My First Shoot

[Dominic Valle]

I need some basic tips as to how to shoot a HS BasketBall game. I have a Canon GL1 with Bogen tripod and fluid head. I am being paid to cover this game because this particular companies crews are already assigned to other games. I left my name and number in case this company got over extended, and really didnt expect to get a call, but I did. I have only shot my daughters soccer games, and family stuff. And yes this company knows that , and stated that this is just to see how I do, but also told me that their clients son is playing in the game. So the tape does have some importance, and this is why im posting here for some basic advice or tips for a rookie.
I have the wd-58 wide lens but I dont think this would be needed in this situation, I will be top/center in the gymnasium. I plan on keeping the GL1 in full auto. How much zooming should be done? Game time is 6:45 PM PST 12/30 Monday

Thanks,
Dominic
EDITED B-Ball sorry

[Mark Härtl]

What's B-Ball?

But I have some general tips for shooting sports for you, since I've filmed many soccer-games with my XM2:

- Don't put it in Full Auto. The cam has particular problems with focus when filming sports. Use MF and you'll have to adjust it only a bit when the players run from one side of the gym to the other - nothing difficult I think.

- If there's enough light don't use gain (I think you know that). If it looks good, you can also use a faster shutter (1/100 pal or 1/120 ntsc for example). The ball will be much sharper.

- Don't stay at full wide-angle all the time. That will get boring. Try to zoom a bit to the active player(s) and try to follow the ball. The players don't need to fill the whole screen, a quarter is enough - this will be a lot easier to film and won't look so "close" (sorry, don't know the english word) when you watch it.

- Zoom in a bit if one team is attacking, if the game gets more calm again, zoom out - but don't do this to often.

- And a general tip I sometimes forgot: Don't film to much ground - the above 1/3 of the image should be free, and the lower 1/6 ground, in between the players and the ball.

- Ah, and this: It's difficult to follow the ball when it's in the air and stop the camera when it comes back to the ground. So zoom out a bit when the ball's in the air.

Hope this helps a bit. You don't need to remember all this, I think you will do it. Good luck!

PS: If it's a baseball-game: You could also zoom in to the player who will throw the ball in a few seconds (I don't know if the play basketball in a gym).

[Dylan Couper]

First, find out from your employers whether they want the whole game shot as is, or if they want something they can cut into a much more entertaining video.

If it's the latter, then....

DO
-shoot at least 4 seconds of whatever you are shooting. Less than that and it isn't enough for the viewer to appreciate, more than 8-10 seconds of the same shot footage can get boring.
-Shoot pickup/b-roll footage of the crowds reacting, teams on the bench, closeup of the coach shouting, closeups of the refs, scoreboard shots
-Make a list of your pickup shots ahead of time.
-move the camera several times during the game to make it look more like a multiple camera shoot.
-use a shotgun mic so you capture more of the court sounds and less of the crowd.
-SHOOT EXTRA FOOTAGE OF THEIR CLIENT'S SON!!!! :)



DO NOT
-leave the camera running for the whole game
-zoom in and out and in and out in one shot. One zoom per shot, no more. It screams amateur.
-switch to the other side of the court. Always shoot from the same side.


Manual focus is best, but I'd have no worries about using autofocus if you don't feel comfortable with the manual focus. If you do everything above, your employers will forgive a little focus hunting.

[Scott Burbank]

I have done at least 30+ HS Basketball games and other sports. First thing be very early to get the best position in the gym to set up(Mid court, high). Nothing as bad as showing up only 20 minutes before the game and you have no where to set up. When I have shot these games they have be used for recruitment purposes. So if that is the case do shoot the entire game from start to finish. (except inbetween quarters and time outs.lol) recuiters want to see the player and how they can play with others. Edited highlights can make anyone look good. Plus the coach watching doesn't care about a flashy video.
Remember to be zoomed into to see detail in the game, but not to close to miss the plays. Turn on your T.V. and watch the wide follow of any basketbal game and learn.
Don't use auto focus. Before you start rolling, set your focus(zoom in) to the farthest point you will be shooting. Which is the basket. Then you should be safe the rest of the game as focussing goes.

hope some of this helps.
Follow Dylan's advice if it is too be edited.

Scott

[Dominic Valle]

Thanks for the replies guys, they helped me. I also got called back to do more work:). This guy at the basketball game was taping next to me with a nice XL1 with monitor attached to the top, I was jealous:). I really need a remote zoom switch, I will do a search for this. Also my new Bogen 3011N and 3063 fluid head worked perfect. Oh and my extra capacity Battery from ebay is simply amazing, I used maybe 1/3 of the battery for the whole game.

Regards,
Dominic