Tips from The Sports & Hobby Social Network - Hobeze.com

The Basketball Social Network: http://www.hobeze.com

Too often I see guys play one on one in such a way that they’re not preparing for real game situations. Real games are fast paced, and there’s almost always help defense in the lane. You can’t take 5 dribbles to get to the basket - the ball’s going to be stolen from you on your second dribble. And if you do beat your man, you’re going to encounter a shot blocker or charge taker. To score in a real game, you have to go straight to the goal, quickly and decisively. 

So how can you make 1 on 1 more realistic? How can you make 1 on 1 fast paced and aggressive? How can you use 1 on 1 to prepare for real games? Here are 5 suggestions: 

(1)   Start every possession from triple threat on the perimeter with a check.
But limit yourself to only one-third of the court (based on the accompanying diagrams, stay in one of the three yellow areas). In a real game, you can’t veer around your defender, you’ll run into his helping teammate. You have to go through the defender, right off his shoulder. In addition, limit yourself to one dribble. I’ve actually charted this, and in real games about 90% of baskets that are scored in the half court come off one dribble or no dribbles!
 

(2)   Let the defender pass the ball from under the goal and sprint to defend you.
When the ball hits the offensive player’s hands, it’s live – but again, limit yourself to one dribble and about one-fourth of the court. By the way, this method makes it more realistic for the defense as well as the offense. In real games, you’re usually closing out to play defense, not starting from a stand still.

(3)   Create your shot off the dribble. Begin dribbling outside the three point arc.
Once your defender says he’s ready, you’ve got a maximum of two dribbles. And again, limit yourself to one-third of the court.
 

(4)   Post just above the block with your back to the basket and spin yourself a pass.
One dribble limit. And you can make it even tougher by saying that you have to shoot with both feet in the lane. Give the offensive player 1 extra point for any offensive rebound and 3 extra points if he scores from a put-back.
 

(5)   And the best way to play REAL 1 on 1 is to play it with 3 players.
Regardless of which of the above 4 versions you choose, the extra defender is in the lane, acting as a help defender. If you score behind the arc, you get 3 points. If you score inside the arc, you get 2 points. And if you can beat your man, get to the lane, and then also beat the help defender, you’ve beaten two players and so you get 4 points! Everyone rotates their spot after each possession.

I call this REALITY 1 on 1 because it best simulates how 1 on 1 occurs in real games against a good defensive team! Make your training as game like as possible, and you’ll see real improvement.

Editor’s Note: This tip was written by Rick Torbett, the lead instructor on the widely-respected Better Basketball videos, which feature NBA stars like Jason Kidd and Chauncey Billups, NCAA stars like JJ Redick and 2008 NCAA Champion Coach Bill Self, and Sue Bird and Tamika Catchings of the WNBA.

About the Author 

Martin O’ Flynn is a Director of Hobeze.com – the only social networking site dedicated to 680 sports and hobbies including  Basketball  The site is 100% FREE to join and use and connects basketball players worldwide who wish to discuss tips, technique, players and view professional instructional videos or meet like minded people. 

Click here to join for FREE.

admin Basketball

The Photography Social Network: http://www.hobeze.com

Whether you are an SLR Professional, a Nikon Novice or an iPhone ‘spur of the moment’ photographer there are certain techniques you can implement to capture images truly worth sharing.

 My Top 10 Digital Photography tips are as follows:

10. The Rule of Thirds

Focal points are the key areas of interest in a photograph.  If you are taking a portrait it maybe the persons eyes.  If you are taking a landscape shot it maybe the mountain in the background. 

The golden rule is never place focal points at the middle of a photograph.  The powerful effect of a focal point is accentuated when it’s taken off center.  Mentally visualize every image as being divided into 9 boxes created by two evenly spaced vertical lines and two even spaced horizontal lines. 

 Now, picture that middle square in the grid. The four corners of that square mark the locations of your areas of interest.  

Consider the above image taken of the statue of liberty.  Instead of placing the statue of liberty at the center of the photograph (like most amateurs), the Statue (focal point) was purposely kept out of the middle box.  This created a more dramatic image with the Manhattan skyline providing a superb backdrop.  This ‘rule of thirds’ is very useful for all types of images e.g. for sunset images use the horizontal top line to position the sun, and thus ensure the foreground accounts for 2/3s of the shot.  This gives the images more depth and dramatic effect.

