Ski asked me to update people following a trip to Wembley stadium to watch Olympic footie yesterday on whether I got in with my SLR or not...
Well, my sister got us the tickets and an e-mail of notices specifically relating to football venues definitely stated that "professional looking cameras were not allowed into the stadium".
So, I ended up not bothering with mine & just taking my compact.
Lo & behold every man & his dog had either an SLR or some kind of interchangeable lens camera...miffed....
So, I asked at security whether I am allowed into the ground with an SLR & they look at me like I am bonkers & tell me that of course I can get in with an SLR.....miffed, but not miffed enough to go & pick it up from my parents house...
So, as far as I can tell & based on literally the hundreds of people in the Stadium with SLR cameras....yes, you will be fine so long as you don't turn up with an 800mm 2.8
30cm is the limit.
Good news, could be open to jobsworth security inconsistencies though 😕
MMmmm 800mm 2.8 😀
@wwaswas - True, but no one was being checked....at all.
And my D80 with 70-300 is slightly less than 25cm, so most people's kit will be fine...
Annoying though that the 20x20x30cm rule appeared to be overruled by specific football venue rules but in reality it made no difference.
What is a professional looking camera?
Don Simon - not a clue...it's written very badly...and seemingly completely irrelevant.
But I didn't want to argue the toss with someone in a tabbard who's threatening to confiscate a grand worth of camera kit...!
I took mine with my 18-200 lens on it (horseguards parade and olympic park venues). No issues at all getting in or using it. I doubt very much they'd have enforced the 30cm rule unless you were really being blatant about some bulky sort of pro-looking set-up.
the other thing I'd add is that the security checks are all done by the volunteers/armed forces. they're not at all jobsworthy or officious about it so you're unlikely to get the unpleasant security characters you're used to.
Don Simon - not a clue...it's written very badly...and seemingly completely irrelevant.
😀
I think rocking up with an EOS7D and a 28-300mm lens would not be considered professional, but the same 7D with a 1000mm f2.8 L might be considered a bit more serious than a weekend warrior.
I still don't see how a punter in the stand, no matter what kit they have, is going to pose any form of threat to the accredited pros, unless the have fragile egos.
Thanks Stumpy, think I will risk a D90 and a couple of lens now 😉
TBH, I have seen quite a few slr's in the paying crowd, so it sounds like as long as you stick to the 30cm max size rule, its [i]should[/i] be ok.
don simon
I still don't see how a punter in the stand, no matter what kit they have, is going to pose any form of threat to the accredited pros, unless the have fragile egos.
It's not the pro togs who get @rsey about accreditations etc, it's the venue owners, event promoters, band/star/whatever management etc etc.
It's not the pro togs who get @rsey about accreditations etc, it's the venue owners, event promoters, band/star/whatever management etc etc.
Same applies.
What is a professional looking camera?
It's not about the camera. It's the action slacks and multi pocketed beige waistcoat that sorts the men from the boys.
Now just got to find someone with a decent wide angle/fish eye I can borrow 😉
The blurb read to me as though they were more concerned with obstructing other spectators' views with comedy lenses than the actual taking of photographs.
Original discussion thread is [url= http://singletrackworld.com/forum/topic/any-stw-photographers-here-going-to-the-olympics ]here[/url], for reference.
Heightist!
Incidentally,
How precious are they being about rucksacks? The only one I've got here is bigger than 25L (I'd guess ~35L), but likely to be mostly full of air and squashable. Worth chancing or no?
Cougar - dunno about bag size. Most people had nothing bigger than handbag or a 'normal' day pack that I saw.
I've got in with a Nikon D4 and a selection of lenses inc a rather large 70-200 f2.8 lens (about 8kg of kit in total).
[url= http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8002/7675848668_a6aba8eda4.jp g" target="_blank">
[url= http://www.flickr.com/photos/brf/7675848668/ ]China vs S. Korea, Women's Olympic Hockey[/url] by [url= http://www.flickr.com/people/brf/ ]brf[/url], on Flickr
As for annoying spectators, most of them nearby were pretty amazed by the kit and the shots it could take and kept asking me about it all rather than complaining.....
I had a 70x300 at the rowing and nobody batted an eyelid.
My bag was pretty chunky as well, I'm sure more than 30l.
But this was for the rowing, not the olympic park or a football stadium so it may be different there though.
Must say that going through security with the Army sorting the whole thing was a lot better than any airport I have ever been through. I suppose they are in a better position to be pragmatic about it given they may have actually seen the baddies, rather than just been scaremongered to.
Not the olympics but I've been refused entry to the O2 with cameras, I had a 28-30mm bridge (which met the criteria of no interchangeable lenses so should have been allowed), and a film SLR with a prime lense (so no zoom, so should hvae been allowed). Both taken off me.
Both taken off me.
What happens to them then?
What happens to them then?
Hand them in at a kind of cloakroom, given a ticket, write a description on both parts (eg Nikon D70 & 28-300 lense), they get put in a locker, you pick them up afterwards.
Wasn't the olympics though so they might have different rules.
Taking a 70-300 for my Canon DSLR to the MTB in my Osprey, from all I can see there's no reason not to.
Beach volleyball tonight. Is a DSLR compulsory?
Beach volleyball tonight. Is a DSLR compulsory?
