Snapshots: Terence Yam

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This story was printed from CNET Asia.
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Snapshots: Terence Yam

By Damian Koh
29/06/2006
URL: http://asia.cnet.com/reviews/digitalcameras/0,39001469,39371369,00.htm

Last month, we brought you underwater with Robert Liew. We've had enough of the deep blue, so this time we're hauling you back onto dry land for a shot of adrenalin. If you're into off-road racing, golf, horseback riding or even kickboxing, Terence Yam has some pretty neat photos which we believe you would enjoy, together with tips on how he snapped those.

The images you see from this feature have been reproduced with permission from Terence Yam. If you wish to be featured in our interviews or know any photo buffs who may be interested, email us a short description of yourself, or your friend, and we'll get back to you.

Name: Terence Yam
Type of photographer: Enthusiastic amateur and freelance photographer who carries at least one camera at any time
Equipment: Nikon D100

and F100
Sports-related gear: AFS 17-35mm 2.8D, AF24-85mm 2.8D, AFS 70-200mm 2.8G, 500mm reflective lens, Kenko 2x converter, Nikon AFS 1.7x converter, vertical grip, SB 80DX flashlight, Manfrotto carbon monopod, loads of high-speed memory cards

What he says:
I fell in love with photography in 2001 and I believe I will continue to love it till the end of my life. As I always joke with my friends, my interest in photography emerged early at the age of 10 when I played video games. I liked to press the Start button on the joypad to freeze the screen and admire the beautiful action when I was playing Street Fighter!

My area of interest in photography is quite diverse. I do not restrict myself to any particular area, but touch on everything that inspires me. I do have a special feeling for sports photography, though. What fascinates me about sports photography is the intense excitement during the event and the satisfaction I have when reviewing the pictures.

I don't have the skill or physical fitness required for an athlete but I do think sports photographers share some similar prerequisites--passion and concentration. When I'm taking pictures in the field, all I care about is how to get the best images. I never bother about how I look, how bad the weather is, how tired I am or if the baseball would hit me! Perhaps I am at high risk of ending up as a "roadkill" photographer on the field.

I wish I could have more chances to shoot different kinds of sports and to improve my photography skills and sense. If anyone has a media pass for some exciting sports event, I'm in!

"This is one of my favorite shots. As I walked around the track, I noticed that the grandstand could be a good location for doing some pan shots! I picked a colorful background and put on the AF 80-200mm 2.8D lens. Then I started turning my camera and shooting like crazy at a shutter speed of 1/80s as the bike zipped across my frame. Voila! Here comes my dynamic superbike shot!"

Name: Terence Yam
Type of photographer: Enthusiastic amateur and freelance photographer who carries at least one camera at any time
Equipment: Nikon D100

"Another favorite pan shot of mine. It was taken with the AF 80-200mm 2.8D lens on D100 at 1/200s. I spotted this biker who was leading a great deal and waving to the audience. I got a feeling he might do some tricks to attract people's attention, so I locked my camera on him. All of a sudden, he tilted up the bike and dashed forward. I immediately took a few shots and this is the shot I like the best."

Name: Terence Yam
Type of photographer: Enthusiastic amateur and freelance photographer who carries at least one camera at any time
Equipment: Nikon D100

"1/160s shutter speed was used. The secret of pan shots is to lock your arms tightly to your side and turn your whole upper body at the same speed as the bike to follow as it passes by. Practice makes perfect."

Name: Terence Yam
Type of photographer: Enthusiastic amateur and freelance photographer who carries at least one camera at any time
Equipment: Nikon D100

"I don't have the privilege to buy an AFS 400mm 2.8. But I've always want to know what a photo will look like with such long lenses. Therefore, I did an experiment by putting a Russian 500mm reflective lens with a 2x converter on my D100, which turned the lens into 1,500mm at F11. Manual focus was very difficult under such low light. I did plenty of pan shots and finally nailed down this one at 1/125s shutter speed."

Name: Terence Yam
Type of photographer: Enthusiastic amateur and freelance photographer who carries at least one camera at any time
Equipment: Nikon D100

"This pan shot was taken by AFS 12-24mm on D100 with flash. I was pretty close to the bike and could smell the fuel. The ultrawide lens bent the lines on the roof and created beautiful curves on the picture."

