Sports photos - the "how I do it" thread

[K1W1]

Rooz asked how I take sports photos and the answer I gave is that basically I set the shutter speed, keep the action in the centre of the viewfinder and blast away. Who cares about the cost of film anyway?
I use cropping rather than composing for sports photos and here are a couple of examples.
What I would love to hear is other peoples tips and techniques. Mine are crude but work for me and I'm sure that there are plenty of people with useful information on this subject.

Example one straight from the camera

http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2248/2426968177_6d660e4e2e.jpg

After cropping

http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3118/2426964381_5229878280.jpg

Example two straight from the camera

http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2145/2426974225_2c07caa333.jpg

after cropping (I like this better than the POTD version)

http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2360/2427784258_87a613f8a4.jpg

So what do other people do when taking sports photos?

[Rooz]

are you panning ? in continuous drive mode ? pre-focussing ?

[K1W1]

Usually AF-C (not always I have been known to forget), matrix metering most of the time and burst mode but I rarely take more than one shot at a time my camera stays in burst mode all the time and yes panning to keep the action more of less centred (more cropping options later AND you don't have to worry about the action going away from the focus area if you own a paupers D50 :) )

[Honest Gaza]

Unlike Kiwi, I try to frame the image with as much use of the zoom as possible rather than crop after.

The main reason for this is so the "bokeh" is more apparent.

Examples : http://www.dcresource.com/forums/showthread.php?t=36648

(not all of the shots result in the desired effect....it will depend on distance to subject/distance to background relationship.....and obviously f/x settings).

[achuang]

I also try to frame as close as possible, but for a different reason to Gaza. With 6 megapixels to crop into it doesn't leave many pixels left to blow up to a reasonable size. So not just for sport, but in general I try to frame as I want in the end.

[K1W1]

So not just for sport, but in general I try to frame as I want in the end.

If I am taking a photo of something stationery or at least slow moving and I am being serious about if I also frame the image properly. With sport I find that if I frame to tight I end up with too many shots with vital bits missing. You also need to keep the intended use in mind. These are not supposed to be 20" x 30" art gallery reproductions. Generally they either stay on my PC forever or end up printed in next weeks fish and chip wrapper local paper or on a club website or a DVD slideshow that the kids get at the end of the year that is shown on your standard television set. Very few actually get printed so the pixel peeping aspect for me is not relevant.

[K1W1]

Unlike Kiwi, I try to frame the image with as much use of the zoom as possible rather than crop after.


This is where we are going to have a little artistic tiff. :D
I don't like those last three shots that you linked to where bits of the players or their equipment are missing especially the last one where the whole hand and racquet are out of the shot.
I guess we just have a different concept of what a photo should look like.

[Rooz]

thanks guys. :)

[Honest Gaza]

This is where we are going to have a little artistic tiff. :D
I don't like those last three shots that you linked to where bits of the players or their equipment are missing especially the last one where the whole hand and racquet are out of the shot.
I guess we just have a different concept of what a photo should look like.

Nah...no artistic tiff here. I too would have liked to have captured the "missing bits" :)

[TNB]

My "starting set-up" is rather simple:

1. Shutter Priority: Shutter speed as low as possible to allow motion blur, yet fast enough to prevent subject blur. ISO as low as possible. The "event" and/or the potential speed of the subject is one factor I consider in addition to the lighting conditions.

2. Aperature Prioity: I use AP in low level lighting and ISO as low as possible. A grainy shot may be better than no shot at all. ISO Auto is OFF.

3. Manual: I may switch over in low level lighting and/or when using the trap focus technique. However, most of the time I am panning with the VR off.

____

Continuous High Shutter Mode - I paid for it and I want to have the option available. I very seldom shoot at full high speed, but I want the option on just in case I want to blast away to capture a specific event.

Continuous Servo Focus - I'm usually on this setting though I usually use the AF-ON button instead of the shutter button to focus.

