More Sporting Action With Fujifilm

Man of the Match Stuart Hogg scores his second try for Scotland
Fujifilm X-T2 + XF100-400mm f4.5/5.6 - 1/1000 @ f5.6 ISO3200 (Zoom 100mm)
On Saturday afternoon I was at Murrayfield, the home of Scottish rugby, to photograph the opening game of the RBS Six Nations which saw Scotland against Ireland.  In front of packed grandstands, and Her Royal Highness The Princess Royal, Scotland won 27-21 in a nail biting second half that saw Scotland take their first win in the  opening match of the Six Nations since 2006.


HRH The Princess Royal, Princess Anne
Fujifilm X-T2 + XF100-400mm f4.5/5.6 - 1/500 @ f5.6 ISO2000 (Zoom 120mm)
For the first time I was able to shoot at both ends of the pitch thanks to a rule change by Scotlands Media Team which allowed green bibs to choose which end to shoot from (in previous matches there was a different colour bib for each end).  So I was able to shoot with Scotland playing towards me for both halves.

I had three cameras to give me quick access to several different focal lengths.  The X-T2 had the XF100-400mm attached, the X-Pro2 with the XF50-140mm with the 1.4x converter and the X-T1 with the XF10-24mm for some wide angle shots.  

SLOW APERTURE EQUALS HIGHER ISO
As has happened in the previous two matches I have shot at Murrayfield, the limiting factor for shooting in a stadium is light and with a f5.6 maximum aperture on the XF100-400mm I had to set 3200 ISO to maintain a 1/1000 second shutter speed to freeze the action.  

This is where the Canon and Nikon shooters have the advantage with their 300mm f2.8 and 400mm f2.8 prime lenses, they can shoot at 800 ISO for the same shutter speed.  

However both the X-T2 and X-Pro2 both handle high ISO very well and I have no hesitation in pushing the dial to 6400 on either camera.

The 50-140mm on the X-Pro2 was set at f4 because of the 1.4x converter I was able to select 1600 ISO.  

The X-Pro2, while not the ideal sports camera, performed extremely well.  The AF was quick and spot on and the range finder styling also has an advantage over the more traditional shape of the X-T2 and that is my left eye was clear of the body, so I was able to watch what was happening to the side of me without taking my eye away from the viewfinder.


A Capacity crowd at Murrayfield
Fujifilm X-T1 + XF10-24mm f4 - 1/400 @ f4 ISO800 (Zoom 10mm)
X-T2 CAMERA SETTINGS FOR RUGBY
I have been asked several times on forums and groups what settings I use on the X-T2 for rugby.  

I use manual exposure with the shutter dial set to 'T' so I can change the shutter speed on the rear dial.  The aperture ring is set to the widest setting and the ISO dial is locked at the correct ISO for the conditions, in this case 3200.  I have the exposure meter set to centre weighted.

The autofocus is set to AF-C with custom function SET 2 (ignore obstacles) selected in the menu.  I use Zone Focus with a 3 x 3 square.  

The drive is set to CH with 11fps when the performance mode is set to 'Boost' and 8fps when set to 'Normal'.


BATTERY POWER TEST
Another pleasant surprise was the amount of battery power I had left at the end of the match.  One of the issues that have been levelled at all Compact System Cameras, which includes the X Series, it the poor battery performance.  The official line is a battery will last approximately 350 shots.  

Well I decided to conduct a test on the X-T2 and X-Pro2 during the match to see how much battery power I would use during a real life test.  The batteries were all charged the night before.  The X-T2 had three Fujifilm NP-W126S batteries and the X-Pro2 had a standard Fujifilm NP-W126.  The X-T2 performance mode switch on the grip was set to 'boost' during the game and 'normal' for the warm up and the post match celebrations.

