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What makes a good track photo?

Discussion in 'Journalism topics only' started by Songbird, May 27, 2007.

  1. Platyrhynchos

    Platyrhynchos Active Member

    Not only normal, but the rule. :p :D
     
  2. audreyld

    audreyld Guest

    Good track photos are, like any other photos, functions of two things: emotional intent and light.

    Both of Songbird and JLaff have demonstrated they can control the light, evidenced by their ability to freeze action.

    As Bob noted, JLaff's photos (and a couple of Songbird's) need better control of emotional intent. The primary emotional intent of straight sports action photography is a sense of awe at the performance of the athletes. To maximize this effect, your subjects need to be better isolated, either by shallower depth-of-field or by angles which eliminate distracting background elements.

    Emotional intent should be the driving factor in your photography. Much like quotes you choose to enhance your narrative about an event, your photographs should be purposeful and thoughtful. Emotional intent is easy to establish in reaction shots, but must be considered any time you raise the viewfinder to your eye.

    (I love taking photos, in case there was any confusion about that.)
     
  3. audreyld

    audreyld Guest

    Two more quick comments:

    First, technical mastery is a must, because it releases your mind to make artistic considerations instead of obsessing over exposure. Controlling light is great, but serves to satisfy the photographer's aim of controlling the emotional intent of the photo.

    Second, I've never had a job where I didn't art my own stories, so I understand how difficult it can be. Keep hammering away at it.
     
  4. zagoshe

    zagoshe Well-Known Member

    Well, considering recent developments, the best track photos are apparently of female pole vaulters.....
     
  5. JLaff

    JLaff Guest

    Thanks for your comments, UT, I'm really trying to improve my photos. I thought the flag behind the pole vaulter was kind of cool, but that's just my opinion. I'm not aiming for a professional photog job, but it can't hurt to be versatile. The two photos I posted aren't going into print, it's just some stuff I shot for fun. I had to write 900 words about how athletes from 3 schools did and try to get photos of them as well, so I was a bit more worried about the story. Hopefully I'll have some time this summer to get to know the camera better (Olympus Evolt E-500).
     
  6. audreyld

    audreyld Guest

    I definitely liked the IDEA of the flag, JL. I could see what you were thinking with it. An ideal shot like that would (IMO) have the flag larger and more out of focus. It would also hide the pole and some of the other elements.
     
  7. jakewriter82

    jakewriter82 Active Member

    So I took this one photo and there's a lot of noise in the background so I tweaked it a little....An honest opinion on it would be appreciated.
    It's not the best photo I took from the weekend, it's focus is off just a bit.
    So here's the original <img src="http://i44.photobucket.com/albums/f16/mystery820/dulaneyvaultcolor.jpg">
    And here's the tweaked version
    <img src="http://i44.photobucket.com/albums/f16/mystery820/dulaneyvaultcoloreffect.jpg">
    Like I said, not the best of my photos but I thought I'd try to salvage it for the picture page. The tweaking might've made it worse? but it does focus more on the vaulter.
     
  8. fishwrapper

    fishwrapper Active Member

    Don't you think those are kind of small?
    Plus, I don't see much variation from the first photo to the second.
     
  9. jakewriter82

    jakewriter82 Active Member

  10. audreyld

    audreyld Guest

    He's making a joke about your small red Xs.
     
  11. jakewriter82

    jakewriter82 Active Member

    Ohhh...so the pictures aren't showing up...hmmm...
    they show up on my computer.
    that's odd.
     
  12. MGoBlue

    MGoBlue Member

    Remember ... the only thing worse than track is field.
     
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