Wresting photography

[ereka]

Is anyone experienced in photographing wrestling matches? What lenses and camera settings do you use? I've been trawling the net this evening for tips and have so far come up with the following plan for action shots in a dimly lit gym:

Fast lens e.g. 70-200mm f/2.8
High shutter speed - at least 1/250th sec
Widest possible aperture e.g. f/2.8
Manual exposure - set shutter speed and aperture, then vary ISO to obtain correct exposure
NO FLASH - shoot RAW to allow exposure adjustment in post e.g. if images too dark and/or noisy
Centre focus point
A1 Servo
High speed continuous shooting

Any thoughts or suggestions?

 

[coltsfreak18]

I've found great success with a variety of lenses in wrestling. The 70-200 f/2.8 is a favorite I've seen at matches; however, I've seen more powerful results with the 85 f/1.2L and the 135 f/2.0L. Both of these focal lenghts, as well as 70-200. can be perfect for getting closeups and wider framings. Fortunately, wrestling is a sport where generally you can move quite a bit on the floor for angles and distances; that said, if you are shooting in an arena where you can't get onto the floor, use a slightly (or much)longer lens.

With a 5DmkII, ISO 3200 is my limit, but I prefer only to stay 1600 and below; besides, most gyms are usually pretty well lit. The fast aperture of the 85 and 135 really help with light gathering as well.

Also, I wouldn't have a "defined aperture." Many times during scrambling and during take downs you want a lot more depth of field than you would assume, so be prepared to change aperture along with ISO.
And play it by ear; if your shots at 1/250 aren't achieving good results, bump up the ISO/aperture and increase the shutter speed. The IS on the 70-200 helps big time here as well.

 

[AprilForever]

Why no flash?

 

[karminator]

85 f/1.2L is not a sports lens. You will need fast AF. Better is the 85 f/1.8 - very fast focus and very good lens for the money. 135 f/2L is also excellent. I have used 50 f/1.4 as well. I like the primes because you can pick up an extra stop vs the fast zooms and they are much more affordable.

I shot my son's HS wrestling for a season, and I was able to get right up to the mat, so I ended up using my EF-S 17-55 f/2.8 on my 7D a lot. If you are farther away, the lenses above are great.

Key thing is fast enough shutter to stop the action. 1/250 is the minimum. 1/500 is better.
I usually shoot in aperture priority - i.e. set the f-stop to 2, and bump up up the ISO until I get in the shutter speed range I want. Gyms have bad lighting, and often a color cast, so check white balance - even do a custom WB if you can.

Then the rest is about focusing properly, and positioning yourself to get the good shots. 7D does pretty good with the AF.

 

[karminator]

Why no flash?

If you are allowed to get close to the wrestling mat, then the flash would be a major disruption to the wrestlers. If you are farther away, a flash isn't going to have the reach to help you. (it always cracks me up when people at concerts that are 200 feet away are taking pics w/ their point and shoots with the flash on)

 

[coltsfreak18]

85 f/1.2L is not a sports lens. You will need fast AF. Better is the 85 f/1.8 - very fast focus and very good lens for the money. 135 f/2L is also excellent. I have used 50 f/1.4 as well. I like the primes because you can pick up an extra stop vs the fast zooms and they are much more affordable.

I shot my son's HS wrestling for a season, and I was able to get right up to the mat, so I ended up using my EF-S 17-55 f/2.8 on my 7D a lot. If you are farther away, the lenses above are great.

Key thing is fast enough shutter to stop the action. 1/250 is the minimum. 1/500 is better.
I usually shoot in aperture priority - i.e. set the f-stop to 2, and bump up up the ISO until I get in the shutter speed range I want. Gyms have bad lighting, and often a color cast, so check white balance - even do a custom WB if you can.

Then the rest is about focusing properly, and positioning yourself to get the good shots. 7D does pretty good with the AF.

I agree with the 85 f/1.2L not being a sports lens, but, for wrestling, AF speed is one of my lowest priorities. During wrestling I always MF anyway for a few reasons.

A) The mat is relatively small, so I don't have much need for panning servo AF.
B) Most movements for which you will get the best shots (stand-ups, scrambles, standing switch chains, and most shots) are highly erratic, something that AI Servo AF does not do very well on the current bodies (I'll see about the 1DX when that arrives); therefore, for me at least, it is easier to manual focus slight changes quicker than allowing the AF to follow the subject. While the 85 has that annoying focus-by-wire design, I still find it responsive enough to get plenty of shots on target during matches.
C) Some of the best wrestling shots are during tilts or pinning combinations; people are mostly static during these periods, reducing the need for great autofocus. The guy below me is completely right, wrestling matches are essentially vivid, highly emotional portraits.

That said, I will agree that the 135 f/2 is, in my opinion, the best lens for wrestling.

 

[unfocused]

Some of the best wrestling shots are during tilts or pinning combinations; people are mostly static during these periods, reducing the need for great autofocus.

+1

It's been decades since I shot high school wrestling, but it was one of my favorite sports. My best shots were usually just as one wrestler was about to get pinned. Focusing on the face as they grimaced and strained to try to break free. Or the look of utter helplessness as they realized they were pinned. There is hardly any movement at that point and you are really shooting portraits, but what great portraits they are.