 9. Pick a Point to Frame a Shot for Professional Effect

A very effective way to create an instantly professional image is to use a nearby object to give an image perspective or to alter its perspective.  For example look at the image below taken in a relatively ‘unexciting’ restaurant environment.  By purposely using two pint glasses the photographer added an element of ‘altered perspective’ to the image, by making the pint glasses seem larger than life.  It also emphasized what the individuals in the image were engaging in, at that moment in time.

8. Vary the angle the shot is taken

This is a very simple concept which is seldom realized by amateur photographers.  By altering the angle the image is taken, the subject matter can be greatly enhanced.  For example whenever I’m at the beach or in a boat, I take images by holding the camera at water level.  This provides a dramatic panoramic image that looks liked the camera was floating on the water.  In fact this low level camera angle can work very well in many different types of situations.  When I was in New York, I used capture images of the skyscrapers by placing the camera at footpath level.  This had the desired effect of emphasizing the height of the skyscrapers.

 7. Slow Motion Effects

Creating a slow motion effect on subject matters ordinarily associated with swift motion, creates photographs that have the ‘wow’ factor.  The most effective subject matter for this type of image is waterfalls.  Commence by discovering a nice composition with running water, then prolong the time the cameras shutter is open.   Be sure to use a tripod to ensure the camera stays study during the long exposure.

You’ll need a tripod to steady the camera during the long exposure, and you probably should use the self timer to trip the shutter.

According to photography expert Dereck Story “If your camera has an aperture priority setting, use it and set the aperture to f-8, f-11, or f-16 if possible. This will give you greater depth of field and cause the shutter to slow down.

Ideally, you’ll want an exposure of one second or longer to create the flowing effect of the water. That means you probably will want to look for streams and waterfalls that are in the shade instead of the bright sunlight.

Another trick is to use your sunglasses over the lens to darken the scene and create even a longer exposure. Plus you get the added bonus of eliminating distracting reflections from your composition.”

6. Expression of Motion

Capturing a moving object is an important conversation in digital photography.  You can generally achieve three different types of effect:

a.       A complete freeze frame with both the subject and background clear, non blurred and still.

b.      An image where the background is still but the subject matter is blurred to illustrate the speed they are travelling

c.       An image where everything is blurred

To create an effect where every aspect of the motion is clear and sharp you need to use a high shutter speed.  Use a shutter speed of at least 1/300^th of a second.  If you are trying to capture a fast moving object set the shutter speed to 1/1000^th of a second.

If you seek to blur everything in the shot to convey to the viewer how fast everything is moving, slower the shutter speed to 1/100^th of a second or less.

To achieve ‘panning’, motion blur of the background while the subject stays clear you need to use a slower shutter speed while moving the camera at the same rate as the moving object.

The key secret here is to always use a tripod.  This is necessary to achieve a clear exposure with a great depth of field.  Try to use a foreground object to frame the image and give it depth. 

This picture above was framed with two overhanging trees.  The aperture was very narrow (high f/stop), and the shutter speed was about 10 seconds.  Even though a tripod was used, the self-timer was used also, to eliminate any shake.

4. Taking Portraits

The most effective portrait photos are those taken when the subject is not expecting or not ready.  Many top photographers will take the image when the subject is fixing their hair, or clothing while getting ready for the shot.  These provide more genuine images that are far more appealing.

3. Take Black and White

Black and white images are a very effective means of transforming the mood of a photograph.  If you find yourself at a beach on a cloudy day, a black and white image will appear more scintillating and bring to life shots which would otherwise have appeared colorless.  This technique is also useful for night time images taken within big cities e.g. Manhattan.

 2. Timing is Critical

Whether you are on a city break to Prague or visiting the Pyramids in Egypt, taking images at dawn or dusk will present more exciting photo opportunities.  For starters less if any people will be around the earlier you start thus ensuring an uninterrupted landscape shot.  You will also benefit from more interesting effects of shadows and colors as the sun shines at different angles through out the day.  This is particularly noticeable in the evening when the light becomes warm and golden.

