GilBarib

Hi I had the chance to cover another White Water event last weekend. This is my second year covering the Neilson River Race, one of the most bad-ass and intense annual kayak race in Quebec. It is a pure time trial with each team of two kayakers racing a 3km class IV+V section with 6 major rapids, each team has one lap to enter their fastest time. This river flow in a steep gorge and the only two land access are at the starting point, the Big Eyes Rapid, and at the ending rapid, the Double Drop (Class VI) which offer the best view on the action. All shots were taken from almost the exact same spot where I was able to follow the paddlers as they approach the top of the rapid all the way down to the bottom where most of them were underwater and had to do a eskimo roll to right them self back up. As the old saying goes: location, location, location.... Keeping in mind that the air is filled with mist and water droplets and that every part of the boats and paddlers are covered with running water, I'm quite happy with the IQ and AF of my T2. Shot with a X-T2 + XF50-140mm + VB grip combo, on Boost, AFC with zone AF (3x3 grid), drive on CH (11 fps), AFC custom setting at 2 (follow), Raw. PP in LR 6.9 + Irident's X-Transformer + Nik's Suite. The Flickr Album (75 pics): https://flic.kr/s/aHskV5URMR So from top to bottom, the Approach.... Neilson River Race 2017 #74 by Gilles Baribeau, on Flickr Neilson River Race 2017 #40 by Gilles Baribeau, on Flickr .... The First Drop... Neilson River Race 2017 #25 by Gilles Baribeau, on Flickr Neilson River Race 2017 #65 by Gilles Baribeau, on Flickr ...In the Froth... Neilson River Race 2017 #13 by Gilles Baribeau, on Flickr Neilson River Race 2017 #29 by Gilles Baribeau, on Flickr ....And the Recovery.... Neilson River Race 2017 #62 by Gilles Baribeau, on Flickr Neilson River Race 2017 #23 by Gilles Baribeau, on Flickr

Hi! I finally got a XF100-400 to pair with my T2 a few weeks ago but did have a chance to try it out in a sport context until last weekend at the 16th edition of the annual "Vagues en Ville" Whitewater Festival here in Québec City. It is a really nice 2 days event that marks the beginning of the season for the White Water community on a 4 km stretch of R3 rapids of the St-Charles River. I have been shooting this event since 2013, first with a X-E1 paired to the XF60 or XF14mm (yep!) and now with a T2 and the XF100-400, nice evolution Fuji, keep it up !!! The Flickr album (32 pics): https://flic.kr/s/aHskTy68yf VeV 2017 #21 by Gilles Baribeau, on Flickr VeV 2017 #10 by Gilles Baribeau, on Flickr VeV 2017 #13 by Gilles Baribeau, on Flickr VeV 2017 #17 by Gilles Baribeau, on Flickr VeV 2017 #30 by Gilles Baribeau, on Flickr VeV 2017 #20 by Gilles Baribeau, on Flickr

And here's a few from the Men's Giant Slalom... FIS SSSE GS Men #12 by Gilles Baribeau, on Flickr FIS SSSE GS Men #4 by Gilles Baribeau, on Flickr FIS SSSE GS Men #6 by Gilles Baribeau, on Flickr FIS SSSE GS Men #17 by Gilles Baribeau, on Flickr FIS SSSE GS Men #14 by Gilles Baribeau, on Flickr

Hi ! Here's a few from the ladies Giant Slalom taken at at the FIS-Super Série Sports Expert in Stoneham, Québec, Canada. It's the last downhill skiing competition weekend of the season in the area and I should be covering the men's comp next Sunday so you can expect some more pics in the next days. Shot with a X-T2 (with the 2.0 firmware) and XF50-140 + XF1.4TC combo. PP in LR6.9 + Irident's X Transformer + Nik's Suite The Flickr Album (22 pics as of now) : https://flic.kr/s/aHskRTxmHS FIS SSSE GS Women #2 by Gilles Baribeau, on Flickr FIS SSSE GS Women #15 by Gilles Baribeau, on Flickr FIS SSSE GS Women #7 by Gilles Baribeau, on Flickr FIS SSSE GS Women #21 by Gilles Baribeau, on Flickr FIS SSSE GS Women #17 by Gilles Baribeau, on Flickr