Single area AF - This appears "faster" to me.

____

Metering - Matrix is usually my first choice since that is what helps make the camera and is more advanced than weighted metering. However, I may also use spot metering depending on how much the subject stands out from the background.

____

Composition - I may not compose action shots like still shots but I still consider the background. After all, I don't want a bunch of trash cans in the background or some other distracting object. I try to find a spot where I like the background and pan the subject until it reaches that spot. I'll also adjust the focus point to fit that spot as well as whether I want to shoot in landscape or portrait mode. Remember magazine covers are usually in portrait mode.

Cropping - I try not to crop alot; however, I leave room to crop since I may not take the shot "level" and need to straighten it out in post processing. After all, I want to use and retain as many megapixels as possible. I also do have numerous 20x30s framed. ;)

RAW - I probably shoot RAW 99% of the time. The reason being is that I have been specifically asked for RAW files by publishers. Numerous sports shooters and/glamour photos that I have ran into shot in RAW+JPG since the review the JPGs first, then work on the RAW files if those shots are used.

[K1W1]

Thanks for that input.

[TNB]

Thanks for that input.
You're welcome. Hope it helps someone.

An old night photo without the use of a flash at a high ISO.

http://image2-1.rcuniverse.com/e1/forum/upfiles/70716/Up47861.jpg

[K1W1]

I saw some similar ones that you posted in Flickr. I was hoping that they would end up here.

[Rooz]

i need to start practicing. U12's are only 10years away. :p

[toriaj]

Sorry for the repost but I ain't gettin' nuthin' in the POTD thread ...

Please critique this shot. I frame much the same way as K1W1, keeping action in middle and trying not to zoom in too far. How are the exposure/colors? I did very little PP. WB and contrast, that was all. I thought about cropping it, but I really love their shadows. Any other suggestions?

240mm, f/11, 1/250, ISO 200
35239

[K1W1]

It's got action and movement all the right ingredients for a sports photo.
Have you tried cropping into a portrait style by cutting out the boy on the right? Just holding my hands over the picture here on the screen I think you might get a completely different photo.
I also have a Sigma 70-300 APO but I don't use it (at all actually) anymore. I've found that the 55-200VR gives much better results even though I do have to crop more on occasions. I used to have a lot of problems with some of the shirt colours that I don't seem to have with the Nikon lens.

[Dread Pirate Roberts]

I like your work Toriaj.

When shooting I might have tried a slightly shallower depth of field as I find backgrounds distracting. But on the other hand half my photos are out of focus from trying to do exactly that so who am I to talk.

I can't tightly frame my kids either, man they can cover some ground in the blink of an eye.

[toriaj]

Thanks guys, so good to hear something! K1W1, does this shot seem to have the same color problems you had with your Sigma? How do the colors look, in general? Anything else you would do with the processing?

Dread Pirate Roberts, I like small apertures too -- but the Sigma is sharpest when stopped down a little, so that's what I was going for :)

I tried an 8x10 crop . . . the 4x6 crop was too narrow to fit my brother's arm and the ball at the same time. What do you think?

35296

[K1W1]

I'm not sure what the real colours are but did you take the photo in RAW or Jpeg ? I used to find that I got quite a bit of colour bleeding with the Sigma.

I prefer the second crop but that's me.

[toriaj]

I take everything in RAW now :)
When you say color bleeding, does that mean, for example that the red would bleed over into the white, making part of the uniform look pink?
Glad you like the crop, maybe I'll send both of them to my brother.

[K1W1]

When you say color bleeding, does that mean, for example that the red would bleed over into the white, making part of the uniform look pink?

Yes especially around the edges.

Try Jpeg for sports. I have gone back to it on the D50 because I get IMO better images with less work. That may be something do do with using Lightroom of course rather than Capture NX but I do find Jpeg to be a lot less work when I take heaps of photos in one go like at a sports event.

