BB pics (need help)

[scoyoc5]

Hi All,
I need some advice on taking Basketball pictures..I have no idea what I'm doing wrong but for some reason my pics are blurry I'm using the auto setting on my camera I have also tried the sports/action setting ( that didn't help either) The camera I'm using is the Nikon D40 with a AF-S nikkor 55-200mm 1:4-5.6g lens. any help would be greatly appreciated.
Thanks,John

[jackelope]

at 200mm it's not fast enough. try manual focus too.

[robodad]

Try the AV mode and set the ISO to 800 and the aperture to like F4 or set to manual and set the shutter to like 1/320 sec or faster, pics can get dark at that speed so adjust the speed up or down till you get a still shot of the action !!

[scoyoc5]

thanks jackelope. I was wondering about that. I tried to post some pics but they are too big and my new computer doesn't have the resizing feature that my old one had. The only other lens I have for that camera is a 18-55 which seems like I would have to be too close to the action.....

[jackelope]

open a photobucket account and upload to that, it will resize the pic for you automatically, then use the direct link from there to post here. i like those pics better because there's none of the .jpg subtitle stuff on it of you do that.

[huntnphool]

Looks like you shot the images at f5.6 and ISO 800 at a focal length of 55mm. The first thing you need to do is make sure you are shooting in RAW format, you can then fix the white balance issue you are having with the lighting. Look at the pics, you will notice a yellow/orange tint to them, this is caused by the fluorescent lights but can be fixed at home if shot in RAW.

 Set your camera on aperture priority (Av) and aperture as low as your lens is rated, leave the ISO at 800 or move it to 1600. Dropping to f4 you should have plenty of light to stop the movement. A good rule of thumb is you should have twice the shutter speed as the focal length. Unfortunately I cant see what the speed was shot at but it should have been at least 1/125th. If you can get it to 1/250th of faster you should be okay. You may even drop the exposure 1/3-2/3 to help increase speed, remember its better to have the images a little too dark than too bright. Moving the ISO to 1600 will increase noise as well but its better to have a sharp noisy image than a blurry non noisy image. Lightroom and CS series Photoshop can help clean up the noise post processing as well as the white balance.

 

[huntnphool]

Just an idea of adjusting white balance, if this was a RAW image it could have looked even better but this will give you the idea.

[scoyoc5]

Thanks HP and robo! I printed your post and Im going to try what you suggested tonight. I'll post some new pics later
thanks again all,John

[wapiti hunter2]

BTW, It looks like you are hand holding because the people in the bleachers are out of focus as well.  Try using a tripod.  You don't have to tighten everything down tight but just use it for support while panning.  The advice that you got above is spot on.

[huntnphool]

 No problem scoyoc5, experience like this will soon help you realize why a f2.8 lens is so much more money than a f4 or f5.6. Much quicker light gathering abilities but also but more $$$$

[scoyoc5]

ok heres some pics from last night.I was trying to remember the tripod but since I didn't put right by the front door I forgot it lol oh well we have another game thursday. looks like using the iso at 1600 helped. I really need to sit down and read through the manual to learn the in's and out's of this camera

[elk311]

can be fixed at home if shot in RAW.  

Definately shoot in "RAW" or "NEF" for Nikon camera's (same thing). I too would use the Aperture Priority mode and stay away from "manual" mode. You won't be able to focus as fast as your camera and in sports photography you gotta be fast.  RAW can fix any under/over exposures. Your Nikon probable has an adjustment near the lens that says "C" "S" and "M". Set it on "C", it stands for Continuous Focus  and in this mode all you need to do after the above ajustments is hold down the focus/shoot button and follow the action. The camera will stay in continuous focus while you move your lens to follow the action. Just like shooting a shotgun, you want to follow-through the shot. Also try to use your elbows against your torso/chest as a stabilizer, this will help replace the missing tripod that most of your spectator friends will not appreciate in the bleachers.  Try your pop-up flash just for fun, it may be enough to fool your camera and help in focusing. I doubt that the "guide" number is high enough but it could help to fool the sensors and is worth a try.  When shooting above ISO 800 use NR, I believe that the D40 has a "Noise Reduction" NR function. Good luck !!!

[scoyoc5]

thanks elk great advice. It looks like I was using most of the settings that you mentioned.I will defiantly try the elbow trick. thanks

[quadrafire]

A monopod will be more friendly for crowded arena, but try to stay away from the crowd if possible. I was shooting some video this last weekend and the vibration from the bleachers was noticable. Got onto the court and was fine.

[huntnphool]

scoyoc, you still need to get the camera shooting RAW. Once in RAW I would concentrate on getting your shutter speed up, this is why you are getting blurry images. Dont zoom your lens, leave it at 55mm to get your shots. Remember the focal length rule, shooting at 55mm will keep you shooting at f4 rather than 5.6, this will help. When you zoom your lens you are getting closer but slowing down the light gathering abilities of the lens, which in turn means slower shutter speeds, which means not stopping the motion.

 If you shoot in RAW and get the motion stopped, you can crop the pic to the focal length you were looking to get anyway.

elk311, his exif info shows his flash fired.

[scoyoc5]

ok thanks Rob..My image quilaty is set at NEF(raw)+JPEG. We have a game Thursday Im going to take my tripod and keep my zoom at 55mm. thanks again for all of the great advice! Rob another question that I have now is am I trying to do too much with the lenses that I have? If so what lens would you recommend ( is a nikkor 50mm f1.4 what i need?)
John

[danceswitharrows]

I think something is wrong with your color function...I see all white guys on the basketball court

[scoyoc5]

 

[huntnphool]

Like I said earlier Scoyoc, you are learning why faster lenses are more money. Yes a 1.4 is going to work much better in this situation but you are not going to fill the camera frame. At this point I would take one step at a time and work on stopping the motion, we can blow up the image and adjust white balance later. You may be able to get away with ISO 400 with the 50mm 1.4 but to be safe set it at 800 to start and get some pics, once you get the hang of that then adjust it down to 400 and try. Turn your exposure down 1/3 as well, we can adjust that later as well but it might help you get your speed up. Email me a RAW image after the game and I will take a look at it for you. huntnphool@aol.com

[Jeffrey]

I think something is wrong with your color function...I see all white guys on the basketball court

Now that is funny...I don't care who you are!!!