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Jan, 2014Views
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Fall Award 2020
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Superb Composition
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Behind The Lens
Location
I captured this photo at a barrel racing event in the small community of Darrington Washington, (about 85 miles northeast of Seattle Washington USA). Darrington, founded in about 1890, is settled at the base of the Cascade Mountain Range and has a population of about 1400 people. Darrington is one of those “little towns” that normally people bypass and never realize the photogenic opportunity they missed. I visit Darrington often for wildlife, rodeo, barrel racing and other events throughout the summer and winter. I live about 30 miles west of Darrington, and have easy access to Seattle and Canada. I had to retire from Law Enforcement after being struck by a stolen vehicle. My wife wanted me to find a hobby, so I purchased my first camera (Nikon D3200), which was in mid 2013. I’m “self-taught” and still learning each time I go out. When I first started, my focus was wildlife (and I still love it today). I read just about every book I can on photography, and have begun venturing into different areas out of my comfort zone, and loving it. Each year since being injured my wife has sent me on photography road trip for a few weeks at a time. Her idea is for me to expand what I photograph (and get me out of her hair) and it has been amazing! I’m on no schedule, no set time to be somewhere. I just go out and take pictures.Time
This is actually a funny question. If you read-read my “Where did you take this photo”, I got my first camera in early 2013 when I had to retire. My focus at the time was nothing but wildlife (mainly eagles), but I did manage to get some other photos here and there. Summer was approaching and I was looking to shoot something else (the eagles would be leaving in March or so), so I tried my hand at a couple of things. A friend, who is a horse person, talked me into shooting pictures at a barrel racing event. One thing that I really like it movement while I’m shooting, and there is a lot of movement. One race led to two and so on… At first I had a hard time adjusting my shot to really catch the action and still keeping the subject in focus. To be truthful the first race I went to, I trashed more pictures then I kept. While I did shoot pictures at the next couple of races, I watched more than anything. I watched how the rider pulled the horse into and around the barrel and the last barrel (4th out of 4) is one action shot you don’t want to miss. The last barrel they pour everything into it and race for the timer. Yes, I can be an overthinker…? Now, I started taking barrel racing pictures! With each race my photos were getting better and better. One thing I did learn was to take 4 to 5 pictures at each barrel. I start clicking from the time the rider comes into the barrel until they exit that barrel. That way I don’t miss the action. Oh, back to the question…. This picture was taken August 25th 2013 at 1:35pm. My first barrel racing event was late June 2013. To this day I still shoot barrel racing, rodeos and just about anything horse related. The funny part…. I would have never thought about shooting barrel racing or horse events if it wasn’t for my friend. Always keep an open mind.Lighting
For the most part barrel racing is an outdoor event. For those inclement weather days (Yes we get rain in Washington), the event, if possible is moved indoors. You have to be conscious of the weather (sun, clouds, rain…) and where the best place is to shoot from. Sometimes you may get stuck in one area and you have to make the best of it. Normally you are working with the sun, and hopefully you can adjust where you shoot from. For that inclement weather and indoor shooting, be prepared to work with low lighting (in most cases). Your flash if it works, may not be allowed.Equipment
This shot was taken with my Nikon D3200, with a Nikon lens (70mm to 200mm), no flash, no tripod.Inspiration
Looking for something new to shoot and had (have) a need for speed.Editing
Except for cropping, no.In my camera bag
It really depends on where and what I am doing. Things like barrel racing normally I only carry my D800 with the Nikon 70-200mm. I don’t bother with a flash, because I don’t want to take the chance of spooking the horses. I like to say my D800 and 70-200 is what I call my “Go to setup”. I spend more time behind that camera and lens than anything else. I sit up high in the bleachers for barrel racing and rodeo, and I have found the 200mm can shoot across the arena and stay sharp even on a fast moving horse or bull. I just checked my shutter count for the D800 and it is over 100 thousand. The D3200 is at 78 thousand. Needless to say I like to hit the button, but I don’t miss the shot…?Feedback
Wow, where to start. We are only talking about barrel racing and this one picture I took, so I will limit my reply for the most part to that picture and barrel racing. If you have never shot horses, as in barrel racing, rodeo and jump classes, watch what is going on for a few minutes. Sure, take some pictures and see how they turn out. Watch your focus, and where the action is going to be, not where you think it is. One of the reasons my shutter count is way up there is besides horse events, I got into shooting motocross and some modeling work, plus my wildlife. I shoot a lot of frames on all these events, and it is free. As you can tell by the shutter count on both of my cameras, I love the shutter button. One series of shots I got at a rodeo was a clown being chased by the bull. The bull had thrown the rider and went after the clown. The series is 36 shots from the time the bull came out of the chute until the clown was ok. During these 36 shots, the clown was thrown 20 feet into the air. Everything was captured because I kept shooting until the action was done. One of the main things about shooting horse events is don’t get discourage. Self-taught, just new or never shot this type of event can be challenging. Don’t give up, just keep going, do the best you can and learn from what you did.
