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Pretty Please - add it to our Events forum(s) and add to the calendar! >> 
Off to the races
- Thread starter Basil
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OP
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Well, that stunk on ice! When I saw there was going to be a hunter/jumper competition at the State Fair grounds, I thought it would be a great opportunity to practice some equestrian action shots. When I bought my tickets online, the pictures showed a previous event that was outdoors. Naturally I figured this event would likewise be outdoors, so didn't bother to ask (lesson learned).
It turns out it was in a Dairy barn and the lighting was worse than horrible. First, it was so dark that with my 70-200 f4 IS lens, the fastest shutter speed I could manage consistently and not get the blinking aperture indication was about 1/400th. Not really fast enough to stop the action (I had been planning on shooting shutter priority at at least 1000).
To make matters worse, the other side of the barn from where I was was mostly open such that lots or bright daylight was always behind the subject (the horses). Even when I had half way decent metering on the jump area, there are blown out highlights in the background.
Anyway, if I'd have had a better lens (2.8 or better) I probably could have managed better, but I did the best I could. I'm hoping I can save some of them in PP with LightRoom. I did shoot both RAW and JPG. I'll post some here if I can get any to look decent. I was very disappointed in the location of the event - not very conducive to good stop-action shots when the best lens you have is f4.
UPDATE: Nope. Just looked at them in LightRoom. 320 pictures that are pure crapola. I tried both my 24-105 and 70-200 f4 lenses and I had to bump the ISO so high and the focus on them all is very soft. I maybe have 2 or 3 out of the lot that are --- no, scratch that - none of them are worth a darn! Man what a waste of a day. Very disappointed, but at least I learned a lesson on the limitations of an f4 lens in crappy lighting. Next time, I'll ask if the event is indoors or outdoors. If I'd have known this was going to be the situation I'd not have wasted my money on a ticket.
Sigh!
OTOH, I did learn the limitations of my equipment, so I guess in that respect it wasn't a total loss.
It turns out it was in a Dairy barn and the lighting was worse than horrible. First, it was so dark that with my 70-200 f4 IS lens, the fastest shutter speed I could manage consistently and not get the blinking aperture indication was about 1/400th. Not really fast enough to stop the action (I had been planning on shooting shutter priority at at least 1000).
To make matters worse, the other side of the barn from where I was was mostly open such that lots or bright daylight was always behind the subject (the horses). Even when I had half way decent metering on the jump area, there are blown out highlights in the background.
Anyway, if I'd have had a better lens (2.8 or better) I probably could have managed better, but I did the best I could. I'm hoping I can save some of them in PP with LightRoom. I did shoot both RAW and JPG. I'll post some here if I can get any to look decent. I was very disappointed in the location of the event - not very conducive to good stop-action shots when the best lens you have is f4.
UPDATE: Nope. Just looked at them in LightRoom. 320 pictures that are pure crapola. I tried both my 24-105 and 70-200 f4 lenses and I had to bump the ISO so high and the focus on them all is very soft. I maybe have 2 or 3 out of the lot that are --- no, scratch that - none of them are worth a darn! Man what a waste of a day. Very disappointed, but at least I learned a lesson on the limitations of an f4 lens in crappy lighting. Next time, I'll ask if the event is indoors or outdoors. If I'd have known this was going to be the situation I'd not have wasted my money on a ticket.
Sigh!
OTOH, I did learn the limitations of my equipment, so I guess in that respect it wasn't a total loss.
Last edited:
OP
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Yeah, I needed a 300mm f1.2. Anyone got $18,000 laying around? Here's a couple of the better ones, and by better I mean a little less crappy (Had to crank up ISO to 3200 to get shutter speed anywhere near good enough. Results are short focus and lots of noise. These would have been great if the event were out doors. (Click the thumbs (or "attachment XXXX" ) to see larger versions)
View attachment 34993
View attachment 34994
aeronca65t
Great Pumpkin
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We live a few miles down the street from the US Olympic Equestrian Team
https://www.uset.org
The place is almost always open to the public (for free).
You can stop in and watch people practice in their outdoor arena almost any time the weather is decent.
We've brought our grandkids there from time to time (my 6 year old grand daughter rides)
When she was alive, Jackie Kennedy would regularly stop by (she lived in nearby Peapack, NJ).
For $18,000 you could buy a lot of airline tickets and fly here! :wink-new:
https://www.uset.org
The place is almost always open to the public (for free).
You can stop in and watch people practice in their outdoor arena almost any time the weather is decent.
We've brought our grandkids there from time to time (my 6 year old grand daughter rides)
When she was alive, Jackie Kennedy would regularly stop by (she lived in nearby Peapack, NJ).
For $18,000 you could buy a lot of airline tickets and fly here! :wink-new: