Through my short journey (so far) of becoming a more confidant photographer, I've started to seek out new events to take photos of. I happened to be surfing the internet and came across the Toronto Roller Derby league. Being a sports-enthusiast, this immediately caught my attention as a fantastic sport to get some action packed photos. Not to mention, I love to the chance to be able to support women in sports.
Luckily, the league is run by a fantastic organization, mostly volunteers who are supporting of anyone willing to come out and take photos. So, with media pass in hand, I attended my first bout.
I had no idea what to expect of the lighting, action, or sport. I did all my research through other photographers on flickr, and studied videos of past events to get an understanding of the rules. Other than that, I saw this event as a great opportunity to practice "photoing" on my feet. I packed a few key lenses (50mm 1.8, 70-200MM 4) and 1 flash. I figured I would be shooting at high ISO because the rink is indoor and at night.
I was really happy and surprised by my final results. I managed to get some clear shots of great action, in really suspect lighting (it was even worse than I had planned). But it was in the editing process that I came across a fantastic mistake that became my favourite photo of the night. I was going for the blurred effect, but just as the shutter went off, the ref got in the way. It was the perfect reflection of what I was feeling while watching these fantastic athletes.
Now only if I could repeat these mistakes on a daily basis...
