Two Skateboarding Shots

dazftw

Now I know there's no one on here that shoots skateboarding I just wanted to get a some thoughts on the editing.. I ALWAYS feel like im way over doing it in photos.

I used an off camera flash up high to the right of the skater.

Tallon

The yellow wall on the left is very distracting, other than that, I like the shots

magicbastarder

i think the main problem you have is that the manouevre the skateboarder is performing isn't very exciting - people expect very full on stuff with photos of skateboarders. might be worth getting below him, and closer?

Roy Rogers

Had a bit of a spiel written here but then remembered you were just asking about the editing (Short version -- I don't really like the camera position . Too high up and the skater is moving away from it.)

One issue I have with these is that there's very little sense of movement about them -- in the first, he could just as easily be standing on a stationary board as doing a lipslide (I think?). I'm not sure how exactly you'd go about correcting this, but it's the most noticeable problem for me. Use a larger aperture to soften the background, maybe?

In the second one, I'm not hugely gone on the photo as a whole but I do like that the flash illuminates the decal on the board

In general, I like the post-processing. It's got a nice gritty feel to it, and I think that works well with the concrete and steel setting of most skate shots.

jpb1974

Aye... no probs with the post processing... but the interest matter is a bit on the down side and could be a lot better.

dinneenp

for me-
angle is bad- you've got his head
too much distraction- yellow, cables etc.
he's not doing anything interesting.

I'd like to take some- sure it's a subject that you could get some good shots. There's a mini jump/ramp (whatever) you call it in Limerick- I drive past it on road from Galway to Cork (but I've wife and two kids in the car so can't stop).

kelly1

In short, they suck.

Only messing

PCPhoto

dazftw wrote: »

Now I know there's no one on here that shoots skateboarding

theres a couple of us who shot the Kings of Concrete 2009 (its coming up soon if anyone is interested in taking pics at it this year let me know)....its a free event so no-one makes money from the pics taken...basically its about getting out there and taking pics for fun.

heres a small few of my skateboarding/kings of concrete pics.

http://www.flickr.com/photos/26675685@N06/
will try embed them later (or another time)

.Longshanks.

PCPhoto wrote: »

theres a couple of us who shot the Kings of Concrete 2009 (its coming up soon if anyone is interested in taking pics at it this year let me know)....its a free event so no-one makes money from the pics taken...basically its about getting out there and taking pics for fun.

heres a small few of my skateboarding/kings of concrete pics.......

Yes please!

PCPhoto

heres some of the embedded ones:






my personal fav is the first one:

dazftw

Tallon wrote: »

The yellow wall on the left is very distracting, other than that, I like the shots

That's the sun going down behind me.. I do agree it may distract but I wanted to get that in there. Have a summery feel in it.

magicbastarder wrote: »

i think the main problem you have is that the manouevre the skateboarder is performing isn't very exciting - people expect very full on stuff with photos of skateboarders. might be worth getting below him, and closer?

jpb1974 wrote: »

Aye... no probs with the post processing... but the interest matter is a bit on the down side and could be a lot better.

Roy Rogers wrote: »

Everything you said.

Yeah I actually did think it was a little boring while shooting it. The trick itself was good so it kinda evened out for me. I tried lower in this but it wasn't really showing what I wanted to show. When your shooting skateboarding its got two avenues(we have discussed this before on here I remember) The skateboarders point of view and just normal photographer. I'm going down the skateboarders point of view as iv'e been skating myself almost 10 years so im kinda biased :P. You need to get the run up, the trick itself and the landing. He's coming up the stairs in these shots. I think some people may think he's going down the way?

The normal photographers point of view is all of PCphoto's shots. Getting in on close on the action.

Its not something you would get unless you skate sorta of thing

dinneenp wrote: »

for me-
angle is bad- you've got his head
too much distraction- yellow, cables etc.
he's not doing anything interesting.

I'd like to take some- sure it's a subject that you could get some good shots. There's a mini jump/ramp (whatever) you call it in Limerick- I drive past it on road from Galway to Cork (but I've wife and two kids in the car so can't stop).

Perfect example of the different ways of shooting it. Your way is 100% different to mine. Nothing wrong with that at all just using it as an example. You would have just gotten the bottom half of the skater and shown just the action!?

I think you should get a free day and go down and ask to shoot some photos of the guys. Ask them do they have any ideas for you as well as doing it your way.

PCPhoto wrote: »

theres a couple of us who shot the Kings of Concrete 2009 (its coming up soon if anyone is interested in taking pics at it this year let me know)....its a free event so no-one makes money from the pics taken...basically its about getting out there and taking pics for fun.

heres a small few of my skateboarding/kings of concrete pics.

http://www.flickr.com/photos/26675685@N06/
will try embed them later (or another time)

I was there when it was on, im behind that ginger guys head in the 2nd last photo haha.

PCPhoto

in terms of shooting:

as a photographer you want to get the single moment which shows the skateboarder in action.

as a skateboarder you want to see the run up, positioning, trick and landing ..... (thats caught using video) .... in order to photograph this its about positioning, I would suggest being level with the photographer as they run towards you ...perform trick and land (hopefully still in front of you) ...and you can get out of the way in time.

a long zoom lens is the best.

