NBA Eastern Conference Semifinals playoff game with the M10 + 135 APO (RIP)

[onasj]

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I had the opportunity to shoot a second NBA game with the M10 and the 135 APO, this time the incredible game 2 of the eastern conference semifinals (Philadelphia Sixers at the Boston Celtics on May 3, 2018).  I learned a great deal from my earlier attempt ( https://www.l-camera-forum.com/topic/283280-shot-an-nba-basketball-game-with-an-m10-130-apo/ ) and also from the feedback of this forum.  This time I devoted more shots to the atmosphere and environment, rather than predominantly focusing on the action.

 

Almost all shots were taken at 1/350s with the 135 APO; a few wider shots were taken with the 50 APO (tip: TD Garden security does not consider an M10+50 APO lens to be a "professional camera" and thus allows entry without any trouble).  All focusing was done with the optical viewfinder.  For shots near the rim, I tried to roughly pre-focus to the right distance and adjusted focus only as the action entered the viewfinder.  

 

It was an amazingly fun challenge given how fast the action moves at this focal length, and much less work than it was the first time, with a substantially higher keeper rate.  Overall, I was very happy with the performance of this tiny, improbable sports kit.  The 135 APO continues to deliver, and it's hard for me to believe the rumor that the lens is being discontinued (except Peter's rumors are almost always correct!).

 

The full set of 28 shots is here: https://www.flickr.com/photos/37601806@N05/sets/72157693335320812

 

Comments are welcome once again.

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[onasj]

One more from the set.

 

 

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[LeicaR10]

Onasj,  Thanks for sharing your 135mm photos.  The images are excellent.  The good news is the demise of the 135mm APO-Telyt is..."Fake news".  Check Leica Rumors.  r/ Mark

[rsolomon]

btw.... nice shots !   are you using the EVF-2  or OVF ?

[onasj]

btw.... nice shots !   are you using the EVF-2  or OVF ?

 

All of the shots were taken with the OVF.  The EVF (and even live view) was a bit too slow for focusing and composing the action.  I was somewhat surprised as initially I thought live view might be the preferred method.

[Chuck Albertson]

I was in law school in Portland the year the Blazers won the championship, and tickets to the playoff games were impossible to get. So one of my classmates wrote to the Blazers' press office, claiming to be the staff photographer for the Walla Walla World-Telegram (or something like that - the paper didn't exist), and requested a press pass. They gave him one. He didn't own a camera, so he borrowed one. He and his Pentax K-1000 (I think) drew a few odd looks from the working photographers under the basket, but the moment passed and he had one of the best seats in the house for the finals. When the rest of us were watching the home games at our usual hang-out, the place erupted in a roar whenever he showed up on TV. After the first couple of games, I showed him how to load film into the camera, just in case someone checked.

[Herr Barnack]

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Onasj,  Thanks for sharing your 135mm photos.  The images are excellent.  The good news is the demise of the 135mm APO-Telyt is..."Fake news".  Check Leica Rumors.  r/ Mark

 

I am still wondering what possessed Puts to make such a claim in the first place... 

[lukeadair]

Please forgive me, but I find it really, really hard to believe that these were taken with an M10, OVF or not, and the 135. Can you really focus this fast? And how is it that you were able to occupy so many varied positions around the floor? Again, sorry, but I just do not buy it. If I am wrong, feel free to shame me. Or better yet, send me a PM with one of these shots attached, EXIF intact. If I am wrong, I will apologize profusely.

[onasj]

Please forgive me, but I find it really, really hard to believe that these were taken with an M10, OVF or not, and the 135. Can you really focus this fast? And how is it that you were able to occupy so many varied positions around the floor? Again, sorry, but I just do not buy it. If I am wrong, feel free to shame me. Or better yet, send me a PM with one of these shots attached, EXIF intact. If I am wrong, I will apologize profusely.

You can see all of the EXIF data in my Flickr albums of the three NBA games I shot— I did not remove any of the EXIF data from any shots:

 

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

 

Each game was shot from one seat, plus the shot of the young violinist in the Celtics-Cavs game that was shot at halftime while walking to the restroom.

 

No apology needed— I would have been skeptical myself that an M10 could shoot an NBA game before just trying it!

[lukeadair]

Thank you. When it comes to focusing, you are a better man than I am, so I apologize just the same.

[Herr Barnack]

Thank you. When it comes to focusing, you are a better man than I am, so I apologize just the same.

 

I never doubted that onasj was making these images exactly as he said he was. 

 

The 135 APO Telyt does have a relatively thin DOF when shot wide open at f/3.4 but the farther away you are from your subject, the more DOF you have.  Precise focusing is required for this kind of shots with this lens at maximum aperture, but let's not forget that some pretty astounding things are possible with relentless practice with an M camera or another instrument:

 

 

The key is relentless practice...

Edited May 19, 2018 by Herr Barnack

[lukeadair]

Yes, Herr Barnack, you are certainly right about practice. I am 74 years old and have been practicing with Leicas since 1967. And I think I am pretty good at it. But there's still no way I could successfully and consistently focus an M10 with a 135 mounted to shoot a basketball game. Maybe it's my old eyes or old fingers or both. In any event, I do understand DOF, thank you very much.