Hi ! Here a few pics from the FIS Cross Country World Cup Finals held in Québec City on March 17,18 and 19. X-T2, XF50-140 + XF1.4TC and XF16-55 Raw with PP in LR6.9 + Irident's X Transformer + Nik's Suite The Flickr Album (62 pics) : https://flic.kr/s/aHskTh43WB FIS XC Ski World Cup Finals #38 by Gilles Baribeau, on Flickr FIS XC Ski World Cup Finals #58 by Gilles Baribeau, on Flickr FIS XC Ski World Cup Finals #57 by Gilles Baribeau, on Flickr FIS XC Ski World Cup Finals #27 by Gilles Baribeau, on Flickr FIS XC Ski World Cup Finals #4 by Gilles Baribeau, on Flickr FIS XC Ski World Cup Finals #3 by Gilles Baribeau, on Flickr

From last weekend at the annual finals of the Winter Derby Competition.... X-T2 + XF50-140mm Derby Ste-Catherine #6 by Gilles Baribeau, on Flickr Derby Ste-Catherine #2 by Gilles Baribeau, on Flickr Derby Ste-Catherine #8 by Gilles Baribeau, on Flickr Derby Ste-Catherine #4 by Gilles Baribeau, on Flickr

Hi ! Here's a few pics of some really fast kids in the 1000 m race at the Coupe Québec No 3, a provincial level competition. This was the last long track speed skating event of the 16/17 season at our local ice ring. Speed skating is really a nice sport to shoot, I think we are quite lucky to have this type of installation here in town.... X-T2 + XF50-140 + XF1.4TC Coupe Qc No 3 #10 by Gilles Baribeau, on Flickr Coupe Qc No 3 #9 by Gilles Baribeau, on Flickr Coupe Qc No 3 #4 by Gilles Baribeau, on Flickr Coupe Qc No 3 #2 by Gilles Baribeau, on Flickr

Hi Here's one with a little more context... ....it's from of Québec City's Winter Carnaval annual Ice Canoe Race. First of all the English translation of the french expression "canot à glace" might induces some confusion, rest assure, the canoes are solidly made of high-tech layout of fiber: kevlar, carbon, fiber-glass, not ice. Ice Canoes were used to be a traditional way of travelling on the St-Lawrence River in winter has now evolved into an all out endurance and quite extreme sport with more than 40 teams and a circuit of ten races. Québec City's race is one of the oldest in existence dating back to 1894... It's only a 3 kilometers ride across the St-Lawrence River from Québec to Lévis on the South shore and back to the starting point. But then, there is the ice, and to make things worse there is also the current and the tide that can be quite strong too, it's not an easy ride. In the elite class, the man will do it 3 times for a total distance of 9 km, the women 2 times and the participation class only once. It's really an all out effort: the best time this year in the men's elite was 1:26:01 hours, with the second and third place finishing just a few seconds later in a epic duel. Shot with a X-T2 + XF50-140 with the 1.4TC and a X-T1 + XF16-55. PP in LR6.8 + Irident's X-Transformer + Nik's suite The Flickr album (44 pics): https://flic.kr/s/aHskQPBxiw

Hi A few pics from the Men's Qualification at the FIS Big Air Freestyle Ski World Cup, in Québec City, Canada X-T2 + XF50-140mm + XF1.4TC LR 6.8 + Irident X-Transformer

