For you antsy folks, there is a contest at the bottom, but you’ll have to have read the post to have a fighting chance!
Image 1: Julian Carr skis fresh Utah powder at Alta Ski Area
Earlier this week we were blessed with a bounty of blower (read: ridiculously light Utah powder) here in the Wasatch. It was the first day of shooting skiing for me this season, and it did not disappoint. There are some days where most everything goes right, and this just happened to be one of those days.
Image 2: Jen Hudak skis fresh Utah powder at Alta Ski Area
Anyone that has ever attempted to shoot fast and unpredictable action knows well the challenges of coming away with a sharp image. It’s hard enough to frame it up exactly as you’d like, let alone focus. Any athlete that has ever shot with me knows my typical response when I see something I like on my camera LCD display–”that will be killer if it’s sharp”. IF IT’S SHARP….
Nowadays, the auto focus systems on pro (and even some prosumer) cameras are so advanced that it’s tough to screw things up. That said, it still happens, and it always seems to happen to the shot or frame that you wanted the most. There are a few things we can do as photographers to nail the shot every time. When shooting skiing, there are essentially two techniques I use to focus. I will use a focus tracking method where I’m utilizing the auto focus in my camera throughout the image sequence and at other times I may pre-focus on a specific spot where I’ve directed the athlete to go. Both techniques work well in certain situations–some better than others.
Image 3: Carlo Travarelli skis fresh Utah powder at Alta Ski Area
Focus Tracking
Focus tracking works well when:
a) the athlete is moving towards or away from you at a rapid pace
b) you’re not sure where the climactic action will occur OR there are a number of images throughout the action sequence that you may want as keepers
c) there could be confusion between you and the athlete as to where exactly it is you’d like them to turn, air, etc.
d) generally speaking, the athlete will not remain parallel to the focal plane throughout the sequence
*Note: As a Canon shooter, I focus with my AF-On button instead of my shutter button. This allows the camera to continue micro-adjusting focus as the shutter clicks away.
*Note #2: It is best to manually select a focus zone in your camera. Place that focus zone over the part of the athlete you’d like in focus (most often the face). I typically start “tracking” focus about two seconds or so before I start clicking the shutter.
Image 4: Julian Carr skis fresh Utah powder at Alta Ski Area
Pre Focus
Pre focus works well when:
a) you have a specific, mutually understood spot (between you and the athlete) where the climactic action will occur
b) the athlete is maintaining approximate equal distance from the focal plane throughout the action sequence
c) you’re shooting at infinity focus–in particular, this pertains to long lens, big line shots where the athlete is a great distance away OR wide angle shots where you’re shooting at infinity
d) there may be anything present (obstacles, weird lighting, atmospheric conditions) that would confuse your auto focus (there are ways to tweak your AF system so it doesn’t get thrown off as easily with things like this)
* Note that pre-focusing requires precise explanation and understanding on the part of the photographer and athlete as to where the action should occur. Generally speaking, the longer you have worked with an athlete, the better you will understand each other, and the more confident you will feel that the athlete can nail the spot on which you’ve pre-focused. Additionally, it’s wise to use larger apertures when possible, thus giving yourself and the athlete a margin for error across the focal plane if for some reason they are a bit closer or further away than the spot you mentioned.
Image 5: Julian Carr skis fresh Utah powder at Alta Ski Area
So. Contest time. I’ve included images throughout this post from shooting at Alta Ski Area on New Year’s Eve Day. I have a super cool Clik Elite medium lens pouch (great for wide angle zooms or moderate primes) and t-shirt for the first person that can correctly state which focusing technique was used on each image in this post. The contest will end on Wednesday, Jan. 6. Good luck!
Image 6: Julian Carr skis fresh Utah powder at Alta Ski Area
Tags: Adam Barker, Adam Barker Photography, Alta Ski Area, Alta Ski Area Photos, Auto Focus Technique, Best Auto Focus Technique, Best way to focus when shooting fast action, Canon Camera, Carlo Travarelli Photos, Clik Elite Photo Packs, Grip It and Rip It, Jen Hudak Photos, Julian Carr, Julian Carr Photos, Photos Alta Powder, Photos Powder Skiing Utah, Powder, Powder Skiing Utah, Ski Photography Utah, Utah
Hey Adam, nice article and nice shots. It has been amazing for the past few days (backcountry better than resorts because of the crowds). Glad you are getting out to get some great shots and hopefully some great lines yourself.
