Yes, it felt a little funny standing along the sidelines at Gentry’s football game with a big professional-grade single lens reflex camera and heavy long lens hanging from my neck while I took sports photos with a digital camera small enough to drop into my shirt pocket, but I’m sure glad I did.

To be honest with you, I never thought I’d write anything like this in a column, but I’m convinced enough to want to sell off much of my photographic equipment - including some much-loved fi lm equipment - in favor of a smaller and much lighter digital camera. And this is from a guy who thought digital quality could not touch the quality of film (so long as it is processed and printed the right way).

What changed my mind?

After problems with the newspaper’s professional digital camera body and a visit to the camera store to find a solution, I came away with a Canon PowerShot G15, confident it would meetmost of the newspaper’s needs without spending a fortune on a new camera body and a good lens to go with it. (I might add that it was not the fi rst recommendation of the salesman for use in sports photography, and even the Canon representatives I contacted suggested I stay with a DSLR.) The question was: Is it possible to use a small point-andshoot-type camera for sports photography in less than optimum light? I thought it was possible, but I wouldn’t know for sure without putting it to the test.

I brought a personal camera to the Gentry game, with the newspaper’s long lens attached (by adapter) just in case. And, I did take a couple good shots of the game with that big old camera, but then I took out that new little camera which I had brought in the fanny pack I usually wear to carry accessories like spare batteries and a flash for when the light gets low.

And once I started using the G15, I just let that big camera hang at myside the rest of the night. The images were sharper than most I took with the larger camera; and, when I normally would have had to get out the flash to capture anything usable on the fi eld, the little G15 let me keep on shooting at higher and higher ISOs and with good results.

I had hoped the little camera would work well enough for the newspaper to get by without spending thousands, but the little camera surpassed all my expectations and more. I was nothing but pleased. And, if I can fi gure out a way to play videos on a printed page, the little camera can produce some astounding video results, too.

But now I have a problem. If I leave the big camera and long lens at home, will anyone think I’m a sports photographer? Will people believe me and let me down on the sidelines when I say I’m taking photographs for the newspaper if all I bring with me is a small camera which fits in my shirt pocket or a fanny pack?

I guess only time and photos in the newspaper will tell.

Randy Moll is the managing editor of the Westside Eagle Observer. He may be reached by email at [email protected].

News, Pages 4 on 09/11/2013