Hi ! In the Motor Sports Universe, far from the fame of Nascar Racing or the big budgets of the F1 Circuit exist the world of SAE Baja Racing where engineering students learn how to work as a team and build something that is fast and save (and FUN!!!). So enough word, here's a few from the 12th edition of "L'Épreuve du Nord" a two day SAE Baja event hosted by Laval University in Québec City, Canada. The main race on the second day is a 2 hours endurance race with a total of 33 carts and Team from 18 Universities from North Eastern Canada and the US, it is quite spectacular..... Shot with two bodies, a X-T2 + XF50-140 with the XF1.4TC and a X-T1 + XF16-55 PP: LR6.8 + Nik's Suite The Flickr Album: https://flic.kr/s/aHskTQA6db Épreuve du Nord #63 by Gilles Baribeau, on Flickr EDN 2017 #3 by Gilles Baribeau, on Flickr Épreuve du Nord #50 by Gilles Baribeau, on Flickr EDN 2017 #5 by Gilles Baribeau, on Flickr Épreuve du Nord #18 by Gilles Baribeau, on Flickr Épreuve du Nord #59 by Gilles Baribeau, on Flickr Épreuve du Nord #24 by Gilles Baribeau, on Flickr Épreuve du Nord #44 by Gilles Baribeau, on Flickr

Hi again ! Here's a few more from another Derby (I think I'm starting to love shooting horses).... Derby La Durantaye #18 by Gilles Baribeau, on Flickr Derby La Durantaye #17 by Gilles Baribeau, on Flickr Derby La Durantaye #6 by Gilles Baribeau, on Flickr Derby La Durantaye #5 by Gilles Baribeau, on Flickr Derby La Durantaye #2 by Gilles Baribeau, on Flickr

Hi Here a few from a Winter Sleigh Derby. For those of you not familiar with the sport these are time trials races on a 380 meters course with 8 gates and 6 fence-like obstacles. Each team has to go thru the gates and around the obstacles in the shortest time, but there is a 5 seconds penalty if they knock down the small balls sitting on top of the cones of a gate. Same thing with the small wooden block sitting on one of the post of the fence obstacles, those will make them loose a extra 10 sec each. And to make it a bit more challenging, the course is not linear but rather randomly set in a 100 x 100 meter field and you have to do it in the right order. The gates are numbered from 1 to 8 and the obstacle from A to F, first they'll do all the gates in order and then go around each of the obstacles once again in order, get it wrong and it's a disqualification. For the horse handlers (les meneurs) it's more about control and finesse than brute power and speed, It's a great type of race to photography since they will pass in front of you a few time, so you get a chance to shoot from a variety of different angles all while standing on the same spot. Shot in AFC with a gripped X-T2 on boost at 11 fps ( great to catch the horses with four hooves in the air). The XF50-140's range was perfect for shooting from different angles. Shot in Raw, PP in LR 6.8, Irident's X-Transformer and Nik's PreSharp + ColorFX. The Flickr Album (44 pics as of now): https://flic.kr/s/aHskSW6jvd Derby de Shannon #49 by Gilles Baribeau, on Flickr Derby de Shannon #42 by Gilles Baribeau, on Flickr Derby de Shannon #23 by Gilles Baribeau, on Flickr Derby de Shannon #9 by Gilles Baribeau, on Flickr Derby de Shannon #11 by Gilles Baribeau, on Flickr Derby de Shannon #4 by Gilles Baribeau, on Flickr Derby de Shannon #41 by Gilles Baribeau, on Flickr

Hi Kevin, Thanks for the comment ! At 11fps the AFC did fine (above 90% in focus) as long as I kept the skater inside the 3x3 grid, I feel that the 11 fps on the T-2 + VPB grip (on boost) make it easier to follow a moving target through the EVF than the 8 fps on the T1. I tried to keep the burst sequence as short as possible, usually from 4 to 6 frames, just enough to get the full sequence of mouvement from the skaters. I tried most of the AFC settings during this 3 days event and settled on the custom one, here's the value I used: Tracking Sensitivity: 3 Speed Tracking Sensitivity: 1 Zone Area Switching: Front Hope it helps ! Gilles Here is an example with 3 pics, they are not consecutive but from the same long sequence of a total of 15 pics: CC No1 #79 by Gilles Baribeau, on Flickr CC No1 #34 by Gilles Baribeau, on Flickr CC No1 #32 by Gilles Baribeau, on Flickr

Thanks Johant ! It is natural ice for sure but there is a heavy duty cooling system build under the ice ring, I guess they could get it to freeze right in the middle of summer if it was not for the energy cost ! There is a project here in town to build a new covered long track ice ring, with all the modern confort, it should be great for the athletes and the spectators.....but not so sure for us the photographers, I like the natural light on the outdoor ring ! Gilles