I changed the left hand battery in the X-T2 grip at half time because it was showing low and at the end of the match this battery had 25% left.  The replacement battery, which was also a NP-W126S, was showing 62%.  The right hand battery was at 90% and the internal battery was at 79%.  I took a total of 1206 shots (RAW and JPEG (N) = 2412 files) on the X-T2.

There was a similar performance from the X-Pro2.  I took 466 shots (932 file both RAW and JPEG) on the X-Pro2 and the battery was still showing 40% full at the end of the match.  

Now while this is still not to pro DSLR standards, this is well above what I would expect from these batteries during a job and I keep at least six spares on me at all times.

Here is a small selection of images from the Scotland and Ireland match and my next trip to Murrayfield will be for the Scotland v Wales game on the 25th February.

Scotland's no8 Josh Strauss being introduced to HRH Princess Anne
Fujifilm X-T2 + XF100-400mm f4.5/5.6 - 1/500 @ f5.6 ISO2000 (Zoom 400mm)
Ireland's no8 Jamie Heaslip
Fujifilm X-T2 + XF100-400mm f4.5/5.6 - 1/500 @ f5.6 ISO1600 (Zoom 400mm)
Scotland's Captain Greig Laidlaw and Fullback Stuart Hogg sing 'Flower of Scotland'
Fujifilm X-T2 + XF100-400mm f4.5/5.6 - 1/500 @ f5.6 ISO1600 (Zoom 400mm)
Scotland's no4 Richie Gray pushing forward
Fujifilm X-Pro2 + XF50-140mm f2.8 + 1.4x Converter - 1/8000 @ f4 ISO1600 (Zoom 80mm)
Scottish fans celebrating another try
Fujifilm X-T2 + XF100-400mm f4.5/5.6 - 1/800 @ f5.6 ISO3200 (Zoom 260mm)
Stuart Hogg tries to get past Ireland's Robbie Henshaw
Fujifilm X-T2 + XF100-400mm f4.5/5.6 - 1/800 @ f5.6 ISO3200 (Zoom 250mm)
Scotland keep pushing forward
Fujifilm X-T2 + XF100-400mm f4.5/5.6 - 1/800 @ f5.6 ISO4000 (Zoom 380mm)
Scotland's Ryan Wilson tries to charge down the kick from Ireland's Paddy Jackson
Fujifilm X-T2 + XF100-400mm f4.5/5.6 - 1/800 @ f5.6 ISO4000 (Zoom 300mm)
Another crunching tackle by the Scottish forwards
Fujifilm X-T2 + XF100-400mm f4.5/5.6 - 1/800 @ f5.6 ISO4000 (Zoom 400mm)
Ireland prop Tadhg Furlong releases the ball after being tackled
Fujifilm X-T2 + XF100-400mm f4.5/5.6 - 1/800 @ f5.6 ISO4000 (Zoom 400mm)
A penalty is awarded for this high tackle on Scotland's Alex Dunbar
Fujifilm X-T2 + XF100-400mm f4.5/5.6 - 1/800 @ f5.6 ISO4000 (Zoom 190mm)
Scotland's Captain Greig Laidlaw holds the trophy high in celebration
Fujifilm X-T2 + XF100-400mm f4.5/5.6 - 1/400 @ f5.6 ISO4000 (Zoom 400mm)

CLICK HERE to read the match report on the Telegraph website

CLICK HERE to watch the match highlights video on the Scottish Rugby YouTube channel

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ALL IMAGES (UNLESS INDICATED) ARE THE PROPERTY OF MACLEAN PHOTOGRAPHIC AND CANNOT BE USED FOR ANY PURPOSE WITHOUT PRIOR PERMISSION

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Jeff Carter is an Official Fujifilm X Photographer and was named as a Fujifilm brand ambassador in June 2015. In 2016 he worked with the company on the launches of the Fujifilm X-Pro2 in Tokyo and the Fujifilm X-T2 in Paris in July 2016.  You can view his profile and gallery on the Fujifilm website HERE

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