Floodlights and camera kit

On a bright, sunny day, it is possible to take a decent picture at a game with most types of camera. It helps considerably to have control over the shutter speed, through a shutter priority mode - many cameras also have a sports mode, basically shutter priority with settings optimised to capture fast moving action. I was looking through some pictures from the first game to which I took a camera, in 2004, and some are quite blurred, as there was no option to select a shutter speed. The images were also 640 x 480 pixels, but there were still some acceptable results after suitable cropping.

When it starts to get dark, more demands are made on the equipment. That first compact worked between August and October, then I could put it away (for sports at least) until the Spring, unless there was a particularly bright day.

With advances in technology, there are cameras that can probably capture crisp, clear images, even under 120 lux standard floodlights. The Nikon D3S offers up to ISO 12800, extendible to 102400 equivalent, and there is a 70-200mm lens with a maximum aperture of f/2.8. That package will set you back about £4500, and weigh about 6lbs, so definitely one for the professionals.

My first SLR was a Nikon D50, their entry level model at the time. Nikon and Canon keenly market their entry level models: they are well established manufacturers, with all the kit you are likely to need, allowing you to add and update cameras and lenses as skills and interests suggest, and finances allow. Once you have started with one, you are likely to stay with them, as new lenses will fit existing cameras and vice versa.

The D50 allowed ISO settings up to 1600. Normally, zoom lenses for the consumer have a maximum aperture of about f/3.5 or f/4, which drops to about f/5.6 when the lens is fully extended. This combination gave a very grainy appearance - here is a picture from a game at Guiseley in 2007, even after I had enhanced the lighting in Photoshop Elements.

I also used a 50mm f/1.8 lens under floodlights - this gave good lighting, but only a large enough image to crop a decent sized area in about a quarter of the pitch. Here is an example from a game at FC United of Manchester (under Football League standard floodlights at Gigg Lane) in 2009.

Since I traded up to a Nikon D5000, which offers ISO 3200 extendible to 6400 equivalent, I am able to use the zoom lenses, although there is work to be done to enhance the lighting, which I shall look at in another post.

Pictures from Prescot Cables' 4-3 win against Skelmersdale United in the Liverpool Senior Cup are available here.

County Cup competitions are not always attractive to clubs at our level, adding extra games to the fixture list, and often not attracting sufficient crowds to cover costs. The Liverpool Senior Cup is better than most: because of the small number of affiliated clubs, there are only 4 rounds, and Everton and Tranmere come in to the second round, so there is chance of sharing a decent gate even if we do not progress.

Unfortunately, that chance is reduced by a third this year, as Liverpool have not entered a side. I am not sure why, but it is a shame: as well as reducing the chance of a good gate, it denies the supporters of the grass roots game the chance to see close up some established Liverpool reserves and up and coming youth team players.