home - move original photos off of laptop - continue to work in Lightroom and/or Photoshop pointing to photos on external drive (much bigger storage).
Thank you, thank you in advance to Scott or anyone else that can help.

Kendy on July 21st, 2008 at 9:56 am
^#40

Scott-
Great captures, especially for bright mid afternoon sun and your first MLB game (as far as I know?)!! Professional sports are not an easy thing to shoot…and takes several attempts to really get the flow and awareness. You’ve already done well in thinking out of the ordinary it looks like….tight crops and action away from the ball is what sets sports shots away from the ordinary!
Can’t wait to hear what your next media cred. is for….hopefully MLS! It’s a whole nother beast, as they all are!
Keep it up man, it’s amazing how fast you’ve come along with your photography….serious!

Tyson Hofsommer on July 21st, 2008 at 10:05 am
^#41

Janine-

I do the very same thing when I take a picture of someone else while I’m out and about. Many people may look at you sideways at a public park when you’re taking pictures of children, but they usually ease up when you offer a card to the parents offering them a copy of the picture. I’ll ask for permission first when possible, but I always offer the picture and never ask for, or accept, money. I’ve always gotten a smile and once in a while a parent takes my up on the offer.

Prohibiting “professional camera setups” at major league sport venues is really no different than prohibiting video cameras or other recording devices at a movie theatre. This is another form of entertainment and the owners/producers should have the right to profit from its exhibition.

That said, there are thousands of amateur, little league and school-sponsored sports programs which would jump at the chance to have a volunteer take pictures if you’re just looking to hone your craft.

Darrin on July 21st, 2008 at 10:41 am
^#42

It’s another sad day for professional sports that baseball is prohibiting cameras used by enthusiasts. So a few people sold their images online. Big deal! That’s just more marketing for fans to come to a game, buy the other products, and keeps the brand moving. Instead, they decide to punish fans who may want to combine their love of photography and baseball.

In other words, there are the haves and have-nots now. So now a few folks get accepted to the field and those are the only pictures we’ll ever get.

Baseball isn’t a game, it’s an entertainment business. No cameras for you.

William Beem on July 21st, 2008 at 10:42 am
^#43

Scott, as a loyal purchaser of your fine books on digital photography, I am pleased to see you are following your own suggestions for sports shooting.

A kind of compliment: I often read stories to my D80-toting wife at bedtime, usually science fiction, often to help her go to sleep. But your two latest books on SLR use are not very successful with her — she says that your writing is so interesting, helpful, and even funny that she can’t go to sleep!

David Jenrette

David Jenrette on July 21st, 2008 at 10:44 am
^#44

Scott,
I love the post great info. I have one question, where can I get a apple hat like the one you are wearing in the picture.

Thanks
Jake

Jake on July 21st, 2008 at 10:49 am
^#45

Hi Jake:
From the Apple ‘Company Store’ at their headquarters in Cupertino, California. It’s open to the public, but you physically have to go there—there’s no mail order or phone orders.

-Scott

Scott on July 21st, 2008 at 10:52 am
^#46

Hey Scott
Shooting at high shutter speed makes great sense if you want crisp stopped action and you have to get the shot, as in sports photographer. But, the last time I was at a ballpark, I tried shooting slower (250-500) to get more bat and arm motion, but fast enough to freeze the body, to convey more action. Yes, fewer keepers, but captured more of the essence. With the high price of field level seats needed to get “pro” quality images for our personal memories, maybe we have to sell the photos to afford to go to the games :), just kidding. By the way, once you have had a photo pass and all the access it provides, will you ever enjoy a game from the “cheap seats”? Keep those great books coming!

John Herrel on July 21st, 2008 at 11:08 am
^#47

Scott….great shots….very professional….you could be a sports shooter yourself!!

Interesting what you said about the number of Nikons at the field. I was watching the British Open yesterday, and whenever they panned to the crowd of photographers, I was trying to count how many “black” lenses were in the crowd. I think Nikon is starting to level the balance….I love it.

Cheers,

Scotty

Scotty Graham on July 21st, 2008 at 12:23 pm
^#48

Everyone… I just wanted to clarify a few things that I am starting to see…

The policy that we are speaking of is only at the Braves games. I was asked to see what other teams were doing. After checking, it seems that more and more teams are starting to make these rules, so I am not sure it is a MLB thing.

Different from what I have read here, when you attend a collegiate or professional sporting evening, it is not a free for all. You are buying a ticket to watch an event on private property, not public property.