Since I was the local newspaper photographer and the high schools were fairly small, I had no problem getting access right at the edge of the mat. Just had to be able to get out of the way quickly if they came my way, but I think I probably shot mostly with a 135mm on one camera and maybe a 24mm on the other body for variety (shots, for example, of the coach helping the wrestler off the mat after the match/consoling him, etc.)

 

[Dnd]

Our local meets allow me to get nice and close to the mats.. 5dII with 135 f2 and the 85 f1.8 work great.. depending on the gym, the lighting is definately a challenge at times.. These are with the 5dII and a 135@f2

 

[ereka]

Thanks for all the advice.

 

[Tpc303]

Started shooting my sons wrestling matches, well trying to at least. I'm using a t3i with a 50mm 1.4 I find I'm way too close to get good photos and video. Moving further away is not an option as I coach him in most of his matches. What lens should I be using? I plan to upgrade to a 5d mark ii in a month or so and I'd like a lens that'll work on that body along with the t3i. What do you all suggest?

 

[Dnd]

70-200 2.8 works fantastic as an al around sports lens. If lighting is an issue then the 135 f2 will be greats it is fast too. They usually are not keen on flash at these meets, so available light fast glass is required for great images..

 

[Tpc303]

I was considering a 70-200 but wondered if it would be too big to manage that and try to coach at the same time. Not the ideal situation but it's what I have to do for the moment.

 

[Hannes]

Started shooting my sons wrestling matches, well trying to at least. I'm using a t3i with a 50mm 1.4 I find I'm way too close to get good photos and video. Moving further away is not an option as I coach him in most of his matches. What lens should I be using? I plan to upgrade to a 5d mark ii in a month or so and I'd like a lens that'll work on that body along with the t3i. What do you all suggest?

Loosing the crop factor the 50mm may be fine anyway, try it before you buy anything more. 70mm on the 5d isn't much wider than 50mm on the rebel

 

[yorgasor]

+1 on the 85mm f/1.2 lens. I've been shooting a lot of table tennis matches, and I've mostly been using the 70-200mm f/2.8. But the lighting at the gym we play in is pretty horrible, and the flicker of the florescent lights mean two photos taken in immediate succession will have very different exposures. With the 85mm lens, I had fewer hits, but I was able to have lower ISO, faster shutter speeds, and the shallower depth of field allowed the photo to pop more, so the shots I did get looked better than the shots I got from the 70-200mm.

I don't know that I'd use it as my only lens in the bag, but I'd certainly use it for a portion of the time.

 

[Canon1]

Our local meets allow me to get nice and close to the mats.. 5dII with 135 f2 and the 85 f1.8 work great.. depending on the gym, the lighting is definately a challenge at times.. These are with the 5dII and a 135@f2

Great timing and poses.... too bad the feet and legs are cut off. Nice that you can get so close and with such a low angle to shoot from. Looking forward to more of your work!

 

[Tpc303]

Started shooting my sons wrestling matches, well trying to at least. I'm using a t3i with a 50mm 1.4 I find I'm way too close to get good photos and video. Moving further away is not an option as I coach him in most of his matches. What lens should I be using? I plan to upgrade to a 5d mark ii in a month or so and I'd like a lens that'll work on that body along with the t3i. What do you all suggest?

Loosing the crop factor the 50mm may be fine anyway, try it before you buy anything more. 70mm on the 5d isn't much wider than 50mm on the rebel

How do I go about losing the crop factor?

 

[Hannes]

Started shooting my sons wrestling matches, well trying to at least. I'm using a t3i with a 50mm 1.4 I find I'm way too close to get good photos and video. Moving further away is not an option as I coach him in most of his matches. What lens should I be using? I plan to upgrade to a 5d mark ii in a month or so and I'd like a lens that'll work on that body along with the t3i. What do you all suggest?

Loosing the crop factor the 50mm may be fine anyway, try it before you buy anything more. 70mm on the 5d isn't much wider than 50mm on the rebel

How do I go about losing the crop factor?

You do by buying a fullframe camera like the 5D. Because the sensor is bigger the lenses will all seem like they are of shorter focal length compared to what you are used to. On the rebel you are basically cropping away the edges you'd get visible on the 5D.

Here's probably a better explanation http://digital-photography-school.com/crop-factor-explained

 

[Tpc303]

Started shooting my sons wrestling matches, well trying to at least. I'm using a t3i with a 50mm 1.4 I find I'm way too close to get good photos and video. Moving further away is not an option as I coach him in most of his matches. What lens should I be using? I plan to upgrade to a 5d mark ii in a month or so and I'd like a lens that'll work on that body along with the t3i. What do you all suggest?

Loosing the crop factor the 50mm may be fine anyway, try it before you buy anything more. 70mm on the 5d isn't much wider than 50mm on the rebel

How do I go about losing the crop factor?

You do by buying a fullframe camera like the 5D. Because the sensor is bigger the lenses will all seem like they are of shorter focal length compared to what you are used to. On the rebel you are basically cropping away the edges you'd get visible on the 5D.

Here's probably a better explanation http://digital-photography-school.com/crop-factor-explained

Got it. Kind of thought that but wanted to make sure. Bought the 5d today so I'll see how it goes this weekend.