Help with Figure Skating Shots

[Curtis Cunningham]

In a couple weeks I'm going to be shooting groups and individuals at a one-day Figure Skating festival. This afternoon I went and did a few test shots to get an idea of what the lighting requirements will be.

Set at ISO 800, I metered the light at f/5.6 and got a shutter speed of 1/8 second. I did a custom white balance with a gray card. The resulting shots have what seem to be fairly significant noise.

So my questions are as follows:

1. I'm not sure how large the skating-mom's are going to want to blow up their daughter's photos, so I'm not sure it's worth the potential trouble to bring my studio lights onto the ice (I'd obviously try and get some rubber-backed carpet underneath) to be able to get a lower ISO. Do you think the trade off is worth it to risk using my lights? FYI I'm thinking of offering 8x10's and 12x18's on my order form.
2. I shot the following images in RAW and ended up decreasing the exposure by 0.75 to get the ice to an acceptable whiteness. Straight OOTC I felt with my exposure the ice was a little over-exposed.

I'm not sure if this will affect things on the night of the shoot or not, but the coordinator who was helping me this afternoon, is going to be looking for some large curtains/drapes to cover the boards/glass behind where I'll be doing the shots. The coordinator told me that the parents didn't want the stands/building/nets etc. showing up in the background (as they do in these proofs).

I didn't remember to bring my tripod with me this afternoon for these tests, but I'll bring it on the day of the shoot.

Lastly, for those who have done this before, have you ever offered the digital images on a CD on your order forms? Did you get a good response? I was considering offering a group and individual shot on a disc for $30.

Thanks,
Curtis

[DougAxford]

I'll try to answer since I do a lot of that. I've got another Carnival (festival - they almost always are called Carnival or Flashing Blades) session in 10 days.

First, I do hockey on the ice, never skating Carnival, just way too many problems. Ice time costs big $$, if you have an auditorium or large room attached to the arena, do it there, no question in my mind on that one.

Assuming there is no large room, then my choice is the same as I do for hockey, overpower ambient with flash. You will find that the arena lights will be exceptionally difficult to balance because each one is a slightly different colour temp. Everyone I know who shoots in arenas has the same problem. Look directly at the lights. I've never been to a local arena where they are identical - some pinkish, some green. It's from aging. The difference in photos is dramatic. Most of us shooting hockey or skating action use raw or AWB to eliminate the problem but in larger groups you will likely have some people under one light, some under another. Ouch.

Next, the coordinator is correct about the background. Once again, for hockey it's perfect, for skating, you've got to have backdrops. We have 11x22' muslins just for this purpose. If I had to do it on the ice, I'd check the exact height and clip them to the top of the glass. You HAVE to be careful with flash reflections, it will go right through anything but the heaviest drapes. Angle flash to eliminate this.

For any kind of shot like this, there is no way I would attempt it without some flash fill to give me a decent look to the face. Parents are expecting portraits, not grab shots, it's got to be a decent photo if you want to charge for this. Otherwise, your shots will be no better than theirs. Now, if you are using the arena lights for fill, you have to balance or filter your flash to match the arena - wonder why I overpower now? Yup, can be done, lots of testing or a colour temp meter.

You didn't say what camera you are using at 800 ISO. I'm very comfortable at 800 on a Canon 40D or better and I aim for poster prints and sell a lot of 8x10's, so that's a guide. HOWEVER, in my experience, shooting under poor arena lighting for a portrait type shot is pushing the limits at 800. It does make a huge difference for higher ISO under good or bad lighting conditions if the customer is expecting a portrait style.

Last, I would never sell a CD for this type of event, you'll lose money. Why would parents buy print packs when they can buy a CD? The guys that sell Cd's are normally $75. & up. Yes, some school guys sell CDs but they are lower rez and often come only with the highest $$ pack.

Let me know what else you need. Honestly, if you want more info. I'd rather have you call me at a preset time. A whole lot easier for me.

I do worry that you're tryting to build a business from scatch and it only takes one distaster to ruin it all in a town. This has the potential to be a problem if you're not careful.

Last thing, I would never , ever try to do skating poses with smaller kids on the ice. Just too dangerous. The movements they want to duplicate in a pose depend upon momentum to work, use a light grey carpet and everyone is happier. I learned this the hard way.

Doug

[KevinStecyk]

Hi Curtis,

You didn't ask for a critique or for general feedback. So I hope you don't mind my comments.

With regard to lights, I'd say bring'em. You can always decide NOT to use'em. But if you can use them without too much fuss, I think they'll help.

I'd try to get the pictures looking right in the camera as opposed to adjusting in Photoshop or other applications afterwards. Get your color balance and exposure correct before you begin.

Get down lower to the ice surface when you shoot. I would to position the camera at the kids' chest height. If you can, try to ensure that the yellow line at the top of the boards doesn't cut through the kids' heads nor necks. Or even better, arrange for different background. Also, getting lower gives the impression that you are not looking down at them. Rather, you are seeing them more as they see themselves.

And I'd step back a few paces and use a longer lens or longer focal length. This results in less body distortion (not that much can be seen) and reduces the background distractions.

I hope that these comments are of some value.

Best regards,
Kevin