Get out ya seat and…

I have this developed this strange compulsion while on this trip to get jumping photos at major highlights of my adventure. I hate normal, posed, stare down the camera photos; mainly due to the fact I am pretty rough looking, and the less I appear in photos the better. Jumping photos however provide a great substitute. First of all they put me in the photo, something which helps to show “I was there” and second of all; they are relatively interesting. They also give bystanders something to laugh at, particularly when the photographer is no good at capturing the jump. A good jumping photo can take up to 5 shots to get, but you’ve got someone handy with a camera and it can be done in one. Most failed jump shots end up with the jumper just off the ground, stretched out like a board, toes pointed south and arms all akimbo. The requirement of having a decent photographer on your side is a bit of a restriction of the jump photo. It is almost impossible to get a jumping shot on your own.

For the busabouters, my jumping shots have provided a great amount of entertainment, and those skeptical at first of the brilliance of the jump shot are soon turned. Most of my mates on the bus have at least one jumping photo of their own in their collection.

Some tips for taking jumping photos:

• Fast Shutter Speed: Set your camera to a fast shutter speed, or if you have a “sports” mode set it to that.
• Bright Days: Jumping photos look best of bright days. A good shadow can make a jump look ten times higher than it actually is.
• Focus: Get your photographer to focus lock on you before the jump. Most cameras will take a photo almost instantly after focus is achieved. On most cameras this involves positioning the subject in the center of the frame, pressing the shutter down half way, listening for a beep and a visual indicator in the display and then, while holding the shutter button down half way, recomposing the shot.
• Countdowns: Confirm on a count down before starting. 3,2,1,JUMP or 1,2,JUMP etc. The is nothing worse than confirming a countdown from a few hundred meters away.
• Choose your backdrop: Sometimes you want people to see the background, rather than the jump. Most “sightseeing” stops are great jumping locales.
• Get Creative: Don’t just jump straight up and down, I’ve found my preferred jumping position to be arms out running man style and knees up. An overly dramatic contorsion will give the jump energy and usually looks pretty rocking.
• The More People The Better: Get a group involved. Jumping photos are about sharing the fun.

I’ve had a few people say they enjoy the jumping photos that are appearing on the site, so I have created a gallery which I will keep updated with the latest jumping shots. Keep checking back on it, I’ll have it linked in the footer, to see the latest jump shots. Enjoy!