HOT
SHOT
#3
Our Apprentice says... For action shots like this,
Adrian recommended going no slower than 1/1000
sec, to make sure that the dog and the flying water
droplets were pin-sharp. In aperture-priority mode,
I set an aperture of f/5 – to get more of the dog in
focus – but at ISO100, the shutter speed that my
camera suggested was too slow. In Auto ISO mode, though, I was
able to set a minimum shutter speed of 1/1000 sec and just let
the camera take care of ISO, so I could concentrate on capturing
the peak of the action in Continuous drive mode. I fired off a burst
of five or six shots, but this was my favourite. I really like the warm
lighting on Jester’s face, and the catchlight in his eyes, but it’s the
circle of flying fur, and the spray of water, that really make it.Pro’s killer kit
Favourite toys
Adrian says... After the dogs have
been bounding around after balls
and in lakes, they need something
to help calm them down again. I’ve
found that Roxy’s favourite toy is
just the thing. She has a run
around and then a play with her
penguin and settles down soon after. You have to be
prepared to wait while they switch between energy
levels – it can be frustrating for photographers, but
pushing a dog too hard during a shoot will result in
them shutting down, which means losing out on
good photo opportunities.Expert insight
Track, hold & shoot
Adrian says... When shooting moving
subjects in AF-C and Continuous drive mode,
try to track the subject through the viewfinder,
keeping it in the centre of the frame, and hold
the focusing for a second or two before
rattling off any frames. The camera needs
time to predict where the dog is going to be,
and it takes time for it to calculate this, and
track the movement of the dog accurately for
pin-sharp shots.Tu r n o f V R
In addition to using AF-C (Continuous ser vo)
focusing mode (see previous page), Adrian
also turns vibration reduction off, especially for
action portraits like Hot Shot #3. “I find that it can
slow down the AF,” he explains. “It works well when
panning in a single plane (a dog running from left
to right, for example), but it doe sn’t cope as well if
the dog is in one spot shaking around. Here, our
shutter speed was so fast it froze the motion
anyway, as you can see from the beautiful shot
Kaitlin has captured.”OVER TO YOU THE APPRENTICE
EXPOSURE 1/800 sec, f/4.5, ISO800
LENS Nikon AF-S 70-200mm f/2.8G ED VR II72 March 2016