However, even the leagues and teams have rules for the guys shooting the games.

For instance, since I am the Braves photographer, I can shoot what I want, but I can not shoot in the locker room. When I was the team photographer with the Buccaneers, I was able to shoot in the locker room, but it was off limits to any other photographer.

In regards to my photos, I can not sell them, and they have to be approved before I can post any to my web site (which is going though a complete overhaul). As for a wire service, I can only post to Getty Images for sale though MLB at the end of the season.

Photographers shooting an assignment must follow the rules, as well. If not, they risk the possibility of being banned from the stadium of the game. I know of this happening a few times…

I understand everyone’s frustrations with wanting to hone their craft… I go though these very same issues in other areas of my photography. I was lucky that sports photography found me, and that I did work for an Arena Football team that spent a lot of money. I am very grateful for that ownership and know that I would not be where I am today if it were not for their commitment to being great in every facet.

From there, I burned up the road shooting everything in sight… I put over 100,000 miles on brand new Dodge Ram 1500 in just over 2 years. If there was a game, I was there. Again, I was lucky that I got into this when Wire Image was getting going. They game me an opportunity, and I ran with it… From there, I moved on and made friends that began to offer other opportunities. Each step along the way, I learned more and more.

What worked for me may or may not work for others… You have to find what is right for you. The key is knowing how and what to shoot… Once you have that down, you can really start developing as a photographer.

Many of the minor league teams do not pay much money for photos, if at all, so it is hard to build a business on those practices. Again, I was lucky that the one I did the work for saw the need for such work. Still, you might find a game or two that you can shoot from a better vantage point… Build from there. Again, the key is understanding how to shoot what you are going after.

If any of you have any questions, feel free to email me, and I will do what I can to offer insight.

Paul

Paul Abell on July 21st, 2008 at 1:35 pm
^#49

While I understand all this regulation about where you can shoot and with what equipment and when you need a permit or pass, I wonder if all this deters anyone else from pursuing photography as a hobby?

A few years ago, I worked at a small newspaper where we reported and photographed. In those days I couldn’t afford a decent camera let alone a nice array of lenses. Now that I can afford it, it seems so overwhelming to re-learn – not the technical end – but all these rules and regulations: where you can and cannot use a tripod, what buildings you can and cannot include in photos, what lenses you can and cannot use in certain facilities, and when you need a permit and when you don’t.

I don’t know. Maybe it’s just me.

Barbara on July 21st, 2008 at 1:49 pm
^#50

That must have been fun! I’m still convinced though that a night time football game is one of the hardest things to shoot, especially when you don’t have something with all of the ISO power of the D3. You should take your cameras out to a local high school football game and see what you get, I’m sure we’d be glad to have you at ours! : ) only an hr. away from Tampa!

Trenton Moore on July 21st, 2008 at 2:00 pm
^#51

You were here in Hotlanta! We haven’t made it to a game this season, and boy was it hot yesterday. I don’t see how the players handle it in long pants, shirts, and socks. Whew!

The pictures are beautiful and the colors so vivid. The red jerseys photograph well. I love that second shot - looks like you could just reach out and grab the ball.

Dawn @ My Home Sweet Home on July 21st, 2008 at 2:46 pm
^#52

Scott - Thank you so much for being so generous with your knowledge and your time and for being a mentor to so many of us.

Kendy - you can right-click (CTRL-click on a Mac) on the Lightroom Folder that contains the “misplaced” pictures, and click on “Locate Missing Folder”. Next time, try moving your pictures from one drive to another within Lightroom: just drag and drop your Lightroom folders.

Chad - your shutter speed might be too high. Set it to 1/60sec and see if that solves the problem. Scott’s friend David Hobby has a bog about flash photography that you might like: http://strobist.blogspot.com.

Miguel on July 21st, 2008 at 2:56 pm
^#53

It’s a shame that ball parks are becoming so strict on photography rules. Althought there are those out there that use it for profit there are many who enjoy the hobby. Baseball franchises are not exactly hurting for capital so surely they can afford to miss out on some of the money being made by ‘non-official’ photos.

Embassy Pro Books on July 21st, 2008 at 3:22 pm
^#54

Hey scott , your photos are great,
I read your blog everyday, your are such a inspiration
I am a photography student at college, and I learn so much from you
take care,
and have a great day,
ps : I love the photoshop guys

Brett on July 21st, 2008 at 3:32 pm
^#55

Just another question about those great shots and it’s about focus: how did you get those crisp images ?
Did you let the autofocus of the camera do the job ?
Do you set the focus to were the player is supposed to be ?
Tell me (us) more about this… (and thanks again for sharing and for this great blog).

