BBall w/ D60

[mkatona]

Just got my D60 on Thursday and shot some HS BBall yesterday with my 28-200 Tamron and D60 and 380EX.
As I am still learning the camera, I am not sure all of my settings were correct but my pictures were not acceptable.
I know that the 380 is probably under-powered for the subject but it is a left over from my Elan IIe days.
What I would like are suggestions for the combination of settings that would afford me the best results that I could expect from this combination.
Thanks in advance

[JR92]

I shoot in TV mode. I have my exposure set high and my ISO set at either 200 or 400. The key to getting good photos in a gymnasium is a good lens that is quick and lets in a lot of light. Right now I get my best pictures using manual focus with a cheap (plastic) 50mm Canon 1.8. Even with out a flash it can be used, but I like a bright vibrant picture. As far as a flash I use a 550ex, with a Quantum Turbo battery pack which allows the flash to respond in approx. one-second. I shoot with my flash at about 1/350. I am a sports editor for a little weekly paper, and take about 1000 of my own sports photos a week from volleyball, basketball (indoor) and lots of HS football under crappy lights, rodeo's and most anything else a redneck community calls a sport.
Its all pretty basic, just spend time reading your manual.

[bnsfr]

I shoot on a D30 with a 24/2.8, 50/1.8, and 70-200/2.8. Indoor basketball is tough to get a very crisp shot without using a flash. With a flash, under the basket with either the 24 or 50, you can get some very good stuff. Best to use the flash lightly though -- otherwise the background is too dark.

Without a flash, 1.8 is definitely the preferred aperture; with 800 ISO you can crank up the shutter to 1/350-500, and even get down to 400 ISO in well lit gyms. At 2.8 you must shoot at 800 ISO (beyond that, at 1600 ISO, I find the D30 picture quality breaks down noticeably) to get a shutter speed of 200 or over. Anything less is subject to blur a good deal of the time. I've gotten some pretty good results at 2.8 with 200-250 shutter speed. For foul shots, for shots of the coach and the like, I will go to 125-160 and see if I can get the ISO down to 400. Works once in a while.

At 800 ISO, the pictures will be a little fuzzy. Shoot in RAW and try the Linear Sharpen Pekka has developed. Makes a significant difference in the quality of the photo.

Good luck! Let me know how it goes.

[mkatona]

Thanks to both of you for the tips.
At next weekends games I will give it another try.
Mike

[bnsfr]

Mike -send me your email at bnsfr@aol.com and I'll send you a link to some bball shots I've taken. (I don't know how to link directly to here.)