Different focus results- Basketball

Please help me understand what is going on with these two shots. One shows the crowd more in focus and the other shows the players more in focus. When I look at the af point in dpp is shows that it is on the players for both shots. However, could it be that it was on the crowd just before I pressed the shutter? I know the shots aren't terribly crisp either way. I am working with what equipment I have and understand that it isn't ideal (namely the slow af on the not-so-nifty). Any direction would be appreciated.

These are only corrected for wb and converted from raw to jpg. I am positioned relatively the same for each shot.

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You allowed the AF point to 'walk' off the subjects while tracking before you took the first shot, and the focus moved to the background. You may have gotten the point back on the subjects by the time you took the shot, but it still takes a moment for the AF to move back.

Easy enough to do, this is one of the things to work on in getting better at sports.

First photo: Highly likely the lens was too slow attain to focus on the players.
Edit: See post No. 2 for a better explanation.

Second photo: Possibly same problem as No. 1 or the actual focus point might have been between the two players. Was the shutter speed at least 1/500 sec.? I get motion blur at 1/400 sec. so 1/640 sec. is my normal setting for basketball in our gym.

You have a really good camera so at some point you might want to treat it to a nice lens like the Canon 85mm f/1.8 (if you will be doing much youth basketball photography.)

Thanks for the replies. I have to get better at staying on track which I guess means getting better at reading the action.

I have considered the 85 1.8 but on my crop body it's just going to be too much. The fifty is too much now most of the time. There is literally 3 feet to the wall...it's all gym.

JeffreyG wrote in post #15591534
You allowed the AF point to 'walk' off the subjects while tracking before you took the first shot, and the focus moved to the background. You may have gotten the point back on the subjects by the time you took the shot, but it still takes a moment for the AF to move back.

Easy enough to do, this is one of the things to work on in getting better at sports.

Yep.

( I know from experience )

NewCreation wrote in post #15591640
I have considered the 85 1.8 but on my crop body it's just going to be too much. The fifty is too much now most of the time. There is literally 3 feet to the wall...it's all gym.

I think the 85 would work great. Shoot tight, crop tighter.

Really? I guess I need to learn what is a good crop for a basketball shot. It seems that I would lose all perspective in relation to either basket or the jump...does that make sense? I don't think I could get even a whole body in if it were anywhere near the hoop. I guess maybe I should throw my zoom on and set it at 80 and see what I can see.

NewCreation wrote in post #15592799
Really? I guess I need to learn what is a good crop for a basketball shot. It seems that I would lose all perspective in relation to either basket or the jump...does that make sense? I don't think I could get even a whole body in if it were anywhere near the hoop. I guess maybe I should throw my zoom on and set it at 80 and see what I can see.

You have room for an 85mm lens if your two photos are an indication of the room in your gym. Try your zoom at 85mm as an experiment. It is probably too slow for good photos unless you have exceptionally good lighting. Don't hesitate to us ISO 6400 and clean up the noise in post processing.

Our high school gym has plenty of room behind the baskets. Our grade school gyms have about 3 feet, like yours, and I still need to crop the photos unless the kids are directly in front of me.

The best advice I have ever received: Shoot tight, crop tighter. It really does work.

Edit - Some examples of much tighter shots: https://photography-on-the.net …3070&highlight=​basketball

70-200 is the predominate focal length for basketball for all levels of play, so yes, 85mm is fine. Your original shots are too loose. Including unnecessary defenders/refs/backgro​und distracts from the subject(s). Search the forums and news sites for examples of basketball photos. Some perspective is nice, but including the basket or floor isn't a requirement. The game is fairly straightforward, so not much is needed in terms of perspective, that is, as long as you show action that needs no explanation. Take your 2nd shot for example... you could crop that several different ways, and in the end, the viewer would still know what was going on. The same can't be said for the 1st one. Just keep at it, and you will get better at tracking with the focus point.

Craign wrote in post #15592931
Our high school gym has plenty of room behind the baskets. Our grade school gyms have about 3 feet, like yours, and I still need to crop the photos unless the kids are directly in front of me.

I've been in a few gyms where there is only about three feet beyond the baseline. They usually have padded mats attached to the wall. In these gyms you really should not shoot from under the basket anyway as the liklihood of a collision with a player is high. This is moreso with older players, but even with fifth graders I would not want the risk of having a kid getting injured by running into my camera in that location.

When the gym is that small, I move to my seconary location and shoot from the corner.

Thanks for the great advice everyone! I have two more games and a tournament yet this year so hopefully I can get some better shots. I have been focused on getting focused shots. Now as I practice that I will add in trying to learn how to remove the junk from the scene.

JeffreyG - I shoot from the corner mostly. I only shoot from behind the basket if I'm trying to get a free-throw shot. I don't do that much because I am too timid...I don't want to distract the players.

NewCreation wrote in post #15593709
JeffreyG - I shoot from the corner mostly. I only shoot from behind the basket if I'm trying to get a free-throw shot. I don't do that much because I am too timid...I don't want to distract the players.

They'll never see you.

I shoot the bulk of my stuff from under the basket so long as the gym is deep enough, like this first shot.

In this second one, the gym was to shallow at this end so I shot from the corner. Both locations work, but I prefer the middle under the basket.

Thanks for the examples. I have a couple of games this week so we'll see if I can come up with some good shots.

The attached photo is to demonstrate the field of fiew using an 85mm lens and nothing else. I sat on the front row, side court bleacher and slightly behind the end line. Distance to the court corner was about 6 feet.

The lens was my Sigma 85mm at f/1.8, SS was 1/400 sec. (too slow) and ISO 1600 This was the first night at this gym with it's new lighting. I experimented with various settings using the Sigma 85mm and the Canon 70-200mm f/2.8 IS lenses. I eventually decided to us the 70-200 at f/2.8 and ISO 6400 so I could use SS 1/640 sec. and stop the motion blur.

This photo was re-sized to 6" X 4" but not cropped. I hope it is an indication of what you might expect with an 85mm lens. Shootoing tight is a challenge but well worth the effort.


http://s38.beta.photob​ucket.com …854859002819092​5134249533

Sorry for the link but I am too stupid to attach an image.

Thank for the link. I don't mind a challenge. Guess it goes back to my rebellious teen days..."don't tell me I can't"

Is the Sigma snappy on the af? Edit: NVM Out of my price range