Not good for sports

[DEAN01]

Several years ago I switched from a DSLR to the Fuji X Pro 1. I liked, among other things, its size and the bright-frame optical viewfinder. While talking to a friend about sports photography, he said the Fuji focused too slowly for fast action. I reminded him of the photos taken at sporting events with Speed Graphics and flash bulbs. Anyway, I went to an area high school football game to test the Fuji's auto-ISO settings for action and found it worked very well. This is a 1.5mb section of the file. BTW for those who are interested in settings, etc, the lens is a 60mm (90mm equivalent), shutter speed 1/500 at 2.8. C & C please.

[Shadowman]

Nicely captured.

[bnnrcn]

It loooks nice Dean, the composition might look less crowded without the foot in the FG

[IzzieK]

Good one Dean. I agree with Binnur about the foot. I noticed it too...it seems to belong to this other guy disappearing from the shot...how far were you from this scene? Just curious...

[gregj1763]

Great image, irrespective of the foot thingy on which I agree with Binnur & Izzie I wouldn't be disappointed if it were mine.

[Chrisclick]

Great shot, Dean.

As far as I understand it, focus speed is primarily a function of the lens. This seems to be true from my experience shooting birds in flight with various lenses. In fact, most reviews of sports and wildlife lenses that I have seen, include the focus speed as an important feature of the lens. I chose my EF 400mm f/5.6 because of its known quick focussing.

When I change lenses, I know not to expect the same focussing speed from my Tamron 70-300mm. It just doesn't compare.

Having said that, I must admit that I know nothing about the Fuji X Pro 1. Your camera/lens combination seems to work well and focusses in good time to capture the action on a sports field. I suppose that your friend might have been mistaken, or had not considered the lens in his assessment of the Fuji.

At 60mm (90mm equiv.), can I guess that you were fairly close to the action, perhaps on the sideline or just a little further back?

[DEAN01]

Thanks to all for your comments. When we used the 4x5s and 2-1/4 cameras there was no auto focus so we pre-focussed on a spot and let the action come to us. I used the same technique for this photo.

To answer Chris's question: I was on the sidelines.

[rpcrowe]

Dean,

Oh, how I remember using manual focusing cameras and "letting the action come to us".

Sure, we got some good photos and occasionally a really good image came along. However, shooting that way, we were at the mercy of chance. Except for things like shooting runners at a track in which we were sure of exactly where the runner would be for a good shot (finish line, etc.) we could never be sure that when the players arrived at the predetermined and prefocused spot they would be in photogenic attitudes or positions.

A good and fast focusing zoom lens (like the Canon 70-200mm f/2.8 IS ii) is a great tool for sideline shooting. Mounted on a camera which has excellent auto focusing capability (like my 7D or even better a 7Dii) you have a top-notch tool for sports photography.

However, just because the Fuji X Pro 1 is not the sharpest knife in the drawer for sports photography, that is no reason why a person should not use it to shoot sports. Just that, if sports were my major interest, I would not select the Fuji X Pro 1 as my camera.

As an example - here are two charts of shutter delay (lag). One for the Fuji-X-Pro1:
http://www.imaging-resource.com/PROD...i-x-pro1A6.HTM

And one for the Canon 7D (btw the 7Dii is more impressive)
http://www.imaging-resource.com/PRODS/E7D/E7DA6.HTM
.

[DEAN01]

Thanks to all for your comments.

Richard, I appreciate the links, I had no idea such in-depth information was available. Seldom read reviews, etc. One of the great things about the new cameras is the autofocus. Since I am developing a cataract--to small for surgery--autofocus is a tremendous boon.