1. Monetize Your Images

Upload your images to sites such as http://www.shutterstock.com and get paid for every time someone downloads your images.

About the Author 

Martin O’ Flynn is a Director of Hobeze.com – the only social networking site dedicated to680 sports and hobbies including Photography.  The site is 100% FREE to join and use and connects photography enthusiasts worldwide who wish to discuss tips, equipment, technique,  and view professional instructional videos or meet like minded people. 

Click here to join for FREE.

admin Photography

Login to the Golf Network: http://www.hobeze.com - for professional video lessons on putting backspin on your golf ball

Imparting back spin on a soaring approach shot into a tight pin position, is perhaps the most spectacular shot in the game of golf. It draws gasps of admiration from the galleries and enables golfers to attack the most difficult pin positions. But how do they do it.

Well in order to get a golf ball to ‘suck backwards’ several key factors need to be present.

5 Key Factors

1. The Golf Ball

The hard two piece balls that many amateur golfers play with are very difficult to spin. In fact they are designed to add distance by creating top spin, the opposite of backspin. In order to create backspin it is important to play with a soft cover balata ball.

2. The Condition of the Lie

If the ball is lying down in the rough it is difficult to impart backspin because the grass gets between the ball and the grooves of the club head and eliminates the friction needed to create back spin. The best lie for creating backspin is a tight lie on the fairway.

3. The Golf Club

The golf club used is a critical factor in generating backspin, the higher the loft the greater the backspin. There are wedges on the market that have rusted faces. These types of wedges have even more friction and thus increase the back spin imparted on the ball.

4. The Wind Direction

It is very difficult to create backspin if the wind is blowing in the direction of the shot. It is much easier to impart backspin if the wind is blowing into the golfer.

5. The Condition of the Greens

The ideal spin conditions are for greens to be slightly damp and receptive. It’s difficult to generate backspin if greens are like concrete.

The Swing

Address the ball in the centre of your stance. Put 65% of the weight on the front foot nearest the target and ensure hands are ahead of the ball. Make a conscious effort to retain this weigh distribution throughout the swing and focus on generating an upright backswing. Keep your body movement quiet and allow the arms and hands to swing in front of your body. This promotes a descending angle of attack and ensures crisp contact with the back of the ball.

Focus on keeping your hands in front of the ball at impact, gripping the ball first then turf. Greg Norman advocated an excellent feeling to ensure this position. He stated it’s critical to retain the wrist angle established at address by focusing on moving the palm of your back hand through the ball at impact. This will also prevent any drastic releasing of the golf club and ensure a sharp angle of attack.

It’s important to power through the shot and maintain good acceleration and club head speed.

This shot takes time to learn so be patient. Go to the range, implement the technique, build muscle memory and then take it to the course. Commit to the shot and enjoy the gasps of admiration from your playing partners.

About the Author

The Golf Network is 100% FREE to join and use and connects golfers worldwide who wish to discuss tips, equipment, courses, players and view professional instructional videos or meet like minded people.

Click here to join for FREE.

admin Golf backspin golf, backspin golf ball, backspin how to

Login to the  Golf  Social Network: http://www.hobeze.com and watch professional video tips guaranteed to increasing your golf driver distance.

For many amateurs golf can be a very frustrating sport. They step up on the tee and are never quite sure which direction the ball is going to travel off of their clubface.

However the one thing that keeps bringing people back for more and more is the wonderful feeling of striking a ball flush from the middle of their driver. There is nothing more pleasing than increasing your golf driver distance. As an old Taylor Made ad stated ‘distance makes the heart grow fonder’.

The mechanics of a golf swing are more complex than perhaps that of any other sport on the planet. A good golf swing must be underpinned with sold fundamentals including solid grip, square alignment to the target, a solid base / stance, and a dynamic upright posture.

For the purpose of this article I am going to assume that you have solid basic fundamentals. If you are a chronic slicer of the ball, hook the ball regularly or even top or slice the ball these tips will serve only to add length to your shot shape. Thus if your natural shot is a ‘hook’ for example, the ball will travel further but in the direction of your natural shot.

Please try a selection of the following tips and see which ones have a positive impact on your golf driver distance. I can guarantee that you will begin to hit the ball further than you have ever done before.

