Advice for shooting rugby

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philgale

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Phil Gale
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going to see my brothers wife play rugby on sunday and we are planning on taking a few shots of the action.

never shot a rugby game before so after a bit of advice on some settings to try or where to start with them. or what to look for that makes good shots

will be using a 7d and fingers crossed i can steal my mates 70-200 lens if not ill prob be using my crappy tampon 70-300 lens.

all help appreciated.

phil
 
Pray for a bright day! :LOL:

Went to see my bro-in-law play a couple of weeks ago and only managed to get some shots in the first half because it got too dark.

You want to be shooting with a shutter speed of at least 1/500 otherwise you'll get blurry images if the action's fast paced. Also if it gets dark you'll probably struggle to get good focus.

Other than that I'd set single/centre point Servo AF and set shutter to continuous, fire away and hope for some good shots :)
 
I find that standing behind the try line area (must have a propper name but I don't know it) looking straight down the pitch suits me best. Most of the action will be coming towards you (or away, obviously) which is ideal as faces and expressions make shots interesting.

Trys are obviously tempting to go for but I've only ever managed one decent shot of a try being scored in dozens of games. Most just look like somebody is lying on the floor. Instead, I find that either tackles or more simple shots of "person running with ball" are generally pretty good. I struggle shooting scrums, and line-outs can be a bit hit and miss (or if you are watching the wrong code, aren't going to happen).

Best tips are the simplest ones - shoot from as low down as you can, crop as tight as you can and shoot wide open. As Russ said, keep shutter speeds as high as you can. I don't know the 7D but would expect you could happily push iso to 1600 or higher if needed. Rather a noisy but sharp picture than a noise-free motion-blurred one.

If it does get really dark and shutter speeds drop too low for action, look for static shots - knackered players, hands on knees, steaming in the cold always look good. And try to get a portrait of your sister-in-law at the end of the game looking sweaty with her hair all covered in mud. She'll love you for it.
 
No probs mate. American Football.....YUK!, know absolutely nothing about the game and have no inclination to find out either....:LOL:
 
must agree with ian here
expect alot of waiting around, it can be anoying , but be patient..the play will come towards you eventually so be ready!
 
Wrap up warm, it can get very cold, trust me.
 
ianmarsh said:
Trys are obviously tempting to go for but I've only ever managed one decent shot of a try being scored in dozens of games. .
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I got told by one agency not to bother with tries.. its usualy either a picture of player runnin wiht ball or player putting ball on floor so not very interesting for rugby.... as you say you can get a good one now and then but not every game...

Therefore tackles are best.. fill the frame and crop right in for the nitty gritty would be my advice :)
 
Tries aren't often printed because as said can be dull, (unless you get a player diving at you etc) but try celebrations are massively import for pro togs, and can make great emotional pictures for amateurs. If you get a try at a crucial moment for the team you get genuine joy in players faces and team mates running up, hugging etc, From a pro perspective those are shots that frequently get printed. (it can be frustrating getting amazing action shots and then getting a relatively basic cele printed!)
 
philgale said:
going to see my brothers wife play rugby on sunday and we are planning on taking a few shots of the action.
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Phil - are you wanting lots of action with your brother's wife involved?

If so, then what position she plays in would be a help.

For example of she's a hooker then being behind the dead ball line is going to restrict the shots you can get.

For lots of shots of her - prowling the touch line may be a better option.
 
bigrob said:
....For example of she's a hooker then being behind the dead ball line is going to restrict the shots you can get.
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Robin! you could have chosen another position to illustrate your point....:LOL:
 
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AFC said:
Robin! you could have chosen another position to illustrate your point....:LOL:
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I just got this image of the OP asking his brother if his wife's a hooker! :nuts:
 
fabs said:
I just got this image of the OP asking his brother if his wife's a hooker! :nuts:
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And ending up looking like this :boxer: :cool:.

How's that old song go."Two lovely black eyes......" :LOL:
 
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You missed the other innuendo

"Phil - are you wanting lots of action with your brother's wife involved?":LOL:
 
bigrob said:
For example of she's a hooker then being behind the dead ball line is going to restrict the shots you can get.

AFC said:
Robin! you could have chosen another position to illustrate your point....:LOL:
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Talk about a missed opportunity to take the wrong end of the stick even further though:

bigrob said:
Phil - are you wanting lots of action with your brother's wife involved?
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:D

Phil, as well as the advice above, which is excellent, have a trawl through the rugby pics that have been posted in the last month in the Sports Photos forum. The images themselves and surrounding comments should give you a really clear idea of what can be achieved at any level of game.
 
bigrob said:
You missed the other innuendo

"Phil - are you wanting lots of action with your brother's wife involved?":LOL:
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I did notice that one, but I thought you was in enough trouble as it was...:LOL:
 
not really too fussed about getting photos of her, just any good photos really. good news is i will be using my mates 70-200 f2.8 so much better than my crappy tamron lens.

thanks for the advice will be sure to post up some pics, im also at oulton tomorrow picking my bike up so will be getting some snaps there.
 
Hi Phil, just to go against the grain a bit, here's a pic used in the nationals of either (neither?) a try or Celeb!!
GAC_0376.jpg


PS though I hope (though think not) it's RL advice from Mr GC is well advised!.
 
AFC said:
Wrap up warm, it can get very cold, trust me.
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and just to reiterate, wrap up warm.

Walking boots and thick socks are a must to keep the feet from getting cold.
Most local rugby club pitches are on huge open areas so the wind rips across, but generally you'll get a good coffee and bacon sandwich from the clubhouse.

It's really dark at the moment, last match I was shooting ISO800, f2.8 to get any sort of decent shutter speed.
 
I have to agree with Gary about the light. Shooting under lights we can be anywhere between 1600 up to max 6400 and with a shutter speed as low as 500/640 , which means I am normally trying to get head on shots.
 
I'll be videoing rugby today and will be up on a scaffolding platform.

I hope there it's not windy - brrrrr brrrrr
 
Byker28i said:
and just to reiterate, wrap up warm.

Walking boots and thick socks are a must to keep the feet from getting cold.
Most local rugby club pitches are on huge open areas so the wind rips across, but generally you'll get a good coffee and bacon sandwich from the clubhouse.

It's really dark at the moment, last match I was shooting ISO800, f2.8 to get any sort of decent shutter speed.
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Got to agree here...Dont scrimp on the warm weather gear, You do get what you pay for...
 
bigrob said:
I'll be videoing rugby today and will be up on a scaffolding platform.

I hope there it's not windy - brrrrr brrrrr
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Glad your back in the saddle Robin. (y)

Wasn't sure if Southend's game was on because they shut Jersey airport, but I found out they came over yesterday, so game on. (y)
 
Did I hear "Kick and Clap" and "Action" in the same sentence? ;) There's an oxymoron if ever there was one :p
 
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