Hi From last weekend, taken at the Canada Cup Long Track Speed Skating competition in Québec City. Close to one hundred of the best skaters in Canada were in town for a three day event, the first races in a series of four this season. Shot with a X-T2 and the XF50-140mm with the XF1.4TC, AFC on zone (3x3 grid), on CH at 11 fps with the battery grip on boost. I shot this event twice before, twice in 2015 with my T1..... and I got to say it, I just love my T2 PP in LR 6.7 and the Nik suite for all sharpening and Noise Reduction. For those of you who would like to see more here is a link to the Flickr album: https://flic.kr/s/aHskHye7Vf Thanks Gilles [

Hi ! Here's a few pics from a friendly Windsurfing competition that took place last Saturday at the local beach. The event, "La Classique de la Baie", is an annual meetup for the local Windsurfing community, it's a 1 hour race in which the riders will try to do as much loops as possible by circling between two buoys 3 km appart. At the beginning of the race I was maybe at around 30 m from the closest buoy, the starting one, but as the tide went up I had to retreat back to maybe 75m. The water in the St-Lawrence River is quite cold at this time of the year so I did not really want to get my feet wet, I should of brought my rubber boots..... or maybe I should just get the XF100-400mm Shot with a X-T2 + XF50-140mm + XF1.4TC AFc with zone AF (3x3 grid), CL (5 fps), Set 1 for the AFC custom setting. Raw, PP in LR6.7 The Flickr Album (32 pics) : https://flic.kr/s/aHskKb7SBL Thanks for looking

Hi ! I gave a look at your Smugmug galleries, lots of nice pics and good action shots in there. What type of light was the field lit with? I gave a look at some of the exif data, not that much with values like 1/1000 and 2.8 @ 3200. The XF1.4TC work well to get you to 196mm with the XF50-140, at the cost of 1 stop of aperture, but in lower light like you had there it's not always the best solution. Now with the X-T2 Fuji has a very efficient body for sports and action, but li it's in need of good fast tele lens !! So I'm really with you on the 200 or 300mm. f/2.8.... or even f/2.0 as far as the 200 is concern, that would be a nice solution with the two TCs, 280mm f/2.8 with the 1.4x and 400 f/4 with the 2x. Keep up the good work !! Gilles

Hi ! Quite good, I was shooting in burst on CH at 8 or 11 fps (with boost activated on the grip) and by the end of the 5 hour race I had one and a half batteries emptied and around 2000 pics taken, The power consumption on the Fuji-X cameras is more time based then frame based, about 2.5 hours of full time use per battery. I always turn the camera off when not taking pics, so during this 16 lap race I only had it at On when there was some action, immediately switching it Off after the last rider had passed by me. As a rule of thumb I usually take 1 battery for every two hours of shooting and add one for safety, I never ran out of power. I did use two regular NP-W126 in the grip (Wasabi brand) and did not have any problems either. Hope it helps you Gilles had the camera on when the riders would be

Hi Thanks ! You're right about the X-T1, Ive shot a pro cycling criterium this summer, the T1 + XF50-140 combo did quite good: https://flic.kr/s/aHskywHsoS First, I shot the whole event on boost, did not even try the regular mode yet, the T2 is a lot really a lot more snappier, not in the same class at all. Startup, AF acquisition, AFC tracking, shot to shot, Ch at 11 fps, EVF, everything is on steroids compared to the T1. Also, important to me is the bigger PDAF area coverage, it is a lot less limiting, finally letting you compose more freely and the focus joystick makes it very easy to access all these AF points. The 24 mp are very nice for cropping compare to the 16 mp, kind of useful for sport pictures where you can't control as much your framing. Did I mention fast ? Very fast ! This was my first outing with the T2 and the overall speed of the little beast just amazed me, I'm really looking forward to use it in situation where the T1 would struggled: indoor sports and the likes. But that being said, I'm keeping mine as second body, now my old X-E1 can finally retire in a museum ! Hope it helps Gilles