My thoughts are:
1 – Pre Focus
2 – Focus Tracking
3 – Pre Focus
4 – Focus Tracking
5 – Pre Focus
6 – Pre Focus
1). Pre-Focus
2). Focus Tracking
3). Pre-Focus
4). Focus Tracking
5). Pre-Focus
6). Pre-Focus / but actually either would make an OK choice.
Okay I’ll play!
1 – pre focus
2 – focus tracking
3 – focus tracking
4 – focus tracking
5 – pre focus
6 – pre focus
Killer shots btw!
1-pre focus
2- focus tracking
3-pre focus
4-focus tracking
5-focus tracking
6-pre focus
1 – pre focus
2 – focus tracking
3 – pre-focus
4 – focus tracking
5 – focus tracking
6 – pre focus
trap
track
track
track
trap
trap
1 – Pre Focus
2 – Focus Tracking
3 – Pre Focus
4 – Focus Tracking
5 – Pre Focus
6 – Pre Focus
Thank You for this post, it’s very usefull.
1- pre-focus
2- focus tracking
3- pre-focus
4- focus tracking
5- pre-focus
6- focus tracking
1- pre-focus
2- focus tracking
3- pre-focus
4- focus tracking
5- focus tracking
6- focus tracking
Thanks for the always informative lessons.
1 – Pre Focus
2 – Focus Tracking
3 – Pre Focus
4 – Focus Tracking
5 – Pre Focus
6 – Pre Focus
Thank You for posting this, nice advices.
1. Pre focus
2. Focus tracking
3. Pre focus
4. Pre focus
5. Pre focus
6. Pre focus
1. Pre-focus
2. Pre-focus
3. Pre-focus
4. Focus Tracking
5. Pre-focus
6. Focus Tracking
1. Pre-focus
2. Pre-focus
3. Pre-focus
4. Focus tracking
5. Focus tracking
6. Focus tracking
Nice Shots Adam
1- Pre-focus
2- Focus Tracking
3- Focus Tracking
4- Focus Tracking
5- Focus Tracking
6- Pre-focus
Alrighty!! Thanks to everyone for their responses. Looks like Thomas nailed it right out of the gate with an accurate focus assessment of each shot. I’ve included explanations for each shot below. Thomas–please email me your address and I’ll get your prize shipped out. Congrats!
1. Pre Focus–this image was shot with a 70-200mm lens, and it should be obvious that I’m shooting at infinity focus here. I chose to focus on the skim lit ridge, just where the skier was instructed to go.
2. Focus Tracking–the skier is approaching the camera at a fast rate of speed here. I grabbed focus about 1 second before the athlete exploded into the air.
3. Pre Focus–this image was shot with a 24-105mm lens. I chose to pre focus on a specific spot as I wanted to make sure and frame the shot up with the shadowed section of snow in the foreground. Had I been tracking focus on this shot, it would have been much more difficult to compose exactly as I wanted to. It’s also worth noting that this image is a good candidate for pre focus as the skier is maintaining an approximate equal distance from the focal plane throughout the action sequence.
4. Focus Tracking–same as #2. Grab focus before the skier gets into the apex of his/her turn. Keep the manually chosen focus zone over the face of the skier, and click away.
5. Pre Focus–A bit of a tricky one here. Back lit conditions with all the crazy snow crystals in the air can often confuse the camera’s AF. I instructed the skier where to make the magic happen and focused on that spot.
6. Pre Focus–This image was obviously created with a wide angle lens. The skier is a significant distance away from me, which means I was shooting at infinity focus. Aperture was stopped down to f16 to get a pronounced sunburst.
Again, thanks for playing! Check back again some time soon for more contests and giveaways!
Another technique is Hyperfocal Distance. Or maybe that is what you mean by infinity focus. Great shoots!
Hey Jimmy–
Hyperfocal distance doesn’t particularly apply here cause we’re not really looking for maximum depth of field, we’re more looking for focus accuracy on a particular spot. Even when focusing at infinity, I am still looking for limited depth of field to a degree (obviously this depends on the shot). Most of the time, I am looking for separation between the athlete and everything else and this can be achieved by shooting at smaller apertures. Again, there are exceptions to this, but by and large it is the case most of the time. Additionally, while hyperfocal results are adequate for landscape work, I am looking for my athlete to be tack sharp, and most of the time, I’m not willing to take the “acceptably sharp” results yielded by hyperfocusing. Thanks for the comment!
Rad, thanks! Looking forward to checking out the Clik Elite gear. Keep up the stellar work!