[Dread Pirate Roberts]

Dread Pirate Roberts, I like small apertures too -- but the Sigma is sharpest when stopped down a little, so that's what I was going for :)


I realised as I lay in bed last night that since everything was at infinity a smaller apperture wouldn't of defocussed anything. Almost logged back on to scrub out my comment before anyone saw it:)

I don't know the sigma but if it was possible just going from F11 to F8 would have gone from 1/250 to 1/500th. Although I do think you've been very clever to get some artistic motion blur on the ball whilst the players are tack sharp.

The second crop is even better btw.

[toriaj]

DPR (can I call you that? lazy typer) I just noticed the "small" aperture thing too, but I knew what you meant I guess :)

Yes, I think f/8 would have been a better choice. I was worried there wasn't enough light, plus I did want to get a little motion blur, so I just put it on shutter priority 1/250. Next time I'll try aperture priority f/8 and just watch what happens to the shutter speed.

The players on the edges aren't actually tack sharp, they have motion blur. Sometimes I think I like it, other times I wish I'd had a faster shutter speed to freeze them. But at least it was a good learning experience, maybe I'll try some at 1/250 and some at 1/320 or 1/400 next time if I have enough light.

K1W1, I'm surprised about the jpg thing, actually I don't think I work too much on the RAWs anyway. WB, contrast, I would probably try to do that on the jpg and then be frustrated when it didn't work right lol ... do you do it for the brighter colors?

DPR, I'm glad you like the crop :) anyone else?

[T06]

I take everything in RAW now :).

rooz behave:eek::D
Seriously tori I really like the crop.

[Dread Pirate Roberts]

Although I said wider apperture I shouldn't have. Shutter priority is the place to be for action. 1/500th as a starting point to freeze most action but variations to achieve what you're after and what you observe. For example the angle you are from the motion and the speed of the motion will have an affect.

Are there any rules of thumb for shutterspeed for various activities?
Motorsports from a grandstand side on
Motorsports front on
Bike rider from the side
Kid playing soccer from the side
Pro basketball game
Ice hockey game

[T06]

Although I said wider apperture I shouldn't have. Shutter priority is the place to be for action. 1/500th as a starting point to freeze most action but variations to achieve what you're after and what you observe. For example the angle you are from the motion and the speed of the motion will have an affect.

Are there any rules of thumb for shutterspeed for various activities?
Motorsports from a grandstand side on
Motorsports front on
Bike rider from the side
Kid playing soccer from the side
Pro basketball game
Ice hockey game

1/500 isn't that fast really, if you want to freeze. Once you try panning at something that is traveling faster than 320kmh 20 mtrs away on an increasing arc you'll get the drift. But the point is the same principles exist for the end achievement. I'm not having a go at you but just a thought that I had when i read the above.

[Rooz]

thats a great crop. well done

[K1W1]

I have never even seen a live Pro Basketball or Ice Hockey game so I will leave those aside for the time being.
Now the disclaimer. These are my ideas, they are not rules, I am not a pro or even particularly good photographer, I just happen to take a lot of photos of moving objects.

Motorsport of any sort be it cars, bikes, trucks or watercraft.

