Shot an NBA basketball game with an M10 + 135 APO

[onasj]

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(No, this is not an April Fools' joke... but pretend the title says "135 APO" instead of 130...).

 

I had the opportunity to sit on the floor of last night's Celtics-Raptors game.  Stadium policy is no "professional" cameras (to security, this means DSLR-like), so I brought the M10 with body cap on, plus the 135 APO, and was allowed in without incident.

 

Rangefinder focusing when your subjects are world-class athletes moving in unpredictable ways at breakneck speeds was a challenge, of course, but also very fun.  My left thumb is still sore from the experience.  Being able to see so much of the frame outside the subject was a huge plus in allowing adjustment for where the action was going.  I'll also note that a major reason fans aren't allowed to carry big cameras into most sports stadiums is that shooting with a beast camera is annoying to the people around you; shooting the M10+135 APO didn't seem to bother people.  So two big wins for the M10 vs. a more typical sports outfit.

 

I tried live-view (too slow), zone focusing (too difficult since I had to shoot wide open to get a reasonable balance between shutter speed and ISO), and ended up shooting 97% of the photos the old-fashioned way (RF).  I frequently had to rack focus while shooting as players moved towards and away from me; after a quarter or two this technique was reliably yielding good results.

 

In the end, while I have little doubt I could have done better with a current-generation AF-C camera, I was pleasantly surprised with how many usable photos emerged.

 

Almost all photos were taken at 1/350, f/3.4, auto ISO selected 4,000-8,000.  Limited post-processing (mostly cropping and some exposure adjustment).

 

26 photos are available here:

https://www.flickr.com/photos/37601806@N05/?

 

 

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Edited April 1, 2018 by onasj

[APA_Leica]

What a wonderful surprise. You captured the spirit of the event very well. I am amazed you could make that work with the M10. It makes me think of giving it a try at events I normally reserve for a Canon DSLR. Thanks for sharing. Paul

[Jean-Michel]

Quite impressive! 

[onasj]

What a wonderful surprise. You captured the spirit of the event very well. I am amazed you could make that work with the M10. It makes me think of giving it a try at events I normally reserve for a Canon DSLR. Thanks for sharing. Paul

 

 

Quite impressive! 

 

 

Thank you-- I was surprised as well.  

 

Of course I was shooting lots of frames and I wouldn't say my hit rate was anything to be proud of, but the mere fact that the M10 can fire fast enough to capture some keepers at an NBA game is itself a milestone in Leica's rangefinder annals.

[JT07]

Thank you-- I was surprised as well.

 

Of course I was shooting lots of frames and I wouldn't say my hit rate was anything to be proud of, but the mere fact that the M10 can fire fast enough to capture some keepers at an NBA game is itself a milestone in Leica's rangefinder annals.

.

I personally think you’re being very humble. These are much better then “usable”. In particular I love ball on court, ball through net, huddle and injured player on floor. The action shots are all very good too especially w the limitations of manual focus. Assuming you posted your 25 keepers how many did you actually shoot? I bet your keeper rate wasn’t much worse than the DSLR users. Hard to expect to equal their rate w full automation and AF but those guys machine gun 10 frames a second and delete 9 in post too. I recently shot a college baseball game w a M9P and 75 Cron (my longest lens) and was pleased w results. My buddy’s son was pitching and he’s a MLB prospect chucking 95 MPH and I was able to nail some keepers. I’m sure a DSLR would have been easier but the challenge and fun of manual rangefinder was more rewarding. Great job overall. Bravo.

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Edited April 1, 2018 by JT07

[onasj]

.

I personally think you’re being very humble. These are much better then “usable”. In particular I love ball on court, ball through net, huddle and injured player on floor. The action shots are all very good too especially w the limitations of manual focus. Assuming you posted your 25 keepers how many did you actually shoot? I bet your keeper rate wasn’t much worse than the DSLR users.

 

 

 

I took about 1,000 frames total.  You are right, in that when I shoot sporting events with my D4s my keeper rate isn't any better (in fact it might be worse because I would likely have over 3,000 frames from a full-length NBA game), but my bar for keepers is substantially higher in terms of focus accuracy and even composition when using a DSLR or AF mirrorless (e.g. the a7riii).  

 

At 1/350s only about 15% were unusable due to subject motion blur (losing 150); the rest were either repetitive (>50%, so maybe 400 remaining), out of focus (>70% of the remainder for moving subjects so maybe 100 remaining), or poorly composed (maybe another 50% of the remainder, so maybe 50 remaining).  That left me with several dozen, of which I picked 26.

