kiteboarding

[toddjb]

Be curious to hear some input on these photos. All taken the same evening watching kiteboarders down in Hatteras, NC. Nikon D50 w/ the Nikkor 70-300mm lens. Take pictures of kiters frequently and could always use some tips.




This one was neat as I benefitted from someone else's flash, but got the longer exposure time so I could capture the sky (and my flash would not have reached the kiter anyway)




Same scene as above. Changed positions and was going for the silhouettes of the people instead of trying to capture their details.




Did some minor contrast adjustments on the PC to bring out the colors of the sand dune a bit. I think it could overall be a little crisper. I'm not sure where the camera focused and with fast action like this I usually have the camera on Auto. Can't typically rely on a fixed focus position with randomly moving targets combined with a handheld camera.






...just including this one from a seperate trip because it shows the kites, which some of you may not be familiar with. (I know the photo is pretty dark) If you're ever driving near water on a windy day and see kites up in the air. Stop to take some pictures...with all the action on the riders and then the color of the kites, it can make for some very fun picture taking.

Close-ups of the riders (fill the frame with the kiter) still tend to come out better than landscape shots such as these...but I like landscape photography. The end photos end up being attractive to a wider audience.

[Mark1616]

I love shooting kitesurfing/kiteboarding and sounds like you do too. I don't do too much of it as I don't get to sell as much work as covering other events but do it for the enjoyment rather than the money!

I would say the first 2 are a little soft although I do really like the sunset. They are not helped by the other photographers there either.

The third one is cool and it is nice to get some of the scenery in shot but for me the 4th is the strongest image.

The two types of shot I personally go for are the close up of the rider and kite (as in the last one).

Really looking forward to seeing more kitesurfing shots on here.

[toddjb]

Thanks for the feedback, Mark.

Regarding the "soft" comment, I shoot with a Nikon D50 digital and while I am happy with the camera, I frequently find the pictures a little soft. After recently reading some camera reviews it seems that the Nikons are more conservative in their sharpening than the Canon digitals, for instance.

Any tips on the softness? I usually sharpen them in post production. However, the reviews just reminded me that I can adjust the sharpening in the camera (which is a setting if I don't use AUTO - I can make them more vivid if I shoot in P or any other mode).

Be curious what works for you.


I think the sharpness in the example photos are due to a handheld camera in low light, but in general, I do get more softness than I like.

[Mark1616]

Yes here the softness I was referring to was due to movement so motion blur would have been the better term. As for the amount of sharpening I use in camera I keep it pretty low then pull it back in PP. I do this as the sharpening algorithms in camera are quite crude so will increase noise more than when doing in PP. I have not heard that Nikon are softer than Canon but to be honest I have not looked to find out.

Have a look at this thread where the amount of sharpening/results straight out of the camera are shown http://www.stevesforums.com/forums/v...mp;forum_id=37

[matthew2000tx]

Cool