Needs some color?

March 30, 2008

Many fans will be photographing themselves and their families in the various vistas around Nationals Park. One thing I noticed yesterday was there is a lot of white, making it difficult to make the subject matter look interesting, warm, and cozy. I had to fiddle with my aperture a lot depending on where I was in the park, and even then, it was like shooting in a snow field on a sunny day. Now don’t get me wrong, I love the shiny newness of the park, but the difference I realized as I pored over my photos last night (kinda disappointed) is that RFK (where I’m accustomed to shooting) was all green. The borders were green, the walls were green, and there were no white buildings or parking garages in the background of the field. A stark contrast (haha) to Nationals Park where everything is painted white or shiny including the space between horizontal sections, and the parking garages are a very light color. The banners covering them help when looking/shooting from the field, but while trying to photograph the crowd from the side or on the viewing decks, there was nothing to add contrast. Or maybe I just suck as a photographer. I’ll have to make sure my photos of play on the field don’t include any of the back drop because when shooting sports, you typically use the lowest aperture possible (generally f/2.8) to allow the most light in, which will wash out the backgrounds completely in a white blur. I watched yesterday’s game on tv this morning and it seemed the television cameras had the same problem until the sun set completely.

I’m not complaining and I’m not saying I’d rather be at RFK! So don’t take this post the wrong way. I’m just saying the shininess and brightness (lack of color) adds another layer of adjustment for us shutterbugs :-) And sure, if I had my way, I’d request they add a little more color and contrast to the place and hang more banners on the sides of the garages that face in to the centerfield plaza! So do me a favor and make sure to get that plaza nice and dirty, okay? ;-)

Posted in MLB, Photography, Stadium, Washington Nationals