The great thing to remember with motorsport is that the moving objects are largely predicable (let's not worry about crashes). If it's a race most vehicles take a similar line on any given part of the track and most vehicles in a race are travelling at similar speeds. Wherever you are can look at any piece of track and work out fairly quickly where on that piece probably 90% of the passing traffic will be. Advantage - you can practice your panning to the point where you want to shoot without even having vehicles going past so that when they do it's second nature. Further advantage - if the light is good you can pre focus on your chosen shooting point if you want, if you have your panning correct it works, trust me.
On the road it's the same. If a road corner is 4 metres from the edge to the centre line it's fairly easy to predict within maybe 1/2 metre where more than 90% of the vehicles are going to be going around that corner.
Ian is doing maybe 80kph (50mph) here and I'm in the ditch on the outside of the corner PRE FOCUSSED with my 50mm f1.8 panning and shooting as each rider came past this point. Notice the narrow gap between the centre line and the edge, I reckon I could have drawn an X on the road where the front wheel is and 38 of the 40 riders in the group would have ridden over it.
http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2341/2109586068_8feb0cd36b.jpg
Shutter speed. Depends what you are trying to achieve. If you are a pro photographer and you want to sell your images to the sponsors then 1/1000 of a sec will give you nice sharp images that look cr*p (IMO). You are photographing something that is moving for goodness sake. It needs blur to give a sense of movement and speed.
Here is a bike doing close to 300kph (170mph) at 1/200 sec with no panning it's obviously blurry but I think it's a good pic.
http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2393/1564566254_4d7021fc67.jpg
Here is another one with panning at 1/320 sec
http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2010/1564568950_87071f7d1f.jpg
And here at 1/500 sec.
http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2310/1552331894_d202af3bc3.jpg
Notice something? All three bikes are in the same place on the track in relation to where I am, there is only one line and they are all on it.
I have never tried shooting vehicles coming straight on towards me but I would pre focus if I did, I would not trust the auto focus to keep up with a vehicle travelling towards me that fast.

For many sports there is also a large amount of predictability in player positioning. Cricket batters and bowlers are always in the same spots, likewise baseball pitchers and batters. Any action at first base is always near first base and in tennis the players only move vertically during a serve so once again they are predicable at that point. For the rest of the time IMO it's just a case of deciding why you are at the game and acting accordingly. If you are a spectator then watch. If you go to take photos then you need to view the entire or at least large parts of the game through the viewfinder with you finger on the trigger.

[T06]

Thanks for proving that kiwi.

[K1W1]

Thanks for proving that kiwi.

Proving? :D:D

[res222]

Tori I love the picture, second crop the best and I am so glad to see this thread as it confirms everything I have been doing on the soccer field.

[Dread Pirate Roberts]

Thank you K1W1

[Honest Gaza]

...The great thing to remember with motorsport is that the moving objects are largely predicable (let's not worry about crashes). http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2341/2109586068_8feb0cd36b.jpg

http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2393/1564566254_4d7021fc67.jpg
Here is another one with panning at 1/320 sec
http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2010/1564568950_87071f7d1f.jpg
And here at 1/500 sec.
http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2310/1552331894_d202af3bc3.jpg
.....

Kiwi....let's see if we are in agreement on this.

When photographing motor sport, the end result should indicate movement. If someone simply sets their camera to a very fast shutter speed (eg 1/1000th) and snaps a shot as the object goes past, they'll get a great picture with probably all of the object in focus (such as your first shot). Critically, the "panning" that you performed provided the movement for this photo because the background is blurred through the movement of the camera.

In my opinion, this same shot without panning, would have been a bad "sports" shot. Without panning, then the whole photo (including the subject and the background) would have been in sharp focus and no indication of movement at all. Something that could have been achieved in the local carpark with the bike standing still.

I'm not a fan of the 2nd shot as I want the subject in focus...but that's just my opinion.

The last two shots are the ideal outcome as the bikes are in focus, the backgrounds suggest movement because of the "panning" of the camera....but here the critical addition is the "slower" shutter speed which has captured the motion of the tire rotation.

[K1W1]

Horses for courses.
I actually like the first shot of those race track ones because what I was doing was holding the camera still and trying to capture bikes going through the viewfinder at around 300kph. It's a fun test of anticipation and reaction. Having said that I like it because I know what I was trying to do and how hard it is but I agree that there is no way it's a shot that would ever be published anywhere.
Remember that Pros also have to be concious of things like advertising the background. I don't have to and I don't give a rats whether a particular beer company or airline has their logo on display.

[TNB]

I tried an 8x10 crop . . . the 4x6 crop was too narrow to fit my brother's arm and the ball at the same time. What do you think?