I can understand your logic of the overhead (ish) view....but for photographic purposes...doesnt always work !

NOTE: you said you were at KOC2009 .... its possible that I have photos of you from then (if you were skating) ... I took over 2000 images that day (or 2 days ...cant remember) .... plenty of them are just sequence pics (of a trick or a landing)... gave them on CD's to KOC organisers .... will prob be there again this year..... must give them a buzz.

pete4130

PCPhoto wrote: »

in terms of shooting:

as a photographer you want to get the single moment which shows the skateboarder in action.

as a skateboarder you want to see the run up, positioning, trick and landing ..... (thats caught using video) .... in order to photograph this its about positioning, I would suggest being level with the photographer as they run towards you ...perform trick and land (hopefully still in front of you) ...and you can get out of the way in time.

a long zoom lens is the best.

I can understand your logic of the overhead (ish) view....but for photographic purposes...doesnt always work !

NOTE: you said you were at KOC2009 .... its possible that I have photos of you from then (if you were skating) ... I took over 2000 images that day (or 2 days ...cant remember) .... plenty of them are just sequence pics (of a trick or a landing)... gave them on CD's to KOC organisers .... will prob be there again this year..... must give them a buzz.

In terms of the KOC photos you shot, they lack perspective and insight into whats going on (which I think was discussed in a thread after KOC 2009). The ones posted to me seem like snaps of people with skateboards and no real composition. I know this is REALLY hard to achieve at something like KOC because its so mental with so many people. It's one of those things you have to accept at an event like that. Almost everyone will have similar pictures of the subject close up doing "something" and it won't relate to anything else (if that makes sense?).

I can totally see where and how Dazftw is coming from with the higher angle to make the shot look different and getting the context/compostion to give the trick/subject more context.

I think the photos look good Daz.

Rb

Nice shots Daz. I really like no1, despite the yellow on the left being distracting. I think no2 might just be a bit unexciting, which is more to do with it being a mere two step he's hitting.

The angle actually compliments the feat involved, or perhaps makes it appear more impressive. A low down front facing shot isn't going to do much to either images and will make it look a lot less impressive on both tricks.

I "get it" though and love street skateboarding photography, though haven't had the chance to go do it myself (despite having skated for years and years) and you've definitely made the most out of what you were presented with here. I kind of cringed when I saw people critisizing you for the angle and only taking a picture of someones head apparently, but then I remembered that they don't know what they're talking about

challengemaster

dazftw wrote: »

Yeah I actually did think it was a little boring while shooting it. The trick itself was good so it kinda evened out for me. I tried lower in this but it wasn't really showing what I wanted to show. When your shooting skateboarding its got two avenues(we have discussed this before on here I remember) The skateboarders point of view and just normal photographer. I'm going down the skateboarders point of view as iv'e been skating myself almost 10 years so im kinda biased :P. You need to get the run up, the trick itself and the landing. He's coming up the stairs in these shots. I think some people may think he's going down the way?

The normal photographers point of view is all of PCphoto's shots. Getting in on close on the action.

Its not something you would get unless you skate sorta of thing

I think maybe you should try videography instead...

dazftw

challengemaster wrote: »

I think maybe you should try videography instead...

Nah as long as the photo makes sense and you know what's going on you have it right. Its just how its done. It wont make sense to you unless you skate though :rolleyes:

Open any of the several skateboarding mags in easons or places like that and you will understand.

I guarantee you will not find a shot like PCPhotos above.

Roy Rogers

Rb wrote: »

I "get it" though and love street skateboarding photography, though haven't had the chance to go do it myself (despite having skated for years and years) and you've definitely made the most out of what you were presented with here. I kind of cringed when I saw people critisizing you for the angle and only taking a picture of someones head apparently, but then I remembered that they don't know what they're talking about

I used to skate myself so I'm fairly familiar with skate photography (not in a long time though, unfortunately!) :P

Anyway, getting back to the topic, most of the criticism seems to be of the composition rather than the editing, so you're doing okay with regards to your original question!

challengemaster

dazftw wrote: »

Nah as long as the photo makes sense and you know what's going on you have it right. Its just how its done. It wont make sense to you unless you skate though :rolleyes:

Open any of the several skateboarding mags in easons or places like that and you will understand.

I guarantee you will not find a shot like PCPhotos above.

Then I dunno, stop putting up photos for c&c and then saying "no no, you wouldn't get it unless...."

dazftw

Yeah I didn't wanna ask for thoughts on the composition and lighting etc. The way I shoot it is completely different.

You said the editing had a gritty feel to it which is what I wanted!

Its funny though I have Photo books with photo's of skateboarders in cities which are shot totally wrong(from my point of view) but are displayed along with photographers such as Robert Capa & Cartier Bresson.

There's no right or wrong way to do it. There's just 2 different ways of doing it.

dazftw

challengemaster wrote: »

Then I dunno, stop putting up photos for c&c and then saying "no no, you wouldn't get it unless...."

