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DPChallenge Forums >> Hardware and Software >> What could I use for taking photos of sons sports?
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 11/28/2006 10:18:28 PM · #1
All I have right now is whats in my profile.
The pentax istDL with the kit lens.

My son is ten and will be playing basketball this winter inside the gym.

In the spring and fall he plays soccer outside.

I just got to take some photos' tonight with my camera inside the school gym for there d.a.r.e program.

I can see my on camera flash is really limited for distance.

I was able to lighten up the photo's with the software, but I have a feeling my basketball photo's will be looking nothing like what I see in the sports magazine, lol..

I have been looking at getting the Pentax DA 50-200mm f/4-5.6 ED Lens this spring for the outdoor soccer photos.

Now I am wondering if it would be helpfull to have this lens for basketball season too or should I look at getting a flash first?

What do you feel would be the most helpful/usefull for the indoor basketball photo's?

I would love to be able to take the indoor basketball photo's without using any flash, but the little bit of what I shot in the gym tonight I don't see how that will happen.

Your thoughts....

11/28/2006 10:28:57 PM · #2
I did some shots at a basketball game in a gym (my daughter cheering). I set my camera to TV, ISO 800 and shutter was at 1/50 and appeture 5.6 and the shots came out pretty good with just a bit of color correction.

Hope it helps.
 11/28/2006 10:37:02 PM · #3
take your camera to a game, sit as close to the court as you can, and try every single manual setting you can until you are getting some photos that look reasonably decent when you look at them in your LCD, zoomed in as far as you can go. you'll probably have to use a high iso and as wide-open an aperature as possible.

one thing to keep in mind, though, is how much time do you want to spend learning to make the most of the equipment you have, and how much time do you want to spend actually watching and enjoying your children ;-)

good luck.
 11/28/2006 10:39:36 PM · #4
Originally posted by mystopia:
I did some shots at a basketball game in a gym (my daughter cheering). I set my camera to TV, ISO 800 and shutter was at 1/50 and appeture 5.6 and the shots came out pretty good with just a bit of color correction.

Hope it helps.


Thanks for the reply,
I was thinking that I would need a faster shutter speed to freeze the motion of the players durring the game.
 11/28/2006 10:48:50 PM · #5
For basketball if pentax makes a cheap fast prime lens, like a 50mm f1.8 it would be wise to get one.
 11/28/2006 10:50:21 PM · #6
Originally posted by lakota:

I have been looking at getting the Pentax DA 50-200mm f/4-5.6 ED Lens this spring for the outdoor soccer photos.


You could think about buying a faster lens and do yourself a favor in both indoors and outdoors sports. Might save a bit of money* over buying both a lens and a flash.

*I'm not familiar with prices on Pentax equipment, so not sure if that is true.
 11/28/2006 10:52:03 PM · #7
This is a shot I took at those settings. I sat in the front row, middle court. This is a fairly dark gym too.

Edit to say ... no flash used



Message edited by author 2006-11-28 22:52:39.
 11/29/2006 02:00:10 PM · #8
I used to shoot NCAA Div I football and soccer, so although I'm into sport photography, I don't know much about indoor shots. That disclaimer aside, I'd shy away from using a flash for any during-game shots. First of all, the flash may distract players. Second, I know I'd take advantage of the camera's memory when dramatic events happened (fumble, etc.) by shooting multiple frames in a row. The flash just wouldn't keep up. Also, the flash has a limited range, and you might not be close enough for the flash to be effective. With all that in mind, I'd suggest the lens-only upgrade path. That way, you'd have a little more $ to spend on that lens and can get one with a larger aperture. I'm not familiar with the pentax line, but the aforementioned 50 f/1.8 prime in the Canon line is cost effective - and good for lower light conditions. I've read a few other posts from wedding photographers on this site who use it, and churches have low-light issues as basketball courts do.

Over all, weigh your love for photography against your love for your family! If I wasn't getting paid to photograph the football games, I'm sure I'd have taken far fewer pictures!
 11/29/2006 02:07:29 PM · #9
Becareful about shooting with a flash inside a gym the Players and coaches get mad if your close to the action and the flash goes off in their eyes.
 11/29/2006 03:21:45 PM · #10
Originally posted by lakota:
In the spring and fall he plays soccer outside.
I have been looking at getting the Pentax DA 50-200mm f/4-5.6 ED Lens this spring for the outdoor soccer photos.

