A wide angle lens can put you right in the middle of what's happening. You will need to pay attention for flying balls, bodies, and celebrations, but the outcome can be rewarding.
Since you are home with your family right now and do not need to adhere to the six-foot rule, what do you say we work on some photos where we are close to the subject. Grab your camera and widest lens (the lowest mm number among your lenses) and get ready for some close action of people or pets.
Baseball should be starting up now , but since all sports are on hold, I have to find different action. My subject today was a soccer player practicing her goal keeping. Since this was not a professional game, I was able to get closer than usual to the action and shot this at 16mm. For MLS games, I would have to be behind the field photo line, but for this I was able to position myself on the post and shot as many frames as I could each time there was a shot on goal, all the while keeping aware of the missed shots.
You should chimp (look at the back of your camera) a little to see if you are properly exposed and to see how the background looks. With a wide angle, you will have a lot in focus. This can be good, but it can also add some very distracting items like poles growing out of people. Take a look and adjust if you need to clean up your background.
For the baseball celebration, members of the Pittsburgh Pirates celebrate a walk-off win. I was positioned in the third base photo well and used one of the two cameras I was shooting with. One lens is a telephoto for tight game action, but the other is a wide-angle lens in case the action, or in this case, jubilation gets close to me. This time I got a nice shot at 19mm, and stained clothes from the bath we both ensued. So beware when you are getting close. Sometimes, you will become part of it.
So, while your are telling the action stories of your children, be sure to include a wide-angle shot to get a different perspective.
For more photo tips, visit the blog at www.PavelyPhotography.com
Camera settings:
Soccer: 1/2500 sec; f5; ISO 500; Manual
Baseball: 1/1000 sec; f4; ISO 220; Manual