Tip # 1 – Change Your Equipment

Perhaps the easiest way to add distance to your drives without changing any of the mechanics of your swing, is to change your equipment. Simply changing to a harder two piece ball with a hard outer layer will add approximately 10 yards to a well struck drive. You will lose an element of control around the greens, but for winter golf or even a higher handicap golfer the change will be worthwhile.

Modern drivers have changed the way the game is played. Large oversized titanium heads have provided golfers with an unmatched level of performance and forgiveness. These drivers will add distance to your drive by virtue of the fact titanium is lighter than steel. Thus even though the head size has increased the overall swing weight has been reduced. This enables drivers to generate more club head speed thus increasing the distance the ball travels. The very fact the head size has been increased, means that off center hits will also travel much further because the size of the sweet spot has increased accordingly.

The most important element in the distance and accuracy of your drives is the often overlooked type of shaft you are using. If you are using a steel shaft, you are sacrificing club head speed due to the additional weight. You really should get a custom fit graphite shaft suited to your swing. If you are a beginner or a golfer with a relatively slow swing speed then you will gain additional distance by playing with a whippy flexible shaft. These shafts have a higher kick point so that at impact they spring at the ball and unleash an additional burst of speed through impact. However beware if you have a higher swing speed a stiffer shaft will produce longer straighter results. This is one element of your game that you need custom fit equipment. Run a search on Google to find a custom fit center near you.

Tip # 2 – Adopt a Stronger Grip

A neutral golf grip is when you can see 2 knuckles of your left hand / the hand at the top of the shaft. A weak grip is when you see less than 2 knuckles on the upper hand. This action tends to promote a fade or slice as the grip returns to neutral at impact thus ensuring the face is opened if the grip is weak. A strong grip is one in which you can see 3 or 4 knuckles on your left hand (for right handed golfers).

A good way to measure a strong grip is to make the “V’s” formed by the thumb and index finger point towards your right shoulder. A strong grip will tend to promote a draw which every golfer knows is a top spin shot that travels much further.

This is especially true with their left hand. To achieve this you should see about three to four knuckles on your left hand. This gives you so much more leverage in terms of your wrist movement. You are able to wait to the last moment to release the club, which results in a surge of club head speed through impact.

Tip # 3 – Release Tensions in Your Hands and Arms

If you were to really tense up your leg muscles and attempt to run a race, you would not be able to walk very fast let alone say run. The muscles in your hands and arms are no different. The grip pressure is perhaps the most important element to eliminating a tense rigid swing. Grip pressure should be light but firm. Professional golfers have stated that you should grip the golf club with the same pressure as if you were:

• Lightly squeezing a tube of tooth paste
• Holding a child’s hand
• Holding a small bird in your hand

Use which ever analogy is best for you but remember always be conscious of your grip pressure especially just before you commence your take away. It is impossible to hold the club too lightly. Your muscles will instinctively increase grip pressure throughout your swing to ensure the club does not fly out of your hands.

A light grip pressure will also have the positive effect of releasing tension in your arms. Build a few waggles into your pre-shot routine to further ensure there is no build up of tension.

You will be shocked an amazed how much further your ball will fly as a result of relaxed hand and arm muscles.

Tip # 4 – Increase the Width of Your Arc

Try this simple drill to realise the importance of the swing arc. Hold a golf ball in your hand 10 or so inches directly over your right shoulder. Now throw the ball as far as you can. You will notice the ball didn’t travel very far. Now extend you right hand back as far as is comfortably possible and throw the ball as far as you can. You will notice that the ball travelled significantly further. Many amateur golfers fail to realise the importance of the width of the swing arc in determining the distance the ball flies.

Perhaps the best tip that I have come across for creating a wide powerful swing arc is that of Greg Normans. Greg Norman has long been one of the longest straightest drivers of the golf ball. His tip is simple and powerful.

At your address position ensure your left arm and club shaft form a straight line down to the ball. Make sure there is no tension whatsoever in the hand or arm. Now simply push your left elbow back away from the target. Keep pushing it back, back, back all the way. Sooner or later as your swing reaches the three quarter way position, somethings going to give and your wrist will automatically cock at the top. This business of an early wrist cock advocated by some of the games teachers doesn’t work very well because it eliminates the extension of your arc which is a key source of power in the swing. This is a powerful technique easy to reproduce that will add yards to your drives with practice.