Name: Terence Yam
Type of photographer: Enthusiastic amateur and freelance photographer who carries at least one camera at any time
Equipment: Nikon D100

"I love this shot for its vibrant colors. I combined slow shutter speed, fill-in flash and panning skills to create this dynamic picture."

Name: Terence Yam
Type of photographer: Enthusiastic amateur and freelance photographer who carries at least one camera at any time
Equipment: Nikon D100

"I took this shot with AFS 70-200mm 2.8 VR lens at 1/100s. The vibration reduction feature enabled me to shoot at lower shutter speeds, but still retained the sharpness of the picture."

Name: Terence Yam
Type of photographer: Enthusiastic amateur and freelance photographer who carries at least one camera at any time
Equipment: Nikon D100

"When I heard people shouting, I turned around and saw this car dashing towards me with fire bursting out from its engine. I ran forward and took a few shots before I was advised to move away."

Name: Terence Yam
Type of photographer: Enthusiastic amateur and freelance photographer who carries at least one camera at any time
Equipment: Nikon D100

"After observing a few jumps, you can usually predict the jumping path of the bikers. Then it will become easier for you to shoot the bike in the air."

Name: Terence Yam
Type of photographer: Enthusiastic amateur and freelance photographer who carries at least one camera at any time
Equipment: Nikon D100

"I put the Russian 500mm reflective lens onto my Nikon D100. I picked a location where the bikes leaped directly toward me. I held my camera steadily on a monopod, manually prefocused, and pressed the shutter whenever the image was sharp and the composition was right. High shutter speed was used to "freeze" the moment. The "circular effect" of reflective lens added extra flavor to this shot."

Name: Terence Yam
Type of photographer: Enthusiastic amateur and freelance photographer who carries at least one camera at any time
Equipment: Nikon D100

"I used only a standard zoom lens for this shot. I was standing on a mound at the end of the track as this bike made a sharp U-turn around me. I turned my camera to follow its movement and I was lucky enough to get this non-horizontal pan shot."

Name: Terence Yam
Type of photographer: Enthusiastic amateur and freelance photographer who carries at least one camera at any time
Equipment: Nikon D100

"It was taken at a large-scale marathon race in Hong Kong. It was around 5am. I thought one of the best ways to show the passion and energy of the event was to capture the moment the runners started running."

Name: Terence Yam
Type of photographer: Enthusiastic amateur and freelance photographer who carries at least one camera at any time
Equipment: Nikon D100

"This is a close-up shot of the famous Padraig Harrington after hitting the ball. This was taken during the Omega Golf Open where I was hired by a newspaper to take photos for it. The only thing I remember after taking four days of golf matches is to "Keep quiet"."

Name: Terence Yam
Type of photographer: Enthusiastic amateur and freelance photographer who carries at least one camera at any time
Equipment: Nikon D100

"Another shot taken with the Russian 500mm reflective lens. The "circular effect" of reflective lens did magic on the bright background."

Name: Terence Yam
Type of photographer: Enthusiastic amateur and freelance photographer who carries at least one camera at any time
Equipment: Nikon D100

"This is another common skill used in sports photography. I mounted my camera with a telephoto zoom lens on a tripod and set the shutter speed to 1/25s at shutter priority mode. I zoomed the lens to its farthest end, prefocused and waited for the horse to jump. When the horse leapt over the bar, I pressed the button and zoomed back the lens to its widest end. This technique is useful when you want to emphasize the power of dynamic action."

Name: Terence Yam
Type of photographer: Enthusiastic amateur and freelance photographer who carries at least one camera at any time
Equipment: Nikon D100

"I took this shot with the Russian 500mm reflective lens on D100. I prefocused manually, waited for the horse to jump over the bar, and pressed the shutter."

Name: Terence Yam
Type of photographer: Enthusiastic amateur and freelance photographer who carries at least one camera at any time
Equipment: Nikon D100

"There was an outdoor kickboxing match at night. I used high ISO with fill-in flash to tackle the complicated lighting at the venue. One of the tricks of shooting this kind of sports is to stay extremely alert and predict the next action of the fighters. I deliberately changed it to b&w to make the noise brought by high ISOs unnoticeable."

Name: Terence Yam
Type of photographer: Enthusiastic amateur and freelance photographer who carries at least one camera at any time
Equipment: Nikon D100

"Besides dynamic action shots, still shots on the sports ground are also an interesting topic. Every detail, such as the scratches on the bats and sand on the baseballs, tells a story of the sports players. So look into the details."