As my foray into photography started, I had mentioned to various people that I'd appreciate the opportunity to shoot whatever I could. One of these people was a university student who plays badminton. I thought that would be interesting in that it would be an indoor sport so lighting and action would be similar to other sports such as basketball & volleyball.
Whereas I thought I was being offered an opportunity to practice my craft when my friend invited me to shoot at her badminton club, she had apparently touted me as the official photographer for the Crossfire Badminton Club's All-Stars 15th Open Tournie - Dec 2017 - Day 1. It took me about an hour to travel there, and when I arrived, their director gave me some rules such as although I was allowed to move in between courts, it was better if I crouched so I didn't distract the competitors. They also requested both service shots and any action shots I could get with the birdie involved. Also, flashes were absolutely forbidden.
Flashes forbidden at an indoor sports competition seems almost laughably obvious, so when I say that I had my speedlite, radio transmitter, and a tripod for it in my bag, you can somewhat feel exactly how much of a beginner I am. Also, they were just about ready to start, and because I have nice camera kit, they assumed I was either a professional or semi-professional, which is about as far from the truth as we are from the sun.
What I experienced was a sudden extreme pressure not to let anyone down, and as a result, I started taking photos. Because I had thought I could just figure things out as I went along (this being an opportunity to practice), I had absolutely zero preparation for taking photos in this environment. As such, with the pressure on, I started forgetting even the basic settings on my camera.
As the day went on (and I spent more than 10 hours taking photos), I fully enjoyed myself. I didn't know what I was doing, but I absolutely loved every minute of it. My friend kept asking me if I was bored yet, but it was the complete opposite. I knew then that I had chosen a great hobby as it interested me.
As to the mechanics of shooting indoor sport, I wish I had seen Jared Polin's You Tube video on shooting sharp photos in low light (even though he hadn't made it yet). If you want to watch that, here it is: The SECRET To Sharp Images In LOW LIGHT: How to set Shutter Speed, Aperture, ISO (Photography Hack)
I ended up shooting about 2600 photos that day. About 800 of them were waste. Nearly every single one them was 2 stops too low on lighting, which I corrected using Windows 10 inherent photo editor. That was the only edit I did before sending them to the Crossfire Badminton Club for use on their Facebook FAN PAGE.
LESSONS LEARNED
- Always prepare ahead of time.
- Think about the mechanics of shooting (Shutter Speed, Aperture Size, ISO) before shooting.
- Get to know the controls on your camera so well they are second nature, and customize them for easier use.
- Stop focusing on the pressure or stress of doing well, and enjoy the day.