I have a Pentax K100D with the same lens kit, plus an AF75-300mm F/4-5.6 LD Macro lens. This is the lens I use for soccer matches.

When it comes time for your son's soccer games, let me know and I can give you a ton of tips. I shoot a lot of soccer (here's a sampling). Some of my soccer photos have made the newspaper (more samplings).

Some soccer photography tips, off the top of my head:

o Get close to the action (an obvious tip) :-)
o Use continuous focus mode
o Use "rapid fire" mode (a.k.a. continuous drive mode)
o Use aperture priority and dial in the largest opening that you can
o Position yourself between the goal and the corner, on the end-line (or close to it). This way, the action comes at you instead of across your field of vision--minimizing action blur, unless you want this blur.
o When the ball is kicked high into the air follow it and start taking photos (rapid fire). This increases your chances of catching a cool header shot or pass.
o During a corner kick, back yourself toward a corner (either the same corner as the kicker or the opposite corner). This allows you to aim at the front of the goal, in the 6-yard box. All the action should happen in this box.
o After a goal, keep shooting, preferably at the celebrating shooter
o Concentrate on the game. If your son is about to make a play, it's too easy to lower the camera to watch the action and thus, missing a photo op. :-(

11/29/2006 06:21:22 PM · #11
Don't be afraid to use high ISO. people are used to grain in sports photos (and noise ninja does a great job).

Don't use flash. If you get the player correctly exposed at mid-court, the guys closer to you will be greatly overexposed and the far wall, etc will be almost black.

Use a fast lens. In a parochial elementary school, f/2.8 is barely fast enough (I shot girls bball, the boys play a faster game). If you can get up close, get an 18-50 f/2.8 (or a 50 f/1.8 or better). On a 1.6 crop camera, 50 is a little too long for under the basket unless you want headshots. If you'll be further away, a 70-200 f2.8 would be good for longer shots. Or wait for sigma to make the 50-150 available in a pentax mount.
 11/29/2006 07:06:43 PM · #12
lesgainous,

Awesome soccer photo's.
I would be so happy to be able to take photo's like that, great job!

Thanks for all the tips.

11/29/2006 08:31:23 PM · #13
You might want to PM jmsetzler. He shoots a lot of HS basketball for the paper.

I believe he uses flash and a 50mm f1.4 lens a lot, but I'm sure he could tell you more. I know he usually works courtside and not from the stands.

There's no substitute for fast glass.
 11/29/2006 09:25:59 PM · #14
I am a rank amateur, but have some experience at this using the same equipment you have at your disposal.

I have been shooting for my Son's school this year.

The following were shot using my pentax at 800 ISO and my 1.4 50mm lens:






I find it frustrating that the *istDS has difficulty focusing fast enough in low light. Combined with the lens wide-open, the focus distance is razor thin, so I'm throwing away about 80% of what I shoot. The ones that I like look pretty good though once I have spent some time with them in the editing. I have found it helpful to change the camera settings to only use the center point for focusing. In it's default mode, I end up with a lot of beautiful photos of the back wall with fuzzy players in the foreground. Setting the exposure to center-only also helps if the gym's lighting is uneven.

I have tried setting up an Alien Bee 800 on a balcony overlooking our home court. The ceiling is flat and white, so I point the light up to disburse the light. I'm still trying to come up with a good mix that doesn't leave annoying shadows yet doesn't interfere with the game. Here are a couple of samples. I set my iso to 400 and used a zoom lense at 5.4, so depth of field wasn't as much of an issue.




I have tried an on-camera flash, and wasn't at all satisfied with the results. It may be my technique, but the lighting looked horrible.
 11/30/2006 08:09:06 AM · #15
Originally posted by lakota:
lesgainous,

Awesome soccer photo's.
I would be so happy to be able to take photo's like that, great job!

Thanks for all the tips.

Thanks, John. If I think of any more tips, I'll pass them along.
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