No, but Black Iridium lenses are. 8)
i took mine to the beach volleyball, got some very pleasing shots. 🙂
Need some more pics on this post I think? 😉
Ben, that's a great photograph you have there, talk about capturing the decisive moment, spot on!
Cheers, Ski. This was my fave capture, although it's a bit off in quality. Shows how hard the RSA team were trying to stay in the game!
[url= http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8027/7672320392_86ac952588.jp g" target="_blank">
[url= http://www.flickr.com/photos/brf/7672320392/ ]Commited![/url] by [url= http://www.flickr.com/people/brf/ ]brf[/url], on Flickr
Not a move you would have me doing on astro! 😉
I still play hockey and its been great TV coverage for the Hockey so far.
Fabulous photos, Ben, I'd be ecstatic to get a pic like the RSA one!
Not the olympics but I've been refused entry to the O2 with cameras, I had a 28-30mm bridge (which met the criteria of no interchangeable lenses so should have been allowed), and a film SLR with a prime lense (so no zoom, so should hvae been allowed). Both taken off me.
I've seen this happen at the O2 Academy in Bristol, and been told, in no uncertain terms, to stop taking photos with a Nikon Coolpics 5700 bridge camera in the past.
Door security are not discriminating; if it looks vaguely like a camera that the pro's use inside, then it stays outside.
That's it, it's entirely down to a camera that looks like a DSLR. I take a Lumix TZ30 to gigs, and never have issues with it.
Not as sophisticated regarding exposure, but it gets results, and a 20x optical zoom is more than adequate for most circumstances.
Not perfect, but I was rather pleased with it:
[IMG] 
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Laura Marling at the Royal Albert Hall.
[IMG] 
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Katzenjammer at the O2 Academy, Bristol.
Judging by the Velodrome today there were quite a few dSLRs and pro lenses.
Wouldn't you rather just enjoy the sport/concert than lug the gear around and take photographs?
The pics rarely look as good as those who get closer acess with a 300-400 2.8
Wouldn't you rather just enjoy the sport/concert than lug the gear around and take photographs?
Why do one, when you can do both win-win :-))
Because you only do half a job of each.
Because you only do half a job of each.
Ouch!
Speak for yourself....
Wouldn't you rather just enjoy the sport/concert than lug the gear around and take photographs?
I enjoy the practice.
I took some pics of the road race and time trials this week. Difficult to do when they're hurtling past at 50kph, but I got some passable images out of it. They're not great, but for me it was a good excuse to try. Only one way to improve.
Only one way to improve.
Interesting. What are you trying to achieve?
Speak for yourself....
Yes I was.
Getting accreditation and a good spot the right side of the barrier and getting your photography head on means better images. However it's great to stand there with a drink and watch the action unencumbered and look at others high quality pics after the event than view the once in a lifetime action through a viewfinder or iPhone screen.
IMHO.
Spot the pissy 'pro' 😉
I'm a punter not a pro sports/concert/event photographer.
Here are a few of mine from the Hockey.
[url= http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8145/7700529686_c9b7c32712_b.jp g" target="_blank">
[url= http://www.flickr.com/photos/theflatboy/7700529686/ ]_D7K6283 - crop[/url] by [url= http://www.flickr.com/people/theflatboy/ ]theflatboy[/url], on Flickr
[url= http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8008/7700590476_acf91900a7_b.jp g" target="_blank">
[url= http://www.flickr.com/photos/theflatboy/7700590476/ ]_D7K6220[/url] by [url= http://www.flickr.com/people/theflatboy/ ]theflatboy[/url], on Flickr
[url= http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8426/7700512398_fc0edd000c_b.jp g" target="_blank">
[url= http://www.flickr.com/photos/theflatboy/7700512398/ ]_D7K6300[/url] by [url= http://www.flickr.com/people/theflatboy/ ]theflatboy[/url], on Flickr
[url= http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8010/7700536404_a6e7b08ef7_b.jp g" target="_blank">
[url= http://www.flickr.com/photos/theflatboy/7700536404/ ]_D7K6277[/url] by [url= http://www.flickr.com/people/theflatboy/ ]theflatboy[/url], on Flickr
Flickr set here: http://www.flickr.com/photos/theflatboy/sets/72157630875058350/
Wouldn't you rather just enjoy the sport/concert than lug the gear around and take photographs?
The pics rarely look as good as those who get closer acess with a 300-400 2.8
A Lumix TZ30 hardly requires ‘lugging about’, and for the two examples I posted I was stood two feet behind the pros.
Their advantage is moving about to get better angles without a mic getting in the way, but they only get two or three songs to work with, I get the whole gig.
In any case, it's not about getting pics as good as a pro photographer, it’s about having images to reinforce your own memories of the event.
This is an example, taken at Hyde Park. There were already lots of people near the front, because I'd been watching the Smoke Fairies beforehand, and my TZ3 camera battery died after about half way through, so I just grabbed a couple of shots with my iPhone. This is a crop from the original, which used digital zoom. It's hardly perfect, but the lighting works, and I'm chuffed with it, it reinforces my memories of the day:
[img] 
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Laura Marling at Hyde Park
It's all about memories for most people, [i]especially[/i] something like these Olympics, there will never be another chance for most of the people who are there, and, whatever pics they get, will be looked at time and time again, with the thought, ‘damn, I was actually [i]there![/i]
