Photo article for motorcycle magazine

[nw scout]

Hey Guys
An editor of a motorcycle magazine has asked me to do another photo article for them.
While I have done them in the past, this one is a little different for me. I decided to do the article about point and shoot digital cameras, as thats the camera a majority of riders use while out on rides.
While I have been shooting motor sports professionally for over 15 years, writing and point and shoots cameras are a little out of my knowledge base.

Here is what I put together. Let me know what you think and if there are other things you think I should ad or maybe change.
Remember, this article is focused on dirt bike riders looking into cameras for recreational use, not pros or even advanced amateurs.






Photo tips
for
Digital point and shoot cameras

While all the little digital point and shoot cameras out there don't produce images near as well and most 35mm format SLR's, they do have some great advantages. They are small, relatively cheep, produce nice images, and most important for us dirt bike riders, they are convenient to carry while out on a ride.
Even though they are not that good for action photos, point and shoots are great for trail side pics, portraits and scenic shots while out on a ride.

There are hundreds to choose from and they are full of all kinds of trick features. But don't get to caught up in the big number mega pixel war. Any newer camera over 8 mp will give you a nice image. But there is a few things to look for when buying a new camera and there are some helpful tips on how to use it when out on a ride.

I shoot with all canon cameras and love them. I choose the Canon G9 a few years ago as my trail camera and it has been great. It is small, has more than enough mega pixels, full manual mode, video, variable flash output and image quality good enough for a nice 24in x 36in print.
All the pics shown here are from my trusty little G9.


What to look for when buying.
Everyone has a different reason for buying a camera, so there is no perfect camera for everyone. But there are certain things I look for in a camera that I plan on taking out on rides.

Small and compact. It needs to fit in a small easy to access pocket of my riding jacket. You will miss out on so many great shots if you need to pull it out of a backpack or dig for it. The easer the access, the more you will use it and the better your photography will become from the practice.

A good fast lens is a must. If it's not a F2.8 or faster don't bother.

Research the camera before you buy. DPreview.com is a great source of info. Make sure to read the buyers reviews. Lots of great feedback from fellow buyers.

Most all the new cameras have video. While I don't use it much on the trail it is great to have for quick videos of the kids and family. HD is nice, but takes up a ton of memory and may not be that important to manny users.

Make sure the model you are looking at has a feature where you can control the flash output. Point and shoots are notorious for overexposing the flash. Make sure you can turn it down manually and your images will come out much better.

Full manual mode is nice if you want to grow as a photographer. Only the higher end models have full manual so the cost is going to be a bit higher. While manual is not a must have on a point and shoot, as you learn more you will be able to create nicer images with the use of the manual mode.




Trail tips for shooting.
When your in the woods, try to shoot in the soft light when it's cloudy or overcast. It evens out the light and makes for a nice shot. If its sunny out you need to get close to your subject (buddy on there bike) and use your flash.

When shooting an action shot, compose the shot before hand and press the shutter button down half way. This will set the focus and the exposure before the rider comes into frame and cuts out most all the lag time that point and shoots are notorious for.

Keep your ASA as low as possible. Point and shoots have a very small image sensor and handle higher ASA settings very poorly. 200 asa is the highest most will go before the image starts to fall apart. Stick with 100ASA whenever possible.


As a general rule, try to keep your shutter speed at or above your focal length. By this I mean, if you are shooting zoomed in a little at 50mm, your shutter speed should be around a 60th of a second. This will help keep your images sharp and reduce camera shaky images.

Stay away from the zoom when in the woods or in low light situations. When you zoom in with a point and shoot, the lens closes down and allows in less light, thus giving you a slower shutter speed and a better chance of getting blurry images.

Keep your camera in a easy to reach place while you are ridding. Many a great picture may be missed if you are worried you are holding your friends up. I keep mine in the front zipper pocket of my ridding jacket. I can stop, pull it out and get a pic in just a few seconds. Thats what makes these cameras so great!

I hope these tips and info help you out when making a choice in which camera to get and how best to use it. Always remember, don't just take a picture, create one! Move around a little, find the best light and composition for your location and create a great shot.


Trail #1
Back light in the woods can look great but the light needs to be soft.
http://schelske.smugmug.com/photos/711337648_pURVJ-L.jpg

Trail #2
When at a beautiful vista, compose you shot so your eye travels around the image. Try to show more than just the view. A nice foreground leading away always helps your image.
http://schelske.smugmug.com/photos/711349387_2Mwnr-L.jpg

Bike pic #1
We all like to shoot photos of our bikes. Ad a nice trail and some woods to help tell the story of the day
http://schelske.smugmug.com/photos/711338519_a3pk3-L.jpg

Bike pic #2
Adding your bike to a vista shot can make for a great image. It really helps to show what a great sport ridding is.
http://schelske.smugmug.com/photos/711339510_mDz7b-L.jpg

Portrait pic#1
I set this up and had my buddy shoot this photo of me while on the Black Dog dual sport ride.
He moved in close, shot as wide as the lens would go and held the camera up high so the photo would show the valley down below. A regular eye level shot would have just been all clouds in the background.
http://schelske.smugmug.com/photos/711338949_RXZZw-L.jpg

Portrait pic#2
Showing your friends on a cool trail helps to tell the the story of the days ride. Here I hopped off the trail so I could show both the view and the unique trail we were ridding.
http://schelske.smugmug.com/photos/711341889_ZE9Hg-L.jpg

Action #1
Action pics with a point and shoot are tricky. Here I pre focused and got down really low so the roost would show up good against the sky.
http://schelske.smugmug.com/photos/711344173_DKvT7-L.jpg

