Sports photography?

JoBug

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Greetings!

First, I'd like to say that I joined this forum almost a year ago, and quickly became very INactive. Time, or lack of, is really a killer when it comes to trying to improve hobby skills.

At any rate, lately, I've been trying to photograph my kids and their friends at their respective activities. I have a soccer player, a dancer, and a gymnast. I think my setup is pretty basic. I have a Canon T2i, with the kit lens, as well as a Tamron A0005, which I love. I like the ability to rapid-fire my shots, and I know (at least in soccer) I can get the better shots if I am standing somewhere on the perimeter of the field where the players are running toward me.

Beyond that - I'm at a loss. I take my camera to every event, but I'm not changing any behaviors, and I'd like to try to get better, if not good, shots. I'm really just looking for any tips anyone has for getting good sports shots.

Thanks in advance - and if this is the wrong place for this thread, please accept my apologies.

-Jo Anne
 
Greetings!

First, I'd like to say that I joined this forum almost a year ago, and quickly became very INactive. Time, or lack of, is really a killer when it comes to trying to improve hobby skills.

At any rate, lately, I've been trying to photograph my kids and their friends at their respective activities. I have a soccer player, a dancer, and a gymnast. I think my setup is pretty basic. I have a Canon T2i, with the kit lens, as well as a Tamron A0005, which I love. I like the ability to rapid-fire my shots, and I know (at least in soccer) I can get the better shots if I am standing somewhere on the perimeter of the field where the players are running toward me.

Beyond that - I'm at a loss. I take my camera to every event, but I'm not changing any behaviors, and I'd like to try to get better, if not good, shots. I'm really just looking for any tips anyone has for getting good sports shots.

Thanks in advance - and if this is the wrong place for this thread, please accept my apologies.

-Jo Anne

Welcome back Jo Anne. Let me offer a range of hints.

1. A kit lens is tough to shoot sports with, especially indoors with bad light or mediocre light. A pro quality zoom is going to be a 200mm or 400mm at f2.8. Yes, you can shoot with other options but the point is if you're shooting with a kit, that's likely a f3.5/4.5 and that is probably going to produce a slow shutter speed which just doesn't work for most sports. Here's the other thought with kit lens...their autofocus is usually much slower than you'd like for sports. Or its slower in lowlight (i.e.: dance and gymnastics).

2. For dance work, I suggest you try shooting at rehearsals rather than performances. At rehearsals or practices you can often get permission to stage certain shots or setup speed lights. If you want to see some dance work that will either make you gasp or cry (from the beauty or envy), check out this: Lois Greenfield Photography

3. For soccer, I don't see any way to consistently get work you're happy with unless you're using a zoom. Even with the freedom to roam the sidelines (I'm assuming this is a youth club or select team and not HS or college), you've got players 20 feet from you or 200 feet from you. You need a decent zoom as your focus moves around the field As for your point about your best photos are when the players are running to you, here's a theory about what's going on there....if you're always looking through the lens, you have myopia/blinders so you don't see the possibilities or emerging opportunities. If you put the camera down then you see more of the field, you see where the ball is going to go and what is there but you may not be ready to shoot. You can prefocus on certain areas (for instance with a free kick, you can anticipate the reaction of the wall and focus on that before the ball is put back in play or on a corner you can focus in front of the goal or on the GK). If you have fast autofocus or are very good manually, you can put the camera down and look to anticipate shots as you see the play develop. Or you can follow a specific player (which means you tend to be clueless as to the rest of the match but you're always focused and ready to shoot anything involving that specific player). Soccer is a tough sport to shoot with a kit lens b/c the field is so large and with anything beyond u-8, the ball movement can be so quick and across the field that it takes either good skills or anticipation.

4. For gymnastics (in my experience) this is a combination of position, lighting and the ability to remove a lot of distraction/clutter than typically comes with a gymnastics competition. So the ability to shoot with a limited DoF can reduce the clutter. But planning out your shooting location or getting permission to shoot someplace other than the stands can really be critical for this sport.
 
I've never shot soccer by my guess is you would need at least a 300mm 2.8 or 400mm 2.8.
 
