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CFDWednesday (5 of 5)



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JDLifeshots
 
JDLifeshots April 20, 2016
Great capture! Congrats.
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Behind The Lens

Location

Cheyenne Frontier Days is a once a year festival celebrated in my hometown of Cheyenne, Wyoming. There is a rodeo everyday and it is the world's largest outdoor rodeo. I was in the camera pit when I took this photo which is just what it sounds like: a big cemented hole in the ground on the edge of the arena lined with big lenses and anxious photographers.

Time

Taken in the afternoon around 1 p.m. The afternoon rodeos are the best for light. The bright sun allows for the necessary fast shutter speeds to keep up with the animals and their riders with the least amount of motion blur. Photographers do have to be ready for incoming or passing clouds that can block the sun and darken the sky dramatically at times. Rain showers are a frequent occurrence during the festivities. These riders are already muddy from a recent shower. It helps add to the story and a little dirt never hurt!

Lighting

Natural light is the best in my opinion. I have shot events in an indoor arena and the lighting is so terrible you have to use a really high ISO to catch the action. I like to keep my ISO as low as I can to keep the noise and grain down. That being said, I will boost the ISO if I have to to get the images.

Equipment

I used a Sony a99 with a 70-200mm f2.8 lens at 200mm, handheld. Shutter at 1/3200 ISO 320

Inspiration

I love the action of a good rodeo! The animals, cowboys and cowgirls are giving it their all. Tense muscles, expressions, flying dirt and a race against the clock is all in the image. It is almost impossible not to walk away with a few hundred images to sort through after one rodeo. Sometimes more. I was lucky to be able to shoot a few days from the camera pit and I am still finding great images. Every year I do it I feel like I get better at focusing and knowing where to be at what time during a ride/event.

Editing

I edit in Lightroom and Nik plug-ins. I generally have minor color corrections, lens corrections (LR makes this a breeze) and I like to lift some of the shadows that fall on the rider's and animals faces. I try not to go extreme with this as it can start to look unnatural and introduce grain.

In my camera bag

I only have the one camera right now, a full frame Sony a99 which was a recent upgrade from the Sony a77. I feel like I would not get far as a photographer without my 70-200mm f2.8 (Sony G series). Also, I am in love with Zeiss and have a wide angle 24-70mm f2.8 for landscapes. My Sony 135mm f4.5 is great for portrait work. My bag wouldn't be complete without a tripod and I use a Benro, but lately I have been using a Sirui monopod. Minolta flashes and lenses work with Sony alpha mounts and I use a Minolta 5600 HS external flash when necessary or getting creative with lighting when doing portraits. Unfortunately, I suffer from gear envy like a lot of photographers. Right now, I would like a longer telephoto such as a 400mm (or bigger) for wildlife, birds and rodeos.

Feedback

My advice is to always be ready. If you take the time to look at the back of your camera you are risking missing something. Extreme sports happen fast and they don't wait. Practice, practice, practice! This helps familiarize you with your gear and settings. Also, there is no shame in using shutter or aperture priority. If you get the image you had already pictured in your mind what does it matter what mode you were in?

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