Hi ! I got my X-T2 and battery grip from my local brick and mortar store on the morning of the 8 and, luck me, on the 9 Québec City was hosting of the UCI World Tour Grand Prix Cycliste. Great timing ! It's a 16 laps, 200 km race right in the heart of the old town with the world'd very best and fastest cyclist, but please don't look for any of the landmark of the city in my pics, I was just after the riders, trying to get into the pack as much as possible. I already had some good experience and result at shooting fast outdoor sports on AFC with the T1, from speed skating to grand slalom skiing and the likes, so the adaptation and transition to the T2 went very smoothly. I guess there will be plenty of reviews, tests and posts about the new T2, so I'll spare you all the details about the new body and jump right to my appreciation for the type of shooting I do: it's fast and I loved it! Enough, I think I'll let the pics talk now. Aren't they worth a thousand words ? T2 + XF50-140 + XF1.4TC, most of the shooting was done at 196mm @ f/4 Shot in RAW, minimal PP in LR 6.6.1 (sharpening: 20-0.5-100-60, No NR ) The Flickr album (25 pics as of now): https://flic.kr/s/aHskJar3my

Thanks Bob ! Yes it's a great lens, even with the 1.4TC, Fujiflim's best (and only?) lens for sports ! If everything goes as planned I should be shooting some pro-cycling next Friday with it paired to a X-T2 Some people are getting very good result with the XF100-400 too, I'll wait to see how the T2 handles higher ISO before making a decision about it though, where I live I'm stuck with the low Winter light half of the year ! I'd rather go with a 200mm or 300mm at f/2.8.....please Fuji San. Keep up the good work on your blog, Gilles

Very nice set, great panning !!!

Hi ! While looking for something sporty to shoot yesterday morning, I found out that we had here in Québec City a Gaelic Football Team and that they were hosting the Eastern Canada 2016 Tournament. Nice I though, but may all the Irish readers of this post please forgive my total ignorance, but before yesterday I had never heard of the sport, in fact I had to look it up on Wikipedia to figure it out ! The Canadian league is still quite small and the sport not so well known here, really nothing compare to the popularity it has in Ireland. So no big crowds and some very nice access for the photographers, I ended up spending the whole day there. They also had a demonstration match of hurling too, now that's a super rapid sport, this little ball really does flies fast and far, quite hard to keep up with it at first. Oh yeah, the technical details: X-T1 + XF50-140 +XF1.4TC, Drive on CH (8 fps), AFC, Focus on Zone (3x3 grid), RAW, LR6.6.1 + NIK The Flickr Album (39 pics at the moment): https://flic.kr/s/aHskGjvNoR Thanks for looking Gilles First the Gaelic Football... And the Hurling....

Hi ! Here's a few pics of the UCI Mountain Bike World Cup from last week-end at the Mont Sainte-Anne ski resort in Québec, Canada. It was the 26th edition of the Velirium, a great event that brings all of the best riders from around the world to compete on very technical and steep 2.9km course. The winner did it in under 4 minutes, so at a average speed of 43.5 km/hr but in some section of the course they reach top of 80 km/hr....they are fast ! My X-T1 and XF 50-140 combo did quite good, even with the riders coming out of shaded area into the bright sun, lost frames from AF errors was under 10 %, just about the same as the number of frame lost because of framing errors when trying to follow the riders with the EVF. I know I'm going to love my X-T2 Shot with a X-T1 and the XF50-140 f/2.8, AF-C, Drive on CH (8fps), Zone Focus (3x3 grid), Raw, PP in LR 6.6.1 and the Nik Collection. The Flickr Album (77 pics): https://flic.kr/s/aHskFQHoSG Thanks for looking ! Velirium 2016, DH #22 Velirium 2016, DH #57 Velirium 2016, DH #65 Velirium 2016, DH #59 Velirium 2016, DH #14 Velirium 2016, DH #10 And here's two from de BMX freestyle demo team having fun at the bottom of the slopes.... Velirium 2016, BMX Demo #7 Velirium 2016, BMX Demo #10

Thanks to you for the comments... (...and to Fuji for the sharpness and colors)