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No post - off camera only

Big lesson learnt-take the book with you- had tot shoot AFS as i was unable to reset to AFC hence the focus tracking was not functional --oops lucky for the D300s

From today before the rain

Even though it has the busiest background I think I like the third of the bike shots - maybe because it has a bit more contrast and pop.

The first of the horse shots is a really nice compo - if I was nitpicking I think I would have liked the head a touch higher and the eyes within the DoF.

inmotion wrote:No post - off camera only

Hmm,
OK we seem to have similar shooting interests it would seem.
For what it is worth I'll post my thoughts for consideration. I do mainly rallies, like The Australian Safari, Condo 750 and Hattah as examples. You can see some of my work in the upcoming Australian Dirt Bike Magazine. I'll post one in a bit from the last Condo 750. Anyway.
With dirt bikes or bikes in motion and particularly dirt bikes. Its really important to get some wheel movement in your shots, like the second shot. I usually go around 1/320 to 1/800 max, its all depending on the speed of the bike. It is really important to get some wheel/tyre blur to give/help with the impression of speed and movement. 1/640 is probably a good place to start. For the above shot 1/500 would do the trick from experience. The composition is great for the first one but the second and Especially the last, require a much shallower depth of field. Too busy for me and the eye is lost for me.

I'd pp them and get rid of some of the distractions and crop a bit..
I don't normally post cc but since we have similar interests and the same body..
Here's 2 examples.

[quote="inmotion"]From today before the rain


Horse images,
Wow what a mine field you have entered shooting dressage. I'll pass on a couple of pointers I have learnt from more than a couple of decades with dressage horses, comps and presentation. To the normal person a pic of a horse and rider is a pic of a horse and rider. But to the informed or educated viewer you need to consider a whole raft of
The first and foremost is correctness of horse and rider in every detail. That what makes or breaks an image for your intended audience.

As an example, in the first image, from the perspective shown the horse appears behind the vertical. In dressage circles, thats a no no. I'd like to see the judges comments. Forgetting about the quality of the image for a second, the composition is a tad off and therefore disqualifies it, if you know what I mean. Plus a little more depth of field would ensure the eye's of the horse were in focus as well.
In Equestrian photography a front facing image is always going to be better.

e.g.;



The second one is too busy. The markers on the arena make the image too busy. From a correctness point of view the wither needs to come up allowing the neck to flatten a bit so that the horse does not cramp up in the neck.

I don't know if this is making sense to you and I don't want to be misunderstood. Just trying to help you on your way with a few tips. Hope it helps.