Question on Image Quality....Track Event

Shooting at ISO 400, f8, 1/1000. Canon 7D MarkII 17-55mm lens. I was close to the runner so the image is not cropped. My question regards the skin discoloration.....is this noise? I have just begun shooting sports but was expecting a cleaner image with this camera. See his face and legs. Any information as to what is causing this and how to avoid it in the future would be greatly appreciated. The image posted is a jpeg from the original RAW file. The close up is to give you a better idea of what I am referring to. Am I wrong to expect a cleaner image? TIA

Looks only a bit unsharp. Possibly a change of lens can improve, at least worth a trial.
If not, you might be prefocusing a tad but check that only after shooting with a different lens.

@Samsen, I appreciate you taking the time to respond to my post.....my first on this forum . However, I my question is not about clarity but about the mottled look on the runner's face and legs. I am wondering if this is noise or is there another name for it....and is it to be expected or is there something I can do in the future to avoid this. Thanks.

Skin can look splochy outdoors, especially early or late in the season when temperatures are cool.

Voaky999 wrote in post #17983701
Skin can look splochy outdoors, especially early or late in the season when temperatures are cool.

This what it looks like, to me. It's not anything you or the camera can do much about, really.

Snydremark wrote in post #17983721
This what it looks like, to me. It's not anything you or the camera can do much about, really.

I agree - you've got a fairly large tonal range between the bright highlight of the skin on top of his leg that is directly in the sunlight vs. the more shadowed tone on the lower leg.

Your eye/brain interprets reality in a more pleasing fashion and smooths things out a bit but the sensor in your camera does not quite have that ability. It is what it is and the camera does the best it can.

Voaky999......thank you for your explanation, I never would have thought of temperature being a factor.

Snydermark....thank you for responding.....it is reassuring to hear that it isn't due to something I may have not done correctly.

sapearl.....thank you for the added clarification. As my camera is fairly new and my 5 grandkids are all into sports, I'm hoping to be able to take some nice pictures for them.

Also, to clarify; our earlier comments were in regard to the actual skin tones and what happens to the athletes' skin when they're exerting in cooler temps; sapearl hits on something good with exposure that you'll want to keep an eye on.

You have some strong shadows there due to the angle of the sun to your subject. In general, the best position for the sun is just over either of your shoulders, to give nice illumination and nicest shadows. The further around to the front/above you it gets the more harsh light-shadows become. If you can, try adjusting your position accordingly on the next shoot and see how you like the results

Snydremark wrote in post #17983762
Also, to clarify; our earlier comments were in regard to the actual skin tones and what happens to the athletes' skin when they're exerting in cooler temps; sapearl hits on something good with exposure that you'll want to keep an eye on.

You have some strong shadows there due to the angle of the sun to your subject. In general, the best position for the sun is just over either of your shoulders, to give nice illumination and nicest shadows. The further around to the front/above you it gets the more harsh light-shadows become. If you can, try adjusting your position accordingly on the next shoot and see how you like the results

Thank you Eric - and that's also an excellent tip about the sun being just over the shoulders. I've done little sports shooting myself so that's a valuable tip I'll have to remember for the future.

Snydremark wrote in post #17983762
Also, to clarify; our earlier comments were in regard to the actual skin tones and what happens to the athletes' skin when they're exerting in cooler temps; sapearl hits on something good with exposure that you'll want to keep an eye on.

You have some strong shadows there due to the angle of the sun to your subject. In general, the best position for the sun is just over either of your shoulders, to give nice illumination and nicest shadows. The further around to the front/above you it gets the more harsh light-shadows become. If you can, try adjusting your position accordingly on the next shoot and see how you like the results

Thanks, great tip. I will try to position myself better at his next event.

Snydremark wrote in post #17983762
You have some strong shadows there due to the angle of the sun to your subject. In general, the best position for the sun is just over either of your shoulders, to give nice illumination and nicest shadows. The further around to the front/above you it gets the more harsh light-shadows become. If you can, try adjusting your position accordingly on the next shoot and see how you like the results

Great tip. I have experienced the same problem, many times, in shooting soccer. That's harsh lighting to deal with.