22.02.10
How to shoot extreme sports
What’s your creative process?
“This is a tough question. It seems my creative process is always changing. I participate in a lot of the sports I photograph, so I am always thinking of a cool perspective or angle that would make a visually stimulating photo.
I like wide angles and I like to get close to the action. As an athlete myself, I like to bring a more intimate and personal perspective to action sports. Many times you shoot the same thing or location over and over, then all of a sudden a light goes off in your head with a cool idea and you find yourself standing in a tree with your camera. The thought process and techniques cross over from sport to sport, so many times I will be shooting a sport for the first time and be able to apply my past experiences to whatever it is I am shooting. I get a lot of inspiration from other photographers — Galen Rowell was, and still is, a huge inspiration for me. He paved the path for adventure photographers.”
The kayak shot
“The kit was pretty heavy, so Tao was limited in what he could do with his kayak. I didn’t need him to go over any big drops or rapids, but I knew good dynamic action with water flying around would make good shots. Thanks to the advantages of digital photography, Tao and I were able to look at the results and see what was working best. While going through rapids, the camera was completely under water and the shots were unusable. It was best to have water flying around the camera without submerging it, so Tao played around in a small wave, stuffing the nose in and out of the water as I shot hundreds of photos. Knowing this was an experiment, I shot a lot of images. Another advantage to digital is you can shoot hundreds of images in one go. If this were film, you would have to break down the whole set-up for every roll of film.”
Before the shoot
“I had the shot I wanted to take in mind already, but was unsure how I would get the camera mounted on the kayak. I have an SPL water housing for my Canon 5D MkII and a number of PocketWizards, so I used these to trigger the camera wirelessly. After spending some time tinkering with tools and parts in Tao’s garage and a few trips to the DIY store, we eventually figured out how to mount the camera on the front of his kayak.
Customise
At the front of the kayak was a mount, which is used for a handle, or a place to strap the kayak to a rack or a car. I was able to rest the water housing there and attach it to the kayak with two large hose clamps. I wrapped these around the housing and handle. I was able to keep the camera very tight to the kayak this way. I felt confident
it was secured well, as I was not about to watch more than $6,000 worth of camera equipment float down the river.”
Experiment
We conducted test shots on dry land to see what our perspective and composure would look like. Then I set the camera to shutter priority, locking the shutter speed at 640, and set the ISO to 200. It is best to use the auto functions for situations like this where the exposure can change. Since the subject is fixed, you prefocus the lens and keep it on manual focus with some tape around it just to guarantee the focus will not change accidentally.
Adapt
I triggered the camera with a wireless PocketWizard. It took some customisation to fit the receiver in the water housing. I had to take the unit out of its plastic case and cut some of the plastic off to make the PocketWizard about a third of its normal size. Ultimately, when experimenting, you need to be willing to sacrifice your gear.
If something goes wrong, you may be out of pocket, but if all goes well you will be rewarded with some amazing photos.
React
From the test shots on land we had a pretty good idea of what we wanted. Once in the water I shot a whole card’s worth of images and Tao spent 30 minutes in the water. Then we reviewed the photos to work out what was working. Then we went back for another round. Athletes often have ideas and suggestions and it’s important to get feedback to see what can work. Their famous last words are usually: “I am not responsible for your camera gear!
Be different
There were lots of people shooting pictures of kayakers that day on the river, but we wanted to get something different and unique. We were the only ones who had a camera mounted on the front of a kayak, not that we are the first to do this, but it definitely made for some very cool and unique images. I will always try to think of a different way to shoot something, and break away from the norm, or the technically correct way to shoot something.
Christian’s Kit Bag
I have lots of equipment, both photographic and sporting. The location of the shoot determines how much of each I will need. A lot of the time I find myself a long way from my car or the luxury of a rolling photo bag, so it is important to pack light and bring just the necessities. For most of backcountry skiing and other adventure sports, which might require hiking for four to five hours before you get to your location, I use my Canon 5D MkII, 16-35mm lens and a 24-105mm lens. If I have a specific shot in mind, I might bring a 15mm fish or the 14mm. If I am doing a shoot in civilisation and have the luxury of using rolling bags, I might bring it all:
- Canon 5D MkII,Canon 1D MkIII,14mm lens
- 15mm lens,24mm lens,16-35mm lens
- 24-70mm lens,70-200mm lens,300mm 2.8 lens
- Battery-powered strobes Dry bags, Maybe an assistant!
Biography: Christian Pondella
Christian Pondella specialises in photographing adventure sports. Based in California, he travels the world to photograph the sports he often participates in. For the past nine years he has been head photographer for Red Bull USA and senior photographer for ski magazine Powder. His work has also featured in ESPN, Sports Illustrated, Maxim, FHM, Outside, Men’s Journal, National Geographic Adventure, GQ and Ski. www.christianpondella.com
This feature is from the February 2010 issue
Back issues can be ordered by calling 01858 438840 or by sending an email to photographymonthly@subscription.co.uk
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