Express Action Sports

i take a lot of sport shots,during the day i have the camera set on the sport mode and i get fantastic photos,but when the light goes,and try taking shots at night at a sportsfield under lights,and still on sport mode,the pics are dark,but mainly they are very blurry,and not worth keeping.I have tried to take the same sought of photos on the Aperture mode,but the pics are too dark.Its all been very frustrating.Can someone help me please?

As mentioned, a P&S does not have the controls necessary to freeze action in low light, nor does it have a large enough sensor to produce nearly noiseless images at high ISO settings.

Here is what you could expect if you had the right tool for the job, mainly a dSLR with long, fast lens

http://s862.photobucket.com/albums/ab182/fotomanaz/Answers%20album/?action=view&current=i_AIA3008copy.jpg

That shot was made using a 300 mm lens with aperture of f/2.8 and a shutter speed of 1/500th second.

If you look on your camera, you will notice that none of those settings are possible on your SX20

I want to get a decent camera for sports photography so I need to zoom in and get a decent not blurred shot. What sort of gear do I need?

There’s gear and then there’s features. So, what I’ve done is list the gear, and under each item, I’ve listed the features to look for, as well as an example.

1) A single lens reflex camera (either digital or film):
–for digital SLR, it should have low noise at high ISO settings (i.e., in low light the camera can be set to have low-noise images)
–for film SLR, use high ISO film
–make sure the SLR has the ability to control the aperture and shutter speed; some older film SLRs do not offer manual controls at all.
–ideally, a quick response time, so when you push the release, it takes the photo.
–a fast frame rate (fps or frames per second) of 5 fps or faster.
EXAMPLE: Nikon D2H, Nikon D300, Nikon D3, Canon 1D mark II.

2) A telephoto lens with a wide aperture (such as f/2.8).
–ideally, should have a built-in focusing motor for speed (such as Nikon’s AF-S motor)
–ideally, with image stabilization
–at a minimum 200mm up to 600mm
–zooms can offer some versatility
–lens should have tripod mount or tripod foot on it.
Examples: fixed focal length lens 400mm f/2.8; zoom lens 200-400mm f/4

3) A strong monopod

What you would do: set the camera to the highest ISO you can tolerate for noise or set it to auto ISO. This allows the camera to expose with the fastest shutter speeds to stop action. Typically, you’d have the camera in manual exposure mode, selecting a fast shutter speed like 1/500 or 1/1000 to freeze action, and a wide aperture to let in light and blur distracting backgrounds. The lens should have a foot on it to support its weight, mounted on a monopod. Do not attach the monopod to the camera, because the weight is all in the lens and this will stress or warp your mount.

Best value, digitally: a used Nikon D2H. This is a pro-level camera that sells for about $400 used, without lens. It’s 4.1 megapixels, which is enough to make 8 x 10 images with no problem. A lens will cost you a lot more, actually. A decent enough lens on a budget is still expensive. At the least expensive end, you’d be looking at a 70-300mm AF-S VR lens ($459) and that’s only if you’d be shooting in decent light.

For film, a used film SLR (like a Nikon N80, about $100) loaded with ISO 800 or 1600 film would be a very inexpensive choice, but you’d still have to buy a good long telephoto lens.

If all this is out of your price range, then look for a SLR-like point and shoot with as big an optical zoom as you can afford (you may see this as 12, 15x, or even 18x). Set the ISO high, at least 400 and higher if you can stand the additional image noise. Use a monopod or tripod (if they’ll allow you to have a tripod). Because the camera is slow in responding compared to an SLR, you’ll have to anticipate the action.

Hope this explains things to you clearly and in an easy way.

I recently bought a telephoto lens for my digital DSLR to take better pictures of action shots in sports. I am using a 75-300 mm lens. The problem is that in order to freeze the motion, I need a fast shutter speed, resulting in dark pictures. Can anyone recommend a shutter speed that freezes motion but still gets enough light to have brighter pictures or just another tip to help with my picture-taking? Please help me.

You may want to try raising the ISO settings before adjusting the shutter speed. Definately get the ISO as high as you can before a noticable grain appears. Often, the ISO is set very low for a ‘cleaner’ picture, but this means lower sensitivity to light. So try raising it slowly.

You may want to spend an entire sports event taking test pictures, tweaking serttings between shots, then back at home review your images using a image browser that shows all the EXIF data stored in the photo, which reveals your ISO and shutter speeds. Adobe Lightroom, ACDSee, even Microsoft has put out a free add in for Windows to expose this extra EXIF info in the photo.

You will want to preview the test images large, to notice subtle differences, the preview screen on the camera is not enough to see blur most the time if your speed is a hair too low..

I would be glad to tell you a magic setting, but im not sure it exists, more that you know a general range of shutter speed and iso speed that works, and constantly adjust according to the specific area.

Here is a newer, free microsoft photo viewer that may be of use http://www.microsoft.com/prophoto/downloads/tools.aspx

I’ve been trying to get good lowlight action shots with my new Canon Powershot SX30IS, but I have failed so far…

I have tried every setting, and also tried Manual at: 1600 ISO, f/2.7 and 1/1000 shutter speed, but then my images are pitch black!! And of course if I lower my shutter speed, letting in more light they are extremely blurry. And yes, I have tried the flash, but that only works when I’m very close ti the subject, which I can’t be during the rodeos, sports, etc.

I’ve tried doing research and the only thing I’ve found is my aperture needs to be a lower number, but f/2.7 is as low as my camera goes! Are there any lenses I can buy to help?

Thanks!

You don’t understand the limitations of P&S cameras it seems

1) it does NOT accept interchangeable lenses, so buying a faster lens it NOT an option
2) the limits of your camera will allow you to only use aperture priority and an ISO of 1600. The camera decides the shutter speed to get a good exposure
3) the maximum reach of your flash is 6.8 m.

Basically you do NOT have the proper equipment to do what you want. You will have to save your pennies and buy an entry level dSLR, a camera that has ISO settings of at least 3200 and can use interchangeable lenses.

I’m looking for a digital camera that takes awesome action shots for sports. I would also like to use it as an everyday camera. Was thinking about the canon rebel XTI anyone have any input on this. I would really like some HELP! An image stablizer would be nice, and one that will take photos in a gym without it being too dark!

You will not find any sensor based image stabilizing on Nikon or Canon DSLR’s … they do that on lenses, specifically designed for the length of the lens. The professionals that use Nikon and Canon cameras demand more performance from their cameras, so you will not see any "universal" fixes on their cameras (no one size fits all design).

That said, good photo taking techniques, fast lenses, IS or VR lenses and judicious control of ISO settings makes the success of shooting indoors higher than using a camera as an expensive point and shoot.

Next time you are watching a pro shoot an indoor sporting event, note their style of shooting and the equipment that is being used.