Band pic

[ToddnTN]

I am still trying to get used to my camera and figure out if it is going to do what I want it to do, or if I need to go to a better body, better lens, or both. I did not know whether to put this in photo graphic equipment or here, so if it needs to be moved, feel free and thanks.

Anyway, I took a bunch of pics at a marching band competition the other night and this was one of the better ones. I am having to manual focus the lens, so the focus is not exactly spot on, but is this about the best I am going to get out of the camera and lens combo I am using now? (Nikon D5200 and Nikon 180mm f/2.8). Or am I probably limited more by my ability than I am by the equipment? The picture was taken at night under the lights, which is what I am going to be trying to accomplish with this setup most of the time.

Thanks.


DCI_2013__111 by Toddn_us, on Flickr

 

[tirediron]

Manually focusing with today's modern DSLRs is a bit of a challenge, because they're not designed to be focused that way, and lack the split-prism focusing screen of the film era. That said, with some practice, you can get it spot on. A scene like this, where things are a reasonable distance away and not moving very quickly shouldn't be too much of a challenge with a little more practice.