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Scotland's Captain John Barclay is tackled by Welsh Fly Half Dan Biggar Fujifilm X-T2 + XF100-400mm f4.5/5.6 - 1/800mm @ f5.6 ISO2000 (zoom 400mm) For the past month I have photographed three top flight rugby matches to put the Fujifilm X-T2 and the Fujinon XF100-400mm f4.5/5.6 through their paces.  After shooting at the Scotland v Ireland international (4th February) and Sale Sharks v Wasps Aviva Premiership matches (19 February), the final test was last Saturday (25th February) when I was on the touchline for the Scotland v Wales RBS 6 Nations international at Murrayfield. Shooting in a stadium environment, even in daylight, provides some unique challenges on the lighting front.  Even with the floodlights switched on, the challenge for any photographer is to keep the shutter speed high enough to capture the action while keeping the ISO as low as possible to minimise the sensor noise.   Can the X-T2 and the XF100-400mm shoot fast action sports i...

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 t...

I have tested the X-Series cameras at two international rugby matches in 2016.  The first was back in March testing the X-Pro2 at the Scotland v France 6 Nations encounter.  The second was in November when I tested the X-T2s AF system in the Scotland v Australia match at Murrayfield. This is my stand out shot from that match and is Australia's Scrum Half Will Genia passing the ball back .  The focus remains locked on Genia's face as the ball flies across the frame and it is the facial expressions of the players in the image that make it into my favourite ten shots of 2016. CLICK HERE to see the blog post   ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- PLEASE SUPPORT THIS BLOG BY VISITING THE ADVERTISERS ON THIS PAGE By clicking on the adverts you are helping support this blog - thank you. ---------------------------------------------------------------...

Fujifilm X-Pro2 + XF50-140mm f2.8 On Saturday afternoon I had the pleasure of joining fellow photographer Rob Gray on the touchline at Murrayfield for the first of the three Autumn Tests where Scotland would be taking on the might of Australia.   The last time the two teams met was in the quarter finals of the 2015 Rugby World Cup and Australia won by just one point when the Wallabies were awarded a controversial penalty in the dying seconds of the game to win 35-34 and a place in the semi finals against Argentina.   So this was a rematch that everyone was looking forward to and Murrayfield was packed with over 64,000 fans anticipating a great game of rugby.  They duly got their wish as the the game was one of the best I have ever witnessed but, once again, it was Australia who triumphed by a single point. Fujifilm X-T1 + Samyang 8mm f2.8 fisheye I was given a green bib, which meant I could shoot from behind the touchline in front of the south stan...