Jetski Freestyle

[John Harper]

Hi There

Attended an extreme sports show on the Isle of Wight here in the UK yesterday, and demonstrating some aerial antics were the "Pierats" jetski Team. I had a great time trying to capture the jumps and barrel rolls of their various displays during the day. The sun did shine for once which has been a rare sight in the British Summer this year. It made unfortunately for some heavy backlighting but i was nevertheless pleased with some of the results.

John


Shot 1 EOS 1DMKIII EF 500 F4 ISO 250 1/2000 @ F4.5

Shot 2 EOS 1DMKIII EF 500 F4 ISO 200 1/2500 @ F4

Shot 3 EOS 1DMKIII EF 500 F4 ISO 200 1/2500 @ F4

Shot 4 EOS 1DMKIII EF 500 F4 ISO 250 1/1600 @ F4

 

[Asher Kelman]

Hi John,

This is exciting work and difficult. I guess it's something like shooting dance where one has to anticipate the peak action before you've seen it. So it must require tuning oneself to the rhythm of the athlete. The first picture is most colorful, strong and attractive in that one can see him speeding though the water and see his determined expression. The water is well captured and we get a feeling of the power of the ski and his need to wrestle it under his control.

The second picture (could have been much wider to show the feat of flying above the sea!) is a time when beyond weight distribution, his path in the air is already so predetermined by everything he did till the moment of take-off.

So this is a very special time for an athlete in fact for any individual. There are times when it all adds up and one just has to have faith in what one has already done and let it ride.

So this picture is special for me too!

Asher

 

[doug anderson]

John: excellent work, risky shots and fine technique. You compose very quickly, intuitively.

Question: did you protect your camera from water in any way?

Doug A.

 

[John Harper]

John: excellent work, risky shots and fine technique. You compose very quickly, intuitively.

Question: did you protect your camera from water in any way?

Doug A.

Hi Doug

Thanks for looking, No I didn't use any protection against the spray. I was in fact shooting most of these from inside the beer tent which was on the sea wall overlooking this part of the beach. As the tide came in the jetskis were in quite close and I was around 10 feet or so higher than them. So a very civilised way to take some action shots.

John

 

[Gary Ayala]

Hi Doug

Thanks for looking, No I didn't use any protection against the spray. I was in fact shooting most of these from inside the beer tent which was on the sea wall overlooking this part of the beach. As the tide came in the jetskis were in quite close and I was around 10 feet or so higher than them. So a very civilised way to take some action shots.

John

That's how I would shoot any sporting event also ... from the beer tent (lol). Nice job ... #3 is heads and tails the best shot (my only nit is the OOF boat in the background).

Good job and choice of shooting location.

Gary

PS- #4 is excellant also.
G

 

[fahim mohammed]

John, each one captures the excitement and the action of the moment. They are very well executed.
Something I have been unable to achieve for a long time ( gave up trying ! ). Besides the beer tent, any recommendation for protecting camera gear on a beach?

Well done.

 

[John Harper]

John, each one captures the excitement and the action of the moment. They are very well executed.
Something I have been unable to achieve for a long time ( gave up trying ! ). Besides the beer tent, any recommendation for protecting camera gear on a beach?

Well done.

Hi Fahim

Saltwater & Electronics definitely don't mix, very light spray can be wiped off with a cloth and the camera cleaned with a damp cloth at the end of the day. if its full protection you are after I would look at an Aquatech cover.

If I did this sort of shoot on a regular basis that would be what I would invest in. hope that helps

John

 

[Gary Ayala]

... Besides the beer tent, any recommendation for protecting camera gear on a beach?

Well done.

I used to live on the beach and I never used any protective cover other than common sense and sure footing (for tidepools). In very wet situations, if you're lacking a weather sealed camera ... an umbrella and a plastic store bag (mostly common to the US) work very well. If you are going to a wet climate, I found that an over sized, tent-like (large enough to fit over a camera bag and camera), ruberized poncho was the ticket.

But insure the safety of your equipment and improve the image quality of your shots ... can't beat the beer tent.

Gary

 

[John Harper]

Hi There

Few more shots....this time from the wipe out files...

John

Shot 1 EOS 1DMKIII EF 500 F4 ISO 250 1/2000 @ f4.5

Shot 2 EOS 1DMKIII EF 500 F4 ISO 250 1/2000 @ f4.5

Shot 3 EOS 1DMKIII EF 500 F4 ISO 250 1/2000 @ f4.5

Shot 4 EOS 1DMKIII EF 500 F4 ISO 250 1/1600 @ f4