Dealing with low light action shots

[kpurcell]

I am somewhat inexperienced. I used to have a point and shoot but want to learn more so I bought a Kodak DX6490.

I am having trouble with actions shots in a seemingly well lit gym (basketball game). My pictures are either too dim or too blurry.

Here is what I know. I need a faster shutter speed to get good action shots. So I set it at 1/100 or higher. That lowers the light so I set the aperture open wider. But then the camera automatically sets the exposure setting to -2 making the pictures still dark. I am sitting in the stands so my flash does very little to affect the pictures.

Any advice?

[PhilR.]

Try increasing the ISO to the maximum.

PhilR.

[kpurcell]

I set the ISO to all levels except 800 since it forces picture size down to 1 MP. So I tried 80. 100. 200. and 400. They were still too dark.

[TheObiJuan]

I used to have that camera, I really liked it. It was a great starter cam. I had the same problem that you had. I would usually use Manual mode and set it to 1/60-1/100+ for action shots. I would also set the EV to 1.7 to get more light. I would not use more than iso 200 since noise becomes obvious. Later, if it needed more correction, I would use Photoshop's fill in flash and other settings to further correct it.
In the end I got some really good shots and only moved because I needed more megapixels and something less bulky. I went with the Sony DSC- P150. It has decent manual controls and I get great shots from it.

Best Regards,
Juan Manuel