Indoor Sports and Canon 40D

[Jefflesh]

Ok, here is a question for you guys that I am sure will result in a few different suggestions.

I will be shooting indoor sports for a little while and I am wondering which setting people typically shoot. M, Av, or Tv and why you shoot in that mode?

I will be using the following lenses, EF 85 f/1.8, EF 100 f/2.8 macro, or EF 70-200 f/4.0.

Thank you for your time.

Sincerely,

Jeff

[gravy graffix]

shoot in AV as low as you can ie: 1.8

look for shutter speeds above 300 depending on movement of subject.

adjust ISO to get your shutter in that area...

prob use AI servo as well... 1.8 is pretty shallow even at distance
and if you have AF set to af-on its like having 1 shot AND servo at the same time....

[TeamSpeed]

I do it a bit differently. I put the ISO at 3200, and go into Tv mode for indoor hockey. I set speeds at faster than 1/300th, and then let the aperture fluctuate accordingly. A puck or stick locked in air is more important to me sometimes than the dof. I have done it the other way as well though, as gravy described above. I also shoot the ice to set custom white balance because it is one less step later during the raw conversion.

I have used both the Sigma and Canon 70-200 f/2.8 lenses, the 100-400, and even the Bigma at hockey games. These last two lenses were not very useful during the heavy action however, but between periods, they were good for getting the fun mascot shots, center ice action, etc.

[Jefflesh]

Thanks guys for your replies. Do you know anything about using flashes? I typically do not like to use flash but I may have to as some of these gyms are pretty dark. My questions is, are the speed-lights far superior than the camera flash? Now, I know that they are better but, how much better are they? I am sure that is not easy to answer.

Thank you for your time.

Sincerely,

Jeff

[BaumannPhotography]

Manual
ISO 1600-3200
f/1.8-4.0 (because of your lenses)
SS aprox. 250-500
RAW
Spot metering (expose for skin/or 18% gray card)
Al Servo
Center focus point
6.5 fps
AWB

if lighting is constant than these settings should work fine, just play with it a little to get it to where you want it.

I have bad experience with Tv, and Av mode because that camera makes the decision for me which I don't get satisfactory results with, for instance if one team has white uniforms and the other red/black and you fill the frame with the player you will get 2 very different results, in Av mode if you are set for 1.8 and shoot the white team, it's no problem, but the red team can effect your shutter speed to the point that it will cause blur. This is not always the case because other factors come into play, But in highschool gyms I find that it is best to take control of whatever you can. Hope this helps

[partsman]

i have a rebel xt and shoot a lot indoors. the 430ex speedlight was the best purchase i've made. literallly the difference between night and day compared to on camera flash. also lots of other options for bouncing, focusing in low light etc.

[Jefflesh]

Ok, I went and bought a speedlight 430 last night to use with the 40D and I must say that I am pretty happy with the results, see for yourself.



The flash worked great!

Photo taken with the 70-200 f/4.0 at 1/200 sec shutter and ISO 400.

Thank you for your time.

Sincerely,

Jeff

[Mike R]

Remember to ask the coaches from both teams if flash is OK. This will save you from looking unprofessional if they don't allow it and need to stop an event to tell you to turn it off. If you are covering more than one event be sure to ask again. While one may not have a problem, another might. I like the shot.

[Joe Cyr]

Originally Posted by Jefflesh

Ok, I went and bought a speedlight 430 last night to use with the 40D and I must say that I am pretty happy with the results, see for yourself.



The flash worked great!

Photo taken with the 70-200 f/4.0 at 1/200 sec shutter and ISO 400.

Thank you for your time.

Sincerely,

Jeff

Nice job... next time go up to 800, with the flash on, and see the results. I think you will like them.

[PhotosGuy]

More: Question and Answer Sessions with some noteable POTN Members

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Why do you guys use manual? AV makes more sense.
http://www.photography-on-the.net/fo...d.php?t=130176

[Jefflesh]

Originally Posted by Mike R

Remember to ask the coaches from both teams if flash is OK. This will save you from looking unprofessional if they don't allow it and need to stop an event to tell you to turn it off. If you are covering more than one event be sure to ask again. While one may not have a problem, another might. I like the shot.

Mike,

Thanks for the advice, I didn't think if that, should I also ask the refs?

Thank you for your time.

Sincerely,

Jeff

[Jefflesh]

Originally Posted by Joe Cyr

Nice job... next time go up to 800, with the flash on, and see the results. I think you will like them.

Joe,

Thanks or the advice. I have to ask, how will that improve my picture? Will it make the picture more sharp?

Thank you for your time.

Sincerely,

Jeff

[emtp563]

I was at a sporting event last night at the Meadowlands. It was a monster truck race and I used manual exposure. This would apply to you also. The trucks's colors ranged from black, to blue, to orange, to red. This would effect exposure. I set my aperture to 2.8, ISO to 1600, and I used manual and spot metered off of the stadium floor. To my surprise, I achieve a shutter speed of 1/640 and I knew that was more than enough for what I needed. I could have decreased the ISO or I could have decreased the aperture a little if I wanted to, but I knew my lens performs well at f/2.8 and the camera handles ISO 1600 well. So it didn't matter if the stadium suddenly lit up all of their spotlights, or if flames shot out of an engine- my exposure was always constant and correct.

[JeffreyG]

Originally Posted by Jefflesh

Joe,

Thanks or the advice. I have to ask, how will that improve my picture? Will it make the picture more sharp?

Thank you for your time.

Sincerely,

Jeff

The problem is that the background is so dark, so the picture is not pleasing. Faster aperture and high ISO will allow more ambient exposure which will brighten it up.

I don't shoot indoor sports with flash. I shoot M mode and adjust my settings to push the histogram right to control the noise. I prefer ambient for the balance and because the flash can distract the atheletes.

5D, 85mm, 1/320, f/2, ISO3200.

[khaz]

Can you explain pushing the histogram to the right to control the noise? How does that control the noise?