Laurent on July 21st, 2008 at 3:45 pm
^#56

Amazing photos Scott, love them. And I sure love that monstrous lens…i wish to have one of those soon.

Scott I’d like you to give me the best and the most accurate way in your opinion to remove colour casts in photos. I have tried several and I’m still not satisfied with the results. Could you please share with me a magic trick of yours on removing heavy colour casts?

Thanks

Shinaz on July 21st, 2008 at 5:26 pm
^#57

wow great photos., I also photographing some baseball games too, but in my case, it´s on night, so, what do you think ( anyone can answer) the best aperture and shutter speed for that scenario , my lens is tamron 70-200mm 2.8 for canon 10D, I´m working on manual mode.
Other thing, how much it´s a baseball game ticket, i mean, it is cheap?.
Saludos desde Baja California México.

Rodolfo Robles on July 21st, 2008 at 6:00 pm
^#58

Did you resize the images before posting to your blog? I’ve been experimenting of what’s the optimal size to display the best quality images on the web and have them look as good as they do in print. My galleries get resized for me with the website companies I currently use so I don’t have much control for now, so I’d like to optimize the look of the images without giving into sluggish viewing for my clients.
Thanks Scott

Matthew Singer on July 21st, 2008 at 6:00 pm
^#59

Hi Scott! Wow, you got some really great shots there! I’m also happy to hear that there were just as many Nikon cameras there as Canon. Keep up the excellent work! BRAD

Brad on July 21st, 2008 at 6:04 pm
^#60

Hi Scott,

Nice job on the blog post and the photos.

I guess you noticed how hard baseball can be to photograph. It’s tough to be in the right spot, get focused and react to the action and you have problems with the players or umpires getting in your way. A lot of runs can score without much really great action.

It’s nice you got the feel of Sunday baseball. Three hours in a sweltering hot photo well can be tough. You didn’t look that cool in the photo. It’s not like you get to run up in the stands and get cold beer like the fans watching the game. Night baseball is easier if you have the right gear. Your fine, you’ve got the D3.

It always funny to me to hear about all the restrictions on fan shooting pics. I can’t really imagine anyone really coming up with any good pics from the stands. You would really need some serious glass.

To show how much it’s changed, when I was in high school I used to go to Lakers games and they would let you sit on the floor if you had a camera. Nobody bothered you. Things have really changed. OK, that was a few years ago. OK, it might have been 35 years ago and Wilt Chamberlain was playing for the Lakers. Used to be the same at concerts.

It’s really too bad for the fans because they support the teams and pay the high ticket prices. It would be nice if they could bring back a few photos from the games.

Keep up the great work.

Robert

Robert Lachman on July 21st, 2008 at 7:02 pm
^#61

So once again it’s a few pinheads that mess it up for the legitimate folks. I think the photos Scott shot were awesome and it’s unfortunate now that the average sports fan that wants to shoot photos at a Brave’s for their own enjoyment won’t be able to. Several have mentioned that they don’t see what the big deal is about making a couple of bucks on a few decent shots but it’s really much more than that. What about the guy who takes a good quality shot of someone like Chipper Jones and works in conjunction with a really good forger to create a counterfeit autographed image? He stands to make thousands and may never be caught. Once again it’s the fans that suffer. It’s not like these sleazeoids wear a sign letting us know who they are (if they did we could beat the snot out of them) so we all get lumped together in the same pot. Too bad.
Great photo’s Scott. You definitely captured the essence of the game. Not bad for Brave’s photos. Being a St. Louis native I’m a Cardinal fan myself …

Dennis

Dennis Dwyer on July 21st, 2008 at 9:01 pm
^#62

I guess it will be just a matter of time when photographers no matter at what level will no longer be able to take there Camera gear out of there homes, maybe it will come down to you have to get a FBI Check to be able just buy a Camera and then congressional approval to use it in our own homes.
America the FREE Land of Liberty, give me a break.

James Donahue on July 21st, 2008 at 9:58 pm
^#63

Scott-

Hot pix! Almost makes me want to be sports photographer…

So, did you shoot continuous mode to catch the ball at the perfect moment or do you have the reflexes of a cat?