35296

I prefer the second version as well. I did something similar with the following photo. Prior to printing, I also removed the "stray" feet.

http://image2-3.rcuniverse.com/e1/forum/upfiles/70716/Ty64303.jpg

[toriaj]

TNB, that's a great shot. Gotta love those expressions.

[TNB]

TNB, that's a great shot. Gotta love those expressions.
Thanks. I do think capturing the "expressions" can really help make a photo whether it is of people or even animals.

[esp]

I enjoyed reading this thread and found a lot of useful info. Here is my 2 cents:

I shoot a lot of different sports and they all have there own subtle differences. I am still learning what works best and what setting produce the best results. But over all I tend to try and use the lens as much as possible for zooming and framing and then fine tune them in pp. I also usually try and leave more space in the leading edge of the action. As far as prefocus/autofocus it really depends on the action I am shooting. Hockey is pretty tuff to pre focus but moto and baseball are much easier. I think I need to work on showing more motion in my shots and work on blurring the background on certain shots but over all I like the results. Let me know what you think. (Larger versions are on my flickr page.) (http://www.flickr.com/photos/ezperkins2/)
http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2321/2443435135_bd3e23b8a3.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/ezperkins2/2443435135/sizes/l/)

He got hit in the head with the first pitch of the day. I liked the motion on the ball but I wish I had snapped a fraction of a second earlier.
Exposure: 0.003 sec (1/320)
Aperture: f/4.2
Focal Length: 72 mm
ISO Speed: 200
http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2329/2456342934_c01c4bce55.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/ezperkins2/2456342934/sizes/l/)

I was standing right on the side of the landing and shooting with the 55-200mm. I would pre focus and the lock it and pan. It seemed to work pretty good.
Exposure: 0.002 sec (1/500)
Aperture: f/6.3
Focal Length: 90 mm
ISO Speed: 100

http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2132/2228717171_7beca93e3e.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/ezperkins2/2228717171/sizes/l/)

Shooting at pro events never really seems to work out for me (because I can't afford good seats.) But, I scored good seats to the ducks game and brought the camera.
Exposure: 0.008 sec (1/125)
Aperture: f/5.6
Focal Length: 200 mm
ISO Speed: 800

And finally,
http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2044/2403767396_031faae13f.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/ezperkins2/2403767396/sizes/l/)

The light was horrible and I did not have a flash with me. (My brain shut off and I forgot about the on board flash.) It didn’t turn out that great but you would not believe how hard it is to time this shot. Let’s just say this was take 500.

[e_dawg]

Wow, I love the shots in this thread. Action photography is one of my favourite genres.

K1W1, besides the great shots, you seem to have mastered the art of sharpening your pics for the web.

esp, I definitely believe how difficult it was to time the last shot.

tori, I really like the 2nd version.

-------

I tend to have a different style of action shooting. For me, it's not about how fast the camera is or how many AF points. I use single shot drive, single shot AF, and use the centre AF point only, centre-weighted metering. I pre-focus (locking focus and exposure) and recompose. Typically, I'll use shutter-priority or sometimes manual exp.

For me, it doesn't matter if you have 8 fps or 3. 8 fps just means you now have 7 shots whose timing are off instead of 2.

I have a knack for internalizing the rhythm of the action, and sometimes I'll even close my eyes before the shot, pressing the shutter just before the exact moment I want to capture. Most of the time, I'll nail it.