Read the 1st sentence in my 1st post! I asked for thoughts on editing!

People came on and said my angles and composition were wrong so I was just explaining different ways of shooting it and you wont understand my way unless your into the whole skateboarding thing

dinneenp

Anyone know anywhere in Galway that people skate and are actually any good/worth shooting?
What I mean is do big moves, not the usual you see- just skating in a line, trying a hop and falling.....
I know there's a very small skating place by the cathedral

samzoo

Dazftw is the only one with a clue here, I shoot skateboarding also. PCphoto, im sorry those pictures in respect to skateboarding are awful. The timing is wrong, the lighting is flat, they just aren't interesting. Those pictures appeal to those who don't know anything about it. Its as if dazftw is the mechanic and you are all telling him how to fix a car.

Look at the following portfolios, all these people shoot skateboarding for a living, some if not all are all award winning in the the subject.

http://www.anthonyacosta.com/
http://www.lolathedog.com/ click the 2nd dog.
http://www.jonhumphries.com/action.html

its fine thats how you shoot, but to come and tell the og post that, no thats not how you shoot skating... THIS is how you shoot skating. Is the funniest thing.

If you wanna see skaters doing "big moves" you're gonna have to befriend them. I know my friends wouldn't want a random dude taking photos of them doing it. I just said "dude", i am authentic.

PCPhoto

samzoo wrote: »

Dazftw is the only one with a clue here, I shoot skateboarding also. PCphoto, im sorry those pictures in respect to skateboarding are awful. The timing is wrong, the lighting is flat, they just aren't interesting. Those pictures appeal to those who don't know anything about it. Its as if dazftw is the mechanic and you are all telling him how to fix a car.

Look at the following portfolios, all these people shoot skateboarding for a living, some if not all are all award winning in the the subject.

http://www.anthonyacosta.com/
http://www.lolathedog.com/ click the 2nd dog.
http://www.jonhumphries.com/action.html

its fine thats how you shoot, but to come and tell the og post that, no thats not how you shoot skating... THIS is how you shoot skating. Is the funniest thing.

If you wanna see skaters doing "big moves" you're gonna have to befriend them. I know my friends wouldn't want a random dude taking photos of them doing it. I just said "dude", i am authentic.

no offence taken .... I take photographs... I dont skateboard.

...so if they dont meet a skateboarders expectation of a photograph... thats no skin off my nose...my understanding of how to photograph someone on a skateboard... you take a pic of someone on a skateboard.... didnt realise you had to capture something else, I didnt see it, its possible its in my pics, I just dont know what it is.

EDIT: from looking at the "samples" some differences ...

- I had hundreds of people around and only a fraction of a second to get my pic, other photographers, videographers and boarders in my way....I couldnt "stage" my pics in the same way as the "sample" images.

- the "samples" nearly ALL have distorted lenses and some have at least 2 slave lights/flashes and are post processed excessively (look at the skin tones...super shiny skin). (if I put down slave flashes they would more than likely have be nicked)

you cant really compare taking pics at a competition to photographs taken where the skateboarder will re-attempt his/her trick and where the photographer has the luxury of using off camera flash.

humberklog

Daz I think the pics would look better if switched in order. If the bottom one was on top etc., that way the movement of the skater "in frame" would be more in synch with our natural perception of motion.

dazftw

I would edit it, but it wont let me anymore :rolleyes:

samzoo

You are right in respect to context, contest vs. street skating. But then it draws the question, why did you compare the two in the first place? He shot with slave lighting in a controlled environment, yet you still decided to bust out your contest shots in a failed attempt to school him.

http://www.companybe.com/PhxAM/webcontent.cfm?PageID=22&TimeOut=0


That distortion lens is called a fisheye lens.

I'm sorry if my first post was so blunt. But as a skatephotographer myself, I do get offended when photographers who, while they know how to shoot conventional subjects, begin to tell me how to shoot what I fully identify with. That's the point. And I know you weren't telling me, but you were were trying to tell him, and that's just not cool.

101001

OP... Editing suggestions (Chances are I'm talking out my arse though). Id tone down the yellow. It is a bit distracting. Maybe photoshop out that thing in the top left corner. The lines are so interesting that that curve up top is annoying me, could be just me personally. The wood floor to the back I'd make that a little more striking (maybe somemore blue?). I like the idea of using the yellow side and the blueish wood floor as a type of flag shaped frame. I do like the two white wires how ever

As skate photography goes, its a weird shot (not a skater or a skate photographer, too many of my friends are, im used to it). I think I like it. It completely gets away from what, i see, as skate photography. It feels almost like a fashion shot. I like that it feels so static and angular.... unusuals

Rb

It's funny, if I went along to KOC or similar I wouldn't bother bringing my camera along as you can be sure the edges of the crowd would be hogged by photographers who know how to take a picture but don't know how to take a skateboarding/bmxing/whatever photo for the life of them, yet probably have the worst (know-it-all) attitudes of anyone you're going to meet at these events. Like those guys who give hassle to amateurs at horse-racing events, only these guys genuinely haven't a clue. Or pros who've been sent to a gig and ruin it for everyone within 5 feet of them.