Shooting for the Washington Kastles - Part 1: My Gear

Me shooting Rich from the stands with a Canon 300mm f/2.8.  Photo by: Rich Kessler

If you have been following my Facebook and Twitter updates, you’re well aware that I got the opportunity to photograph all of the Washington Kastles’ seven home matches during their one month season this past July.  I also traveled to Charleston, SC where I got to photograph their playoff match, and the league final as they closed out their perfect season by winning the WTT 2011 Championship.

So some of you might be wondering about what kind of gear I used and how I lugged it all around during the matches.  Or you may be curious if I rent any of the gear, and if so, from where?  Well, that’s exactly what I’m going to talk about in this first of three posts about this fun and exciting experience.

First, I suppose I should talk about the most important piece of equipment that I used.  The camera.  I used my trusty Canon 40D as my main camera body throughout the entire season.  It served me well, but I certainly noticed moments where something like a Canon 7D would have been much more suitable.  I suppose that it’s also worth noting that I did have my old Canon 20D on standby as a backup in case it was needed.

Onto lenses.  Throughout the season, I used three different lenses and one lens accessory.  The first was the Canon EF 24-70mm f/2.8L.  As a fast lens, it was great for getting all those wider shots of the packed stadium during the night while matches were being played. 

The second lens I used was the Canon EF 70-200mm f/2.8L.  This lens is often times referred to as the “Money Maker” and rightfully so.  You can do a lot with this lens, and it has served me well for the past 5 years I’ve been using it.

The third lens I used was a rented Canon 300mm f/2.8L.  This lens was absolutely amazing to use.  It gave me the ability to get shots that I wasn’t able to with my 70-200mm.  I’ll talk more about that in Part 2 of the series and show you examples of how well it worked for me.  I chose to never use a monopod with it since I liked moving around a lot, and I felt it would be more of a hassle to deal with.  It certainly gave my arms a workout.

I had a Canon dinner party with my friends 70-200 and 300. Oh, and Sam Adams stopped by too.

As the regular season ended, my rental period for the 300mm had also ended, and I had to unfortunately say goodbye to it.  With a playoff match and possible championship match remaining, I had to figure out an alternative for the returned 300mm.  The best solution I came up with was renting a Canon 1.4x extender to use with my 70-200mm.  It bumped me up to a 98-280mm, but I had to sacrifice the f/2.8 as it became f/4 making it almost useless once the sun went down.

One, rather unlikely, piece of gear that you probably wouldn’t think to use while shooting a sporting event is the Fujifilm Finepix X100.  I got the X100 back in the beginning of July, and I literally take it everywhere with me.  Since I was shooting with the 300mm a majority of the time, the X100 served as a great second body with its fixed 23mm lens for wider shots.  I was surprised with how useful it was, and I came away with one specific shot I took with it that I’m extremely proud of.  I’ll be sure to share the shot with you in the next post of this series.

My Fujifilm Finepix X100 surrounded by my Canon gear.

So how did I manage carrying all of this gear with me during the matches?  Everyone has their own method for strapping their gear to themselves.  The best way to do it is to go with the way that fits you and your shooting style the best.  For this type of assignment, I typically go with my Think Tank belt-pack.  I like to stay mobile and move from viewpoint to viewpoint, and as I do, I need to take my gear with me.  Instead of wearing a backpack or sling-bag that puts pressure on my neck and shoulders, I prefer to use my belt-pack and save myself from a crippling migraine.  Besides, it offers quick and easy access to all my gear for when I need to change lenses in a hurry.

When renting the 300mm and 1.4x extender, I used two different suppliers.  As a member of Canon Professional Services (CPS), I was able to get the 300mm f/2.8 for a 2-week evaluation loan.  If you shoot Canon equipment and qualify for the program, you should definitely consider it as getting loaner equipment is only one of the great perks.  The 1.4x extender was rented from Penn Camera (E Street location) located in Washington D.C.  They’re a great rental source for when you’re in a jam and need something right away.  You just have to hope that whatever you need is available at the time.  In my case, I lucked out.

So there you have it.  Yes it was heavy, and yes, I’m sure I looked like I was going into battle with all the gear strapped on.  I’m also pretty sure that I lost a few pounds from carrying it all during a couple days of 100+ degree heat.

There is no doubt that this belt-pack saved my back from all kinds of agony by taking excess weight off my neck and shoulders and transferring it to around my waist.  Photo by: Rich Kessler