Seeing Light

Taken by a compact. Converted to black and white because the WB was off. Nevertheless, the noise was already rearing it’s ugly head at iso160.

But then again.. the mood was there… and a compact is user-friendly enough for others to take a portrait of yourself.

Compacts… better than nothing.

Stephanie Sun @ Singapore Indoor Stadium

Crammed pit, high stage, crazy contrasty lighting, dangerously close pyrotechnics… do u even expect me to shoot?

Most pictures here have gone through some pretty shameless post processing work. If i shot such concerts for a living the D3 is a necessity, not a luxury. There isn’t enough highlight headroom at iso2000 on the D300, and the noise is getting pretty intrusive.

Waited an hour before the concert began.. WTH. Seeing how the arena was arranged i sort-of knew what’s to come… 7 of us photogs were sandwiched between 2 huge video cams. I’m in for a rough time.

The high (taller than me) stage meant that full body shots were almost impossible. The “extra” dancers were also always around her, thinking that they were some multi-coated high transparency glass. Gits…

As we shoved and stack over one another in a bid to get a few bread-and-butter shots, they decided to give us a little treat by blasting some pyrotechnics aimed dangerously low below the waistline… Everything happened so fast there wasn’t time to dodge. In the end all of us looked like clowns in golden feathers. I know my outfit isn’t as fancy as yours… but at least respect my choice ok?

Talk about finale…

学...

6 lengthy days. 6 sleepless nights. 44gb of pictures. Countless thoughts. What have I learnt? What have I understood?

Learning is a slow and on-going process. The same applies to the CAM3500DX focusing on my D300. The same applies to shooting a table tennis competition. The same applies to things in life.

Different players have different habits, different playing tactics, different reactions when they win/lose, and love to face different directions. Observe. Study carefully, and only then can one get the better pictures. Don't rush.

While the focus tracking on the D300 is certainly very good, it has many limitations too. The point you first focus on is very important. It will affect how the camera will track the subject subsequently. Depending on situations, one might have to turn on the focus lock-on so that it doesn't get distracted so easily. I personally find dynamic 51pt autofocus, with lock-on set to "normal" tends to be most suitable.

Same goes for life. 出发点要对. Have a strong purpose and clear goal in life. Without it, it's easy to lose your way...

Do not fret when you miss a picture. Chances are you'll miss even more while fretting.

Stamina is crucial, one must be prepared for the long run. Know when to rest. Know how to work out with your team to optimise the effort you put in. Know where each other are, so you don't duplicate/block each other.

Mutual trust is important.

Everyday is a learning experience.