Help with basketball shots

[George Bowman]

Shooting basketball is tough! The gyms are usually poorly lit which causes most of the problem. I am trying to get a sharp clear look like the pros do, but not having any luck. I think the ISO is were I am having problems. If it is to low the the photo is dark, set to high then way to much grain.

ISO 2000

105mm

f2.8

1/1000

Shooting with a Nikon D7000 and Nikon VR 70-200 f2.8 lens. Any suggestions?

[Fiddlesticks]

Wow! Way too fast on the shutter speed. Probably 1/250 would be enough. That would let you cut back on the ISO. Before the game take an exposure reading on someone on the court. Then set the exposure manually. Use this exposure for your action shots but check to see if you need to set the EV up or down depending on where on the court the players are.

[sunshine51]

On the D7K try setting your ISO to Auto (low=100, high=6400).

Keep your aperture at 2.8.

Shutter speed at 250 like FS says above.

And as FS states above...you may need to play with EV

settings a tad bit too.

The D7K performs very well with auto ISO...perhaps

one of the best cameras around with this feature IMO.

Also...check your AF settings...perhaps try single point

in 3D mode (check your user manual)...set a single red

focus point square on your subject (use the multi dial on

the back), let the camera focus on the subject (very fast)

then the D7K will track the subject as it moves around in

your VF. The 70-200 @ 2.8 is a very sharp lens (I have

one) and your shot is a bit fuzzy for this lens.

Note: If you cannot get a good fast AF, simply set the

camera to manual focus and do the same on the lens;

you will focus the old fashioned way....by hand & it's

usually much better.

Good Luck.

Edited May 5, 2014 by sunshine51

[rhythmworx]

For the focusing, if your using a single focus point I suggest you use one of the 9 cross type points if your not already doing so.

Here's a link with video and article about back button autofocus, that could help your situation, I would bet a Leo on it that a lot of sports photographers use this way of shooting.

I would also experiment with the VR turned off as VR can degrade overall sharpness, I have read somewhere.

http://nikonrumors.com/2014/01/25/how-to-use-nikons-af-on-and-back-button-autofocus.aspx/

[George Bowman]

Thanks for all of the information!

[Forethat]

It depends on what you're trying to do. If you want a tack sharp picture of a player in motion, ignore all recommendations to set your shutter speed at 1/250, that wont cut it in 98% of the cases. You WILL end up with the occasional picture but you're likely to have lots of nice pictures with a tack sharp player that are ruined due to blurry details or limbs (arms, hands, balls, feet etc).

1/1000 is a very common shutter speed setting amongst sport photographers in arenas with enough light. Personally, I never go below 1/500 but prefer 1/1000.

Sports photography is very much about planning, and unfortunately also about equipment. Poor light (which is most often NOT the case when you shoot indoor sports in arenas) or the need to shoot at fast shutter speeds means you need fast lenses which will cost you a fortune. I carry a Canon 400mm 2.8 for golf and cricket (works well for cricket with a 2x extender), and the lens alone will cost you in the region of £7500. That lens comes with a 4-stop image stabiliser. I also carry a Canon 70-200mm 2.8 with a 3-stop image stabiliser, but that lens wont do for shooting indoor sports unless I use the 2x extender which means I'll lose 2 stops.

Focus is another issue. You'll be surprised how many sports photographers use manual focus. This is where the planning becomes important. In addition, if you dont have the equipment required, you'll have to shoot the lens wide open causing the depth of field to become very shallow. This doesn't work well. The photo you have submitted is completely out of focus. I would at least recommend you to use manual focus points. With autofocus you have no clue where the focus point will be, especially if there are other players around your subject. You can try to save the image by reducing the noise, but in my opinion your photo is a pretty nasty example of something that has gone completely wrong for several reasons - wrong lens, wrong focus, wrong shutter speed, wrong aperture etc. etc. An attempt to save your picture will only make it worse.

Shooting indoor sports is NOT easy if you're after a professional result due to the fast lenses required due to the distance to your subject.

Check out the attached cricket photo. This photo is completely useless in my opinion, taken at 1/800. Notice the blurred bat and hands?

For this reason, when I shoot cricket I shoot at 1/1600 or faster. This one is at 1/1600

Edited May 24, 2014 by Forethat

[FracturedRabbit]

Whether you have some blurring in an action shot is subjective; I personally like your blurred bat; gives a sense of action. For a relatively slow speed sport like basketball, I reckon 1/250th will get you some good crisp shots, with maybe a bit of blur around the hands and ball, depending on what the player is doing at the moment the shot is taken. A slower speed is also effective if your subject is moving down the court, for example, the slower speed will blur the background and increase the illusion of speed. You will have to work with different shutters speeds to find one that works best for you for whatever sport you are shooting.

If you use a single, centre focus point as suggested, then there is no danger of there being "no clue where the focus point will be". Certainly if you are just starting out with action photography; you are more likely to get more keepers with single point autofocus than attempting to manual focus.

I would also recommend using a high speed burst mode to capture as many frames per second as the camera can handle. It is very difficult to capture the perfect moment; so take many shots to capture a particular piece of action; and then choose the best shot.