Ok well do a bit of sports shooting myself so I can tell you that getting good shots consistently isn't cheap.

For indoor events you really want faster glass. I use a 70-200mm f/2.8 sigma myself and it does a pretty good job.

Shooting outdoors in good lighting a 300 mm zoom works well but if you have good lighting you don't necessarily need something really fast- you can also invest in a 1.4 teleconveter to use with the 200 mm.

The other thing to consider would be to look into a camera that shoots a little faster. Maybe something like a used 40d.

Sent from my LG-LG730 using Tapatalk
 
To offer advice on how to get better shots, we need to know what you feel is wrong with the pictures you're currently taking. When you say you have the kit lens, what's the focal length on it?
 
So, I mentioned the Tamron as well, and that is 70-300mm F/4-5.6. I usually shoot with that. I rarely use the kit lens which is much smaller.

I know that timing is a big part of it (with Dance and Gymnastics, especially)...you know, getting that leap, flip, jump, etc. That's why I like the rapid-fire shooting.

But, also, sometimes, they are not as sharp as I think they could be. I certainly am not getting the depth of field that I want. I purchased some photos at my daughter's last gymnastics meet, and she was sharp as a bell and all the external stuff was pleasantly fuzzed out.

I am still learning about what all the numbers mean. I took a few classes.
 
Here are some basics. To freeze a motion, you need a faster shutter speed. Not how may frames per second, it is the time it take to expose a shot.

In order to take a properly exposed photo with faster shutter speed, you need light. For indoor environment where light usually not sufficient, you can open up the aperture (smaller the f-number) to allow more light to enter at a given time. If you already choose the smallest f-number (widest aperture) and still not able to properly expose a photo with the desire shutter speed, you may need to increase the ISO value (kind of like increasing the sensor light sensitivity).

So for outdoor daytime soccer events, your Tamron lens should be fine for the most part. For dance and Gymnastics, shooting with a faster lens (lens with wider aperture) is better (you may need to bump up the ISO value as well).
 
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Tip" Keep the ISO levels HIGH in indoor situations. ISO 1,000 is a good starting point. GO to ISO 1,250 or 1,600, or up to ISO 3,200 if needed. Your Tamron A0005 is the Tamron SP A005 Telephoto zoom lens - 70 mm - 300 mm - F/4.0-5.6 - ...

which will be okay for soccer outdoors in decent light; the 70-300 is FINE for youth soccer. Sure, it's not the best lens ever, but I have used one, and it will make decent soccer pics of youth soccer in daylight.

One thing that makes sports and indoor event photography easier is a "fast lens", one that opens up to f/1.8 or f/2 or maybe f/2.8. The best bang-for-buck is the Canon EF 85mm f/1.8 lens. It focuses fast, is light, sharp, and is long enough to get a decent shot from 100 feet or less. And it allows you to shoot with a FAST shutter speed, without the need to resort to maximum ISO levels. For the last 20 years, I have suggested that people buy an 85mm f/1.8 lens for indoor "event" work. It's a telephoto lens that is small, light, inconspicuous, and which allows you to shoot loose, then crop tight, all at fast speeds and with terrific optics.

People might suggest the Canon 50/.1.8 EF-II, aka the "Nifty Fifty". Uhhhh, NO. It's a slow, loud, erratic focusing lens. it is NOT a good lens for fast action, and it is cheap, yes, but it's not nearly as good a lens as an 85mm, and it is far too short to replace the 85mm 1.8. The 85mm is the BEST affordable telephoto lens made, by both Nikon and by Canon. It is a far better lens than the Canon 50mm f/1.8, the "Iffy-Fifty" as I call it.
 
Thank you all so much for the advice! Now I have to go find some disposable income to invest...test...invest again...test again...
 
Thank you all so much for the advice! Now I have to go find some disposable income to invest...test...invest again...test again...

How about you try posting some picture to the photography forum before you go spend more money. The only way we can tell you skill level is to actually see your work. You should be able to achieve decent picture even with a kit lens. I would recommend mastering what you have before you go spend money on gear when you dont really know how to use what you have already.
 