Took these pics at a basketball game with my compact P&S camera (Canon A710is):

Jamario Moon shooting over Antawn Jamison
http://lh3.google.com/public6028/R7Z8K9iVIfI/AAAAAAAAAjY/a8Fujrz8t_8/s800/CRW_0590%20ni%201600%20usm%20copy.jpg

Chris Bosh
http://lh4.google.com/public6028/R7aE9NiVIiI/AAAAAAAAAkM/wDm3YDEKlbM/s800/CRW_0607%20ni%201600%20usm.jpg

Jamario Moon taking it to the hoop! (check out the fan in the front row in awe!)

http://lh6.google.com/public6028/R7aLOtiVIjI/AAAAAAAAAkU/L_X9GuWaXWQ/s800/CRW_0608%20ni%201600%20usm.jpg

No, they are not the greatest pics, but you have to keep in mind that it is a point & shoot, and therefore:

* is limited to 400 ISO realistically
* relies on slow contrast-detect auto focus (worse in mediocre lighting)
* has a lens that has a max aperture of f/4.8 at the long end
* has a shutter lag of over 1 second (you have to pre-focus to have any chance)
* the sequential shooting speed is measured in seconds per frame, not frames per second

I guess my point is that pre-focusing and learning to internalize the rhythm of the action can really help your timing and increase your "hit rate", so to speak.

[TNB]

For me and baseball, it's about about timing whether it is catching the ball hitting the bat or the bat breaking.

http://image2-4.rcuniverse.com/e1/forum/upfiles/70716/Rm38064.jpg

Of course, probably the same in basketball... This photo is NOT cropped.

http://image2-2.rcuniverse.com/e1/forum/upfiles/70716/Vt56852.jpg

For motorcycles (or anything with jumps), I also like to show some of the ground as well to get an idea of "how high" something is off the ground.

http://image2-6.rcuniverse.com/e1/forum/upfiles/70716/Zb59236.jpg

I've only shot one hockey game and it was through the glass. For me, the difficult thing was shooting around the scratches and the barriers. Of course, something like a D300/D3 would have probably made the high ISO look better as well.

http://image2-0.rcuniverse.com/e1/forum/upfiles/70716/Rp42240.jpg

[e_dawg]

TNB, I've always been impressed with your action shots, whether it's athletics, motorsport, or aviation.

[T06]

f/4 1/1000 iso 200 D200 70-200mmVR

[TNB]

TNB, I've always been impressed with your action shots, whether it's athletics, motorsport, or aviation.
Thanks for the comment.

[toriaj]

I went back to my bro's soccer game last week. This one is probably the technical best of the lot: (as I would expect at 110 mm, 1/500 and f/10)
41361

But even this shot isn't very sharp, as you see in this SOOC 100% crop (the red brackets are NX showing my focus point)
41368
Is the lack of sharpness due to my lens? Or am I doing something wrong? Or am I expecting too much and the sharpness is really just fine? :p

I thought I set the SS at 1/500 (the whole 1/focal lengthxcrop factor rule,) but I must have accidentally turned the wheel and switched to 1/400 and aperture went up to f/13. I was at 300mm. I was handholding. Do you think there's camera shake here? Or is it my cheapo lens? I was probably panning ... I just wish the shot was sharper, at least on the body parts that aren't moving so fast :p
41362

Here's a 100% crop of the original. The red lettering looks to be the sharpest part of the image, but it's not very good.
41366

Is there a way to lock in the shutter speed so that you can't change it just by turning the thumb wheel? I accidentally turn it one click all the time :(

I was cursing the black and white uniforms the whole time, what a DR nightmare. I was trying not to blow the whites, so I used -1EC. Is that what you would have done? Here's the full shot SOOC.
41365

P.S. For anyone who followed my other post (http://www.dcresource.com/forums/showpost.php?p=336410&postcount=7518) re: soft photos when uploaded to DCRP, these shots aren't soft, at least not due to DCRP. They look the same as they do on my PC.

[K1W1]

If the shots were taken with your Sigma lens I would blame the lens. I had the same problem with mine, it was not sharp and it was slow to focus both of which don't work very well for sports.