[JT07]

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I took about 1,000 frames total. You are right, in that when I shoot sporting events with my D4s my keeper rate isn't any better (in fact it might be worse because I would likely have over 3,000 frames from a full-length NBA game), but my bar for keepers is substantially higher in terms of focus accuracy and even composition when using a DSLR or AF mirrorless (e.g. the a7riii).

At 1/350s only about 15% were unusable due to subject motion blur (losing 150); the rest were either repetitive (>50%, so maybe 400 remaining), out of focus (>70% of the remainder for moving subjects so maybe 100 remaining), or poorly composed (maybe another 50% of the remainder, so maybe 50 remaining). That left me with several dozen, of which I picked 26.

Well overall I think they are great. Real nice job here. Thank you for sharing.

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[Narsuitus]

 

Almost all photos were taken at 1/350, f/3.4, auto ISO selected 4,000-8,000.  Limited post-processing (mostly cropping and some exposure adjustment).

 

 

Thanks for the wonderful photos and the valuable EXIF data.

 

I looked at your Flickr photos and was very impressed.

 

Were shooting RAW or JPEG?

 

Would a 90mm lens have worked as well for you? The reason I ask is that I do not have a 135mm for my M10 but do have a 90mm f/2.

[mmradman]

Being on the floor for basketball game any lens will do, if 135mm can do it any shorter lens can do it as well, I would say nifty 50 does pretty good job.

[onasj]

I would not have been able to capture far-court play at 90 or 75 or 50. Near-court at 90 would have been ok with cropping. Action in the paint (around the basket) would have been good with the 90, maybe even better than the 135 because I was sitting as close as possible to the basket. 50 would only have let me take shots of players on the sidelines, inbounding, etc. 135 was definitely the right focal length and 90 would have been ok for near action, but play beyond half the length of the court away would have been tough to shoot at 24 Mpix with the 90. Maybe with a 40+ Mpix sensor you could crop to far-court action and still have decent resolution.

[Simon]

What a fantastic story and demonstration of the M10 getting shots that a DSLR wouldn’t! That last pic especially is superb! The bokeh, the moment. Really well done.

 

I too disagree that only a 135 would have suited. A few wider shots showing context, the crowd and the players as small parts in a much larger scene/event/stadium could’ve complimented the close-action photos really well, even (or especially) if they’re at the far side of the court.

 

I’d also like to see a touch more saturation and pop added in post, but that’s just my personal preference and isn’t meant as criticism.

 

You should’ve maybe told us you took 100 shots and your hit rate was 50%, then we’d all think you were a superhero!

Edited April 2, 2018 by Simon

[albertknappmd]

I have used it for Opera performances...

 

Here is James Levine's last performance...

 

Albert     

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[jaapv]

Title edited.

[chris_tribble]

Chapeau!  Good to get with whatever lens, but the 135 APO is a lovely thing (and, strangely, I find it easier focus than the 90 Apo at f3.4). Back in 2005 I was at a Tord Gustavsen concert in the Purcell Rooms in London (a VERY quiet venue).  I was able to get a small number of shots of the trio using an M6 TTL with 1600 Fuji Neopan.  I sent the artist the images and they ended up being used in the liner of his second ECM CD

 

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Edited April 4, 2018 by chris_tribble

[jaapv]

Well done, but I'm not surprised; NBA games were photographed before the advent of AF as well, and, may I add, without the benefit of exceeding 36 shots per film. Photographers just honed their skills - like you have done. .

[Keith (M)]

The 135mm APO and M240 can be quite discreet - I happened to have them with me when enjoying a theatre performance in London four years ago.

Trevor Nunn’s acclaimed production of Relative Values starring Patricia Hodge, Caroline Quentin and Rory Bremner will transfer to the West End next month following a sold-out run at the Theatre Royal Bath last summer.  Noël Coward’s comedy about the uproarious culture clash between the glittering world of Hollywood and the stiff upper lip of the English aristocracy will play at the Harold Pinter Theatre

 

Sitting some rows back meant a hefty crop (if only to remove numerous heads!) and the lighting meant high ISO and a wide open lens. Amazed at what could be extracted...

 

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[onasj]

Lovely additional examples, everyone.  And thank you, Jaapv, for fixing my title

[Ko.Fe.]

M-E, Summarit-M 35.

 

Edited April 4, 2018 by Ko.Fe.

[Giulio Zanni]

Well done, very nice

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Hallo,

Look here: Leica M

[tamas]

I was beginning to have doubts over my purchase of the 135 APO as I have never quite managed to achieve decent shots ( composure and focus) with it.  Hence the few occasions I have used it over the years. 

 

Your excellent pictures have certainly inspired me to keep it and perceiver with it. 

 

Thanks