Action #2
On an action shot in the woods, its best to have the rider go slow and keep them small in the frame. Shoot at full wide to get the fastest shutter speed you can without bumping up your ASA. This will also help show the beauty of the forrest your ridding in.
http://schelske.smugmug.com/photos/711345555_optG6-L.jpg

Scenic #1
Scenic shots are usually best in late or early light. The lower the sun is in the sky, the warmer and softer the light.
I shot this early one morning at Glamis. I moved around till I found a nice composition that had a nice interesting foreground with some fresh wind blown sand.
http://schelske.smugmug.com/photos/711351499_xbUkM-L.jpg

Scenic #2
Here, the forest was beautiful by it's self, but the old dirt road made the shot that much better. Again, the soft light and wide lens really make the shot. If i came across this on a sunny day, I would have just rode right by or stopped and waited for a cloud to come overhead.
http://schelske.smugmug.com/photos/711352647_6osnN-L.jpg


Thanks for the input guys.
Dave

[torags]

Good article. I have a couple of comments.

Consider rewording this:

"A good fast lens is a must. If it's not a F2.8 or faster don't bother." when I first got a P&S (LX1), I didn't understand the statement fast glass/lens. But the reviews said it had poor low light performance (that I understood). I didn't attach fast or wide to an aperture opening, since I didn't know what an aperture was. Perhap the fstop numbers would be more understandable.

Most P&S shooters will use A (auto). I do with my P&S when I do shots for work (I keep it in my car)

Personally I would encourage using the auto scenes most P&S cams have on their dial.

You might get some copy from camera instructions for a P&S to dumbify your thinking, to express very fundamental concepts (that you may have forgotten)

Good luck

just my .02

[kurtw]

Hi Dave,

I think this is an article that a lot of people will enjoy and be able to put to practice. I wish we could see the photos that go along with it. Please post a link or cite the magazine when it's published!

A couple comments from the peanut gallery...

Regarding the f2.8 glass on P&Ss: That's good advice but I think a lot of cameras on the market and that folks already own may not meet that criteria. I would maybe phrase it to say that if you are shopping, you won't regret spending a little more for such a camera. If you already own a camera that does not meet this criteria, being aware of its limitations (e.g. low light, overcast, etc) will help you get the most from it that you can.

Speaking of light, maybe a few more words for novices about how to work with the available light on the trail since (knowing your work) you are masterful at this. And using a P&S flash, especially for action shots, is probably a finicky and advanced technique. It's great to talk about but most people are probably not using flash and many are not thinking at all about the light that they do have.

"ASA"? That's what my old 35mm film camera had. Every digital camera I've ever had uses the term "ISO". Might confuse people.

There are some great suggestions and ideas that anyone, including me can benefit from.
:clap

[nw scout]

Thanks for the input guys.
I revised the lens (f2.8) part and a few other things. I had to send it it this afternoon so I did'nt have time to change to much.

If anyone is having problems seeing the pics you can go here to view them
http://schelske.smugmug.com/Sports/Motorsports-photography-Trail/6807007_7ifgA#711339510_mDz7b

There are some other shot there from past articles, but if you go down from the image on the link that will be the images pertaining to this article.

Thanks again
Dave

[ian408]

With all the ride reports we see across the hall and on other forums, I think this is a great idea. It gives folks an idea of what's important for selecting a camera to make a good report great.

Lack of a fast lens is probably not a deal breaker in my mind. I'd rather the IQ was good, it was a good compromise between wide angle and telephoto, it performed well & was easy to use. Don't get me wrong, it's a good thing but shouldn't prevent you from picking one camera over another if that is the only differentiator.

[BroPhoto]

I wish I would have read this thread sooner! There would have been 2 things I would have added. Since this article was geared towards the trail rider, I would have recommended a camera that is some what water-proof. There are several nice ones out there now. Also, from past experiences, I would recommend shying away from cameras that the lens extends out of the camera when turned on. That lens is extended out by a small plastic gear, and if dropped that gear will break, leaving the lens stuck in that position. Other than these two things, I think what you posted was pretty much spot on! Let us know when the article comes out!

GaryB

[BradfordBenn]

Very nice. The one thing that I would add is that when I was testing out cameras I would do it with my gloves on. So that if I wanted to stop by the side of the rode and take a snap, it did not require removing the gloves.

[CoryUT]

Good advice (from you and others here) and a nice article. The two pictures I can see are quite good as well :D

I have one nit and it's grammar based. This paragraph bothered me:

There are hundreds to choose from and they are full of all kinds of trick features. But don't get to caught up in the big number mega pixel war. Any newer camera over 8 mp will give you a nice image. But there is a few things to look for when buying a new camera and there are some helpful tips on how to use it when out on a ride.

This paragraph is not a new idea in regards to the prior and in my opinion should not be separate. Also, the start of two sentences (in a row even) with the word "but" is bothersome to me. It's a small nit and personal pet peeve, but I would recommend modifying the structure to flow a bit better. I'm the kind of person who stops reading very quickly if the article doesn't flow for me.

Example:
There are hundreds [add "of cameras" here if paragraph is separate] to choose from and they are full of all kinds of trick features. Don't get to caught up in the big number mega pixel war though; any newer camera over 8 mp will give you a nice image. There are a few other things to look for when buying a new camera that are more important than megapixel count, and there are a few points to keep in mind to get good shots on a ride.

Also, that last sentence is nice, but it doesn't directly link to anything. You don't immediately outline the points or talk about them at all. You talk about what camera you use. I would reorganize that part.

Would love to see the full article :)