I had not even picked up my D1 in about six months when I shot this youth football game. The game was slow,with two good defenses. Final score was 14-7,meaning three scores the entire game. There were NOT many good plays. When one did come along, I was able to get three usable pictures of a kid who played wide receiver and also split end. On this end-around or "reverse" play, from a total of eight shots, I was able to get three progressively better and better shots of the kid "making the biggest rushing gain of the day".Most of the game consisted of dives and blast plays into the line, a few trap and counter plays, and incomplete pass after incomplete pass.Oh,the way young kids drop passes!
The whole game basically boiled down to this play, and also a breakaway catch-and-run 50- yard TD the same kid made earlier in the game. This is "the go-ahead touchdown" rushing play's start. It's kinda' special to him.The other team had scored once, but eventually turned it over deep late in the game to go on to lose. Basically, the biggest ground gain of the game started with him unseen from my position at the back of the end zone. The ball was snapped behind both lines,I could see no ball carrier,no QB dropping back or rolling out of the pocket to pass, kind of a delayed play.... then suddenly he "appeared out of nowhere" coming around his team's right end on a reverse! I started shooting as soon as I could get on him as he came around the end. I got three good shots in a row,each one a bit different than the one before. I have some bits of mud and dirt flying,and the slightest hint of motion blur on his running feet. With a lens I had almost never used and had only recently acquired, I was able to actually get a big play on film. Er, on sensor. And I seldom shoot "action" or "sports". I used to, in my twenties. In situations like this, I want the camera to fire as fast as is mechanically possible,while I try and frame and focus. I want my camera to be firing as FAST as it can go,shooting at minimum 1/640 or 1/800 if possible, just for safety.
When I was a young man with dreams of taking the next step beyond that of University daily newspaper photographer, I lusted after the 400 f/3.5 ED-IF, but it was like $4,500 in those days and my student budget wouldn't allow me such an extravagance. When a Fuji SLR Talk member offered me the lens for a very reasonable price, I purchased it from him so he could move on to another lens. I'd like to shoot more sports photos, and perhaps this spring I might shoot a few high school track and field meets,which is a fun sport to photograph, with many possibilities for all sorts of photo ops....panning, stop-action,peak-action, telephoto compression,airborne runners or jumpers in long jump,high jump,steeplechase,hurdles, plus the pole vault,spills,jostling,etc.