Comments on: Indoor Sports Photography

By: joanie

joanie — Sat, 05 Nov 2011 19:55:19 +0000

Emil,

Many photographers choose NOT TO USE A FLASH in order to not disrupt the game. (Flash photography is by the way not allowed at CIF games).

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By: Mercury Dee

Mercury Dee — Sat, 15 Jan 2011 04:09:48 +0000

Thanks for the info. A great help. I notices the flashing 2.8 but was unsure what it meant. I eventually boosted iso to 800. But some areas had very poor lighting even for the competitors.

Your response helps tremendously

By: Rob

Rob — Thu, 13 Jan 2011 16:35:36 +0000

Mercury dee-

What you have left out is ISO. If you are shooting at a ISO of 200 (which you might do outdoors) you will be underexposing in most indoor situations. On Canons in TV mode, if you aperture is flashing at 2.8 it means that you have hit your largest aperture and still are underexposed- thus you will get dark pictures. In a gym, I generally will have to use and ISO of at least 800 in order to get 1/150 or faster (I try to go for at least 1/250 for sports) even at f2.8 without a strobe. In a poorly lit office or home, I may have to bump it up to 1600. With a 40D you should be ok up to 800 but beyond that the noise will probably be a bit of an issue. With my 50D I try to limit ISO to 800 while my 5DII can easily go to 1600.

The only other option is the use of flash and strobes but I know that my local sports teams do not allow flash during games. I have tried using my 50 f1.4 and the depth of field is just too thin for fast sports action to get reliable focus. Bump that ISO up and, if necessary, use software (Photoshop, Nik Dfine, Noise Ninja, etc) to help remove some of the noise.

By: Mercury Dee

Mercury Dee — Tue, 28 Dec 2010 23:02:09 +0000

When I am taking pictures (Canon 40D) and put the camera in TV mode (shutter priority) while shooting indoors anything over 1/90 is very dark. I use a 70-200mm f/2.8 lens. Am i missing something here? Outdoors everything seems to work fine using 1/250 or 1/500 or higher. But indoors, how can i get sharp action stopping images?

Thanks in advance. Great articles!!

By: Jenell

Jenell — Sat, 23 Oct 2010 03:33:05 +0000

Rob- thanks for the suggestions. Never thought about the speed of the auto focus but that certainly makes sense. Strobes aren’t an option, so I guess I’ll just keep working at it and adjusting lighting and WB in post processing.

By: Rob

Rob — Mon, 18 Oct 2010 15:46:06 +0000

Jenell- I had tried a 50 1.8 and the autofocus just wasnt fast enough for quick action. I had more success with a 70-200 f2.8 because it focuses so quickly. The 50 f1.4 or 85 f1.8 are better choices (I have tried both in the same situation but they have been hit and miss) than the 50 f1.8 due to the USM but your depth of field will be so narrow that it will add another level of issues. If you are shooting handheld, I would suggest a monopod. That will greatly help stabilize your camera and you will get a higher percentages of keepers. Also, if you are not using the center point only to focus, that will help as well.

Ultimately, you probably just need more light to get the highest quality shots, but if your schools are like our local schools and do not allow flash usage, you will be limited. I can shoot at ISO 1600, f2.8 and 1/400th in our gyms. I get some ball and arm motion blur shooting volleyball but at least the subject is sharp. Without some fairly powerful strobes it will simply be too dark for much more. If you are allowed to use strobes, a 580II on either end of the court on some simple triggers would probably be suffient in most small gyms.

By: Jenell

Jenell — Sun, 17 Oct 2010 03:42:44 +0000

I’m using a Canon T1i with a 50mm f1.8 prime for high school volleyball and basketball. I’ve been shooting in manual setting with my ISO to 1600 or 3200, aperture f2.0 and Tv at 800-1000. I have the focus set to burst mode, AI Servo, and I still consistently have blurred pictures. Every now and then I get a good one. What am I doing wrong? I often will shoot in RAW but not 100%. I can deal with underexposer or an off white balance, but the blur I can’t get rid of. Would an 85mm 1.4 be a better choice of lens? I have a 28-75 f2.8, and a 17-35 f2.8. Seems the 2.8 is too dark in most gyms. If I set the Tv lower than 800, the ball isn’t sharp. Any suggestions?

By: Rob

Rob — Wed, 03 Mar 2010 16:36:50 +0000

My 50D has the most current firmware but I dont think it completely solved the banding issue. I have seen a few images even with the 5D MkII that show the same behavior at very high ISO settings so I think it is just inherent to Canon. At least my 5D Mk II envy is over as I received mine this week since the Mk III is probably many months away. The low light performance is outstanding but it is unfortunate that the 50D feels so much more responsive. I guess that is what you get with a giant mirror for that big beautiful sensor!

By: Gavin

Gavin — Wed, 03 Mar 2010 03:04:41 +0000

Rob, Thanks. Has the firmware of your 50D been updated? Agree with 1Ds M IV is well above and 5D M2 is just what I need.