I shoot our son's basketball games and High ISO is right. You really need faster shuttle speeds which means increasing your ISO and dropping your F-stop. Anyhow, I shoot our son's games at 1/300sec, 3,200, F/5 and still can't get tack sharp photos. I've talked to a Sports photographer and he suggested 1/600, 10,000 and F/5. I just don't know how this will work on your set up.
 
Thank you all so much for the advice! Now I have to go find some disposable income to invest...test...invest again...test again...

How about you try posting some picture to the photography forum before you go spend more money. The only way we can tell you skill level is to actually see your work. You should be able to achieve decent picture even with a kit lens. I would recommend mastering what you have before you go spend money on gear when you dont really know how to use what you have already.

I can do that. As a reasonably "new" forum member...is there a particular place i should do that?
 
There has been some very good advice offered up on this thread. I would add that the best lens you could use for he camera body you have is a 70-200 2.8, with the 1.6 sensor on the t2i that will give you a good lens to shoot soccer with, even under some poor light. The down side to the t2i is that anything over 1000iso starts to fall apart and the noise will get bad. The 70-200 2.8 would be great for indoor use as well.

The best settings for shooting most sports is 500th sec or faster, outdoors 5.6-6.3, indoors 2.8-4, allows you the separation from subject and background. For soccer the best spot is shooting from the end, that way you shoot down the field and it allows for a cleaner background. Always watch the backgrounds in whatever you shoot and look for the cleanest one, it makes all the difference.
 
So, I mentioned the Tamron as well, and that is 70-300mm F/4-5.6. I usually shoot with that. I rarely use the kit lens which is much smaller.

I know that timing is a big part of it (with Dance and Gymnastics, especially)...you know, getting that leap, flip, jump, etc. That's why I like the rapid-fire shooting.

But, also, sometimes, they are not as sharp as I think they could be. I certainly am not getting the depth of field that I want. I purchased some photos at my daughter's last gymnastics meet, and she was sharp as a bell and all the external stuff was pleasantly fuzzed out.

I am still learning about what all the numbers mean. I took a few classes.

There has been some good advice in this thread--very useful stuff. Something I haven't heard anyone comment on though is your mention above about how you don't want the background to be bokeh, you want it sharp. Now that's a problem.

A pro level zoom will usually be f2.8. But that's a relatively narrow DoF. Sounds like you're saying that you want a wider DoF...something that would be like an f8 or f11. You can certainly achieve that but at a cost (and no, I don't mean cost of money). If you want a wide DoF with a sharp foreground and background than having an f2.8 lens does you no good (b/c you aren't going to be shooting at f2.8 but f11). Furthermore, to shoot at f11 you either need a LOT of light or things need to be stationary or you need to be willing to tolerate a lot of blur and/or grain.

If you're determined to get a lot of background and foreground in the shot, here's what I recommend:
--jack up the ISO as high as you can get it with your camera without looking like an old time B&W newspaper print shot.
--set to f11 or at least f8
--Get as much light as you can. Shoot at practices for gymnastics or dance and get permission to set up speed lights. Get them to turn up the ambient lighting as much as possible.
--Try and avoid shooting movement...looking for stationary poses.

Now I bet most of that probably sounds like stuff you don't want to do--you DO want to capture movement, you do want to shoot at performances (where you can't set up 2 speed lights on the stage) and it will likely be low light. But there is a triangle of ISO, aperture and shutter speed. And effectively by shooting movement (and not wanting blur), you're asking for a faster shutter speed (not an 1/25th or 1/60th). Wanting no bokeh you're getting a narrower aperture (which lets in less light and either requires a setting with more light or subjects with no movement). So with that triangle, you're going to get some blur or a lot of noise/grain unless you can shoot only in settings with lots of light (daylight on a sunny day). It doesn't mean your goal is impossible, just really difficult. B/c of that aperture, ISO, shutter speed triangle to emphasize one or two (like a wide DoF and faster shutter speed) you have to jack up the ISO or compromise another leg of the triangle.
 
So are these day time games? I can see F/8-11 during the day but it's going to be challenging as the sun fades.
 

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