Shooting The Jocks Who Beat Us Up As Kids: Sports Photography Megathread

The Something Awful Forums > The Finer Arts > Creative Convention > The Dorkroom > Shooting The Jocks Who Beat Us Up As Kids: Sports Photography Megathread

CarrotFlowers: Dec 17, 2010; Blerg.

How do you guys manage to get such sharp photos of players? I have been trying to photograph some ultimate frisbee, which isn't exactly a super fast sport, and even at 1/3200 or 1/1600 I am getting some really lovely shots. I can't tell if it's out of focus or motion blur or what, but how do you nail focus wide open so often?

I am super jealous.

# ¿ Sep 9, 2011 04:38

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# ¿ May 1, 2024 17:54

CarrotFlowers: Dec 17, 2010; Blerg.

BobTheCow posted:

At those shutter speeds, it's not motion blur that's the problem, that's plenty fast enough to stop motion. Either your lens autofocus is too slow to keep up with a running player, or you're simply missing focus to begin with.

Can you shoot a stationary subject wide open and get a sharp image? If so, but sharpness goes to poo poo with a moving subject, the likely culprit is autofocus speed.

Yeah, I can get sharp photos pretty much any other time. I've got a 70-200 f/4 IS, so AF speed shouldn't be an issue, right?

What focus program do you use? I have tried both AF servo with all focus points, which I understand is what I'm supposed to use for moving subjects, but I find it focuses on the wrong thing a lot, so I switched to AF one shot with center focusing...as I type this, I can see that's probably the source of all of my problems. Do you use AF servo? Do you find you have problems with it focusing on the wrong things? Like sometimes it'll focus on the player on the wrong team, and that's frustrating.

# ¿ Sep 9, 2011 05:11

CarrotFlowers: Dec 17, 2010; Blerg.

BobTheCow posted:

Yeah that lens should be able to keep up. Definitely shoot AF servo. It sounds like you're focusing on the wrong subject as everybody's moving around, which is the sort of thing that just takes practice to understand and correct.

Depending on your body, the center focus point may be more sensitive/accurate than others, so while you're learning, you may want to use the center point, AF servo, and really pay attention to that red dot, making sure it's right on top of your intended subject.

(Also, and this is getting pretty nitpicky, certain bodies have a menu adjustment for something like "AF sensitivity" or "tracking." You could try messing with that and turning sensitivity down if you think you're having the problem of nailing focus but then having it jump to the wrong subject during movement.)

e: Also, silly question, but you're holding down your focus button the whole time you try to track a moving subject with AF servo, right? This is why I use back-button focus. I've gotten used to separating focusing from pressing the shutter, so I know I can follow focus and just hit the shutter when I need to. But that's a total personal preference call.

Okay. Next week I'll switch to AF servo and use the center focus point, see how that goes. And yeah, I have my focus set to the shutter, so I hold it down halfway the whole time until I'm ready to take the picture. I've tried back button focus before, I liked it, but I switched back to shutter focus for some reason that I forget now. I might try to go back and see what that gets me in terms of making my life easier. So you just press it once, it'll track that subject, then hit the shutter? Or do you have to hold it down as well?

Thanks for the tips!

# ¿ Sep 9, 2011 16:35

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