Tip # 5 – Delay the Club Head Release Through Impact

Many of the games greats will differ in their back swing but generate a very similar down swing sequence. Contrast Jim Furyk with Tiger Woods. One swing attribute that they all have in common is a powerful late release of the club head (also known as club head lag). In my opinion the golfer with one of the most powerful late releases is ‘Sergio Garcia’. He has a rather unorthodox back swing but a powerful late release ensures he hits the golf ball a long, long way. What I mean by late release of the golf club is a delayed uncocking / release of the wrists just before impact. Many amateurs suffer from the dreaded ‘casting’ motion whereby they throw the club at the ball from the top of the swing. Thus they are releasing all their power long before the club ever nears the ball. In order to create a late release you should consciously focus on retaining your fully cocked wrists for as long as possible prior to impact. I have come across two excellent tips to achieve this goal. Please only use one or the other as you should never have two simultaneous swing thoughts prior to impact. The club head is moving too fast to execute more than one.

Tip 1: Insert a tee peg at the butt end of your shaft and focus on the mental image of trying to drive that tee peg into the back of the ball. To condense this into one neat phrase think “pull butt of shaft down to back of ball”. This will cause a very late release of your club and store up considerable power during the downswing which can be effectively delivered to the back of the ball.

Tip 2: Ernie Els advocates a late release manoeuvre created by Harvey Pennick called ‘Golf’s Magic Move’. To execute this technique, one you arrived at the top of your back swing think ‘right elbow down to right side’. This effectively retains the wrist angle and ensures a late release into the back of the ball.

Tip # 6 – Increase Your Coil

This move is not for those who have a stiff, unsupple back or back problems in any sense of the word. Effectively one of the greatest sources of power in a golf swing is the coiling of your shoulder turn against your hip turn. The further you can turn your shoulder and limit your hip turn the more wind up you generate in the backswing. This results in a powerful uncoiling in the downswing generating substantial power into the back of the ball. The effect is similar to wrapping an elastic band around your finger. The more tightly you wind it the faster it unwinds. A good mental image to achieve this goal is to imagine you are standing in a barrel of cement. Your legs and hips are thus restricted in their movement. Now focus on turning your back fully to the target. This will create a powerful shoulder turn on top of a limited hip turn. You will generate substantial increases in the distance your ball flies with this one tips alone.

Tip # 7 – Widen Your Stance, Retain Flex in Right Knee

In order to generate strong club head speed, you need a stable base to ensure it is correctly delivered to the back of the ball. Ensure the inside of your insteps are outside the width of your shoulders. To ensure the correct distance apart simply hang two clubs vertically from the outside of both shoulders. The club heads should be directly over the insteps in both feet.

Tip # 8 – Retain Flex in Right Knee

A critical element in the creation of a powerful golf swing is the retention of flex in the right knee in the back swing. If your right knee straightens it’s like snapping the tension in the swing and all your power is immediately destroyed. A good tip is to bend the right knee and tilt it slightly in towards the ball. Focus on retaining this inward tilt throughout the back swing. Then in the downswing start with leading your front left leg slightly toward the target. This ensures dynamic impact position and helps retain the angle in your wrist thus delivering a late release.

Conclusion

I hope you found these tips useful and enlightening. Golf can be made out to be a very complex sport so I hope this demystified some of the technique required for generating more distance for your drives. Do not attempt to use more than one of these techniques all in one go. And most certainly do not take all these swing thoughts to the golf course. Your job now is to go to your local golf range with a bucket of balls. Print of this sheet of paper and try to reproduce these tips on the golf range. With practice you will build muscle memory and the swing changes will become a habit that will not require any conscious effort to execute. In the immortal words of John Daly “Grip it and Rip it”.

About the Author

The Golf Network Hobeze.com is 100% FREE to join and use and connects golfers worldwide who wish to discuss tips, equipment, courses, players and view professional instructional videos or meet like minded people.

Click here to join for FREE.

admin Golf golf driver distance, golf driving distance, how to hit longer drives