Richard Chan on July 21st, 2008 at 11:49 pm
^#64

Awesome Shots Scott!!!

Good to hear that Nikon are making their presence felt at sporting events now, and it’s interesting what you wrote about the 5″ rule on lenses. Can’t say I’ve heard that here in the UK yet.

Keep up the great work,
All the best to you and yours,
Glyn

Glyn Dewis on July 22nd, 2008 at 12:53 am
^#65

Scott,

Very nice stuff here. Can’t wait to see what else you find once you dig through everything. Thanks for the details about your settings during the shoot. I find this info very helpful and interesting.

Oh and another Canon vs. Nikon comment. I’m still sticking with Canon!

Roger on July 22nd, 2008 at 12:59 am
^#66

Miguel thanks man. I will try and let you know email me so I can let you know the results chad at sobitartphotography dot com

Chad Pennington on July 22nd, 2008 at 1:59 am
^#67

Hey Scott,

Great Great shots, all of them are sharp and nicely taken. Oannot wait to see what you have for us next.

I keep hearing the Canon vs. Nikon comment, but what’s the real difference between them can someone enlighten me??

Thanks Scott
Eugene from Singapore

eugene on July 22nd, 2008 at 2:32 am
^#68

The best sport shots I’ve ever see ! They are simply stunning!
Scott,
did you use your seven-points method here?

Regards,
Alfredo

Alfredo G on July 22nd, 2008 at 6:08 am
^#69

I’ll second Janine Smith’s post - I struggle w/ the same issue in Lightroom - its great that Lightroom backs up photos to an external drive during download from the card, but frustrating that it doesn’t keep track of those backup images. Maybe we’re asking too much, but sure would be nice. Would creating a 2nd catalog pointing to the images on the backup drive work?

Great photos, by the way - I’m envious!

Ron Mandsager on July 22nd, 2008 at 6:49 am
^#70

Timely comment Scott!
I was at the Seattle Cleveland game this past weekend.and had my 100-400 out and was shooting from the stands. The usher came down and asked me what size lens I was using. I told her and she pulled out this rule book of some sort and it said lens longer than 100-200 were not permitted. I told a white lie and said “yes…that’s what this is”. She then asked if the shots were for personal use.

This was the first time there was an issue but it looks like time are changing.

And by the way….I am not selling shots, just trying to improve my skills. Wish mine were as sharp as yous Scotts.

Bob Ianson on July 22nd, 2008 at 9:16 am
^#71

Nice photos, Scott. Did you have a chance to do any wide-angle shots of Turner Field? (by chance, here’’s one of my favourite shots of Turner Field which I captured: http://elbelbelb2000.blogtog.com/archives/6297_1579073640/154929).

It’s a bummer about the five inch limit for the lenses which we may bring to Turner Field. That means the security will now give me a hard time about bringing in my Canon 100mm macro lens to the game…

Eugene on July 22nd, 2008 at 6:40 pm
^#72

Hi Scott: Knowing that you don’t have the opportunity to shoot a MLB game all the time, just curious as to how many frames you fired. My guess for a 9 inning game you had at least a feature length film of frames.
Do you have an estimate?

Lewis Woodyard on July 23rd, 2008 at 10:18 am
^#73

Hey Scott. I hope you had a great time shooting the game, even with the heat.
What lens was that? 500mm?

Paulo Jordao Photography on July 23rd, 2008 at 8:31 pm
^#74

great ones Scott, but one Q, what format you shot, RAW or JPEG?

Feras Malallah on July 24th, 2008 at 11:45 am
^#75

Scott -
Awesome shots! Thanks for sharing.
I just have two questions that I hope you will be gracious enough to answer

1. In the 4th and 6th shots posted, the batter appears to be still, while there is a bit of motion blur in the bat itself. You said that you shot most of these at around 1/1250th of a second…. Was the motion blur on the bat photoshopped, or was it really being swung that fast?

2. Did you set your Nikon D3 into DX mode, so that your lens acted as a 300-600mm? Or did you use FX mode for the higher resolution and other benefits?

Kinda random questions.. but I was very curious. Thanks.

Alex on July 25th, 2008 at 3:43 am

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About Scott

Scott Kelby is the editor and publisher of Photoshop User Magazine, Layers magazine (the how-to magazine for everything Adobe®) and President of the National Association of Photoshop Professionals (NAPP). Make sure you check out Scott's Gear *updated* and his Photography Portfolio.