See if you can borrow a 55-200VR or 70-300VR from somewhere to try. I would borrow a 70-200VR f2.6 just yet. Let your Mothers bank balance recover a bit first. :D

[toriaj]

Yeah, they were with the Sigma. Every time I shoot soccer I start wanting the 55-200 or 70-300 ... but no worries, the 70-200 is WAYYY out of my league ...
... and my Mom's bank balance? Sadly, my mom's money never sees the inside of my pocket, never has :p

[K1W1]

... and my Mom's bank balance? Sadly, my mom's money never sees the inside of my pocket, never has :p

Sorry, it's late and I've been in the sun all weekend. I was confusing you with Leah. :confused::D:o

[toriaj]

np, oh, Leah has that adorable daughter ... now I've got to go look at her pics :D

But first let me throw this back out there in case someone knows,

Is there a way to lock in the shutter speed so that you can't change it just by turning the thumb wheel? I accidentally turn it one click all the time :(

[K1W1]

Is there a way to lock in the shutter speed so that you can't change it just by turning the thumb wheel? I accidentally turn it one click all the time :(

Move the position of your thumb on the camera?
I've never had that problem.

[Rooz]

lol come on tor...
man that made me laugh my ass off. :p

[rawpaw18]

Tori,

Duct tape would help. As for your shots, those dudes move fast, it is the toughest to get them as they are moving toward you.

You may want to go ISO 400 and shoot at a 1000 to see if your sharpness improves.

Also you are using AF-C, it is probably the best choice, but as I understand it , it will take a picture even if focus is not completely locked. Don't take that as gospel, thought I remember that from somewhere.

Lastly your at the lens extreme on these, shooting at 300mm might not be the best. back off and crop a little. I even do that with my 70-200vr.

I tend to spot meter instead of matrix. If you can fill the frame mostly with action, let somethings in the background go.

[toriaj]

lol come on tor...
man that made me laugh my ass off. :pReally? You never do? I think I do it when I'm changing aperture or dialing in EC. I accidentally turn the wheel one more click after I lift off the aperture button. Seriously, NO ONE ELSE has EVER done that?

If not, well, laughing is good for the soul ... carry on :)

rawpaw, lol duct tape. Anyway, I'll have to check into the AF-C focus thing. I've used AF-S before and didn't have better results, but hey it's worth a try. That first shot is at only 110 mm, it's better but not much.

I would agree with you about the spot metering, but wouldn't you really use that if it was the background that was bright? Here it was the actual players (shirts.)

[rawpaw18]

Sorry that was the only one I did not check.

What you could do is meter the shirts and see where you are, a little over exposure of the white I might let go. I think your eyes expect a white to be bright in full sun.
I like to try and get a reading off the faces if possible. Then adjust, of course raw saves me a lot of the time.

Good thing the D50 doesn't have two wheels, we could be in trouble:)

[K1W1]

Also you are using AF-C, it is probably the best choice, but as I understand it , it will take a picture even if focus is not completely locked. Don't take that as gospel, thought I remember that from somewhere.


Correct on the D50 and with the slow focussing Sigma lens it exacerbates the issue.

[toriaj]

What you could do is meter the shirts and see where you are, a little over exposure of the white I might let go. I think your eyes expect a white to be bright in full sun.
I like to try and get a reading off the faces if possible. Then adjust, of course raw saves me a lot of the time.

I like the idea of metering off the faces, then keeping that exposure. That would work if the lighting was pretty even (unlike the harsh afternoon light I had here.)


Also you are using AF-C, it is probably the best choice, but as I understand it , it will take a picture even if focus is not completely locked.

Correct on the D50 and with the slow focussing Sigma lens it exacerbates the issue.

So in AF-S the D50 won't take a picture unless it's focused, right? So I'd be better off in AF-S and just keep tracking the movement to get the focus.

[rawpaw18]

So in AF-S the D50 won't take a picture unless it's focused, right? So I'd be better off in AF-S and just keep tracking the movement to get the focus.

Right. I have had good success with it, UNTIL they are running straight at you.