Help me get sharp baseball shot- photos posted for C&C

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richdavid
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p.2 #1 · Help me get sharp baseball shot- photos posted for C&C

Thanks everyone for this very helpfull thread!

Marino, have you tried a partial or center weighted metering mode?

Good shooting!

Rich

Oct 14, 2008 at 03:04 PM

Caleb Williams
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p.2 #2 · Help me get sharp baseball shot- photos posted for C&C

marino420td wrote:2. How do I assure that the camera/lense is focusing on my subject. I often get shots (like #3 above) in which another subject in the photo appears to be in sharper focus?
I assume you're shooting with the center point on AI Servo? Always try to focus on something with contrast in the image, a logo or lettering, not just a clean jersey, so that the AF locks on to something better.

I hope nobody else said this as I didn't have time to read the whole post.

As for being 80 feet away, that should be a problem, just be at 200mm and be prepared to crop. Also, have you considered purchasing a 1.4x telextender?

Oct 14, 2008 at 03:22 PM

Paul_Dunlop
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p.2 #3 · Help me get sharp baseball shot- photos posted for C&C

Looks like you are working your way through the challenges quite well

A couple of comments

The soccer pic seems oversharpened - and doesn't look like it needs to be
Look at the feet and the grass for this one

ISO 400 - with shooting at f4 - 4.5 now and daylight games, can you drop the ISO as well?
It seems you have 'hard coded' it there for some reason - try out 200 if possible

the latest 3 baseball pics are definitely better

Oct 14, 2008 at 07:25 PM

gtjohnson
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p.2 #4 · Help me get sharp baseball shot- photos posted for C&C

marinonotasmanytdsasfavre

:

I don't know how well the 200 end of your zoom fills the frame with a player across the infield, but I'm sure you know. If you can fill it and you're using good shutter speed and technique, then I think that you can expect images as sharp as your camera can produce 'em. Maybe not as often as a 1d shooter will, but you should get plenty. You never posted the original of the catcher in the first series, but that was very sharp and I assume the original was not much different from the posted crop (meaning you filled the frame with it). The second photo of the catcher is cut-your-finger sharp, so if that meets your standard (it sure would meet mine), then it really seems as though your answer is in having enough length to fill the frame with the pitcher / infielder.

2. How do I assure that the camera/lense is focusing on my subject. I often get shots (like #3 above) in which another subject in the photo appears to be in sharper focus?

The focus does appear to be slightly behind the player in #3 (looking at the dirt), but if you are in AI Servo, the first shot fires regardless of focus while the subsequent shots in a burst are all focus priority. So, you really can't assure, all you can do is just up your odds by shooting a short burst as opposed to single shots in AI Servo mode or by pre-focusing on your subject before you squeeze the trigger on the initial shot. Or buy a 1d body ...

Putting the sharp image issue aside, you did manage to capture some great expressions, which will make for some wonderful shots when you get the image sharpness issue resolved.

Gary

Oct 14, 2008 at 09:39 PM

hogger706
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p.2 #5 · Help me get sharp baseball shot- photos posted for C&C

I would be interested in know what the focus point was. Top, bottom, sides or center.

Oct 15, 2008 at 12:35 AM

marino420td
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p.2 #6 · Help me get sharp baseball shot- photos posted for C&C

Gary, first of all- the Favre comment was below the belt

Oct 15, 2008 at 01:56 AM

Caleb Williams
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p.2 #7 · Help me get sharp baseball shot- photos posted for C&C

marino420td wrote:
Honestly I don't know how well it fills the frame. For some strange reason I seem to unconsciously back off the zoom because I'm afraid of cutting some of the player out of the frame during an action sequence. I'll try to find some shots at 200mm for reference.

I do the same thing and it leads to missed shots for me all the time. It can be partially solved by cropping, but you can't fix everything in post.

marino420td wrote:
On the focus issue, center point focus was used on all shots. I didn't know the fact you pointed out about the first shot. Maybe that is one problem because I normally don't fire a sequence. After reading so many tutorials, I thought I should be able to nail the shot with one click but obviously that is not happening. I'll try a few bursts to see how they turn out.

One thing I do is start focusing before I'm ready to shoot. I use back button focus (I don't have time to explain it, but others will be able to), and hold down the * button to focus and then wait for the right action (peak or key are words used a lot to describe the best frame you can get from a given series of events) before pressing the shutter button. At any rate, it's something to try if you want too. I also fire burst, especially with action coming toward me.

Hope that helps.

Oct 15, 2008 at 03:07 AM

gtjohnson
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p.2 #8 · Help me get sharp baseball shot- photos posted for C&C

Honestly I don't know how well it fills the frame. For some strange reason I seem to unconsciously back off the zoom because I'm afraid of cutting some of the player out of the frame during an action sequence. I'll try to find some shots at 200mm for reference.

danthemanfan: I know exactly what you mean. I used to shoot the same way and I still have to fight the urge to want space around my subject. It is much more challenging (especially in soccer) to zoom in tight, but the rewards are substantial. It's something hobby shooters like you and I have to work on everytime out. I'm getting a much higher percentage of my shots filling the frame, but I still have work to do. Just remember that taking a 'loose' shot isn't giving you the results you want anyway, you might as well zoom in and take your chances. If you pull off framing the shot correctly, then you'll have yourself something. It'll make you appreciate every good action shot you see from now on.

On the focus issue, center point focus was used on all shots. I didn't know the fact you pointed out about the first shot. Maybe that is one problem because I normally don't fire a sequence. After reading so many tutorials, I thought I should be able to nail the shot with one click but obviously that is not happening. I'll try a few bursts to see how they turn out.

You can still nail the first shot if you pre-focus and are shooting a player whose focal plane is not changing in relation to you (pitcher, catcher, infielders, etc.). That last photo of the runner coming at you, however, would likely be more successful in a burst. I find that any photos of a player running are best shot in a burst (focus benefits aside) since it gives you several chances to catch the player in a good action pose. It also allows you to concentrate on framing the shot without worrying so much about the timing. Here are two sequences from bursts I shot at a HS football game last Friday night. The first one of each is ok, but the next frame in each sequence is a much better action shot. There is no way I can time those with my meager skills, so it's spray and pray for me. It's almost as much fun downloading to see what I actually got as it is taking the shot.

1)

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Oct 15, 2008 at 08:41 PM

JustinThyme
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p.2 #9 · Help me get sharp baseball shot- photos posted for C&C

A quick way to rule out glass is find a nice high contrast subject in cotrolled lighting. If it repeatedly comes out less than sharp it could just be that the copy of glass you got isnt up to the challange. I did see a few OOF shots but even those dont have the results you would expect at the perceived point of focus.
What are your other camera settings like sharpness, WB, Contrast, Saturation etc.

I have never tried an F4 but my 70-200 2.8 IS is Very Sharp, a little short, but very sharp. Most of the time I am using a 100-400L for situations such as this.

Oct 16, 2008 at 02:36 AM

MDRUZIAK
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p.2 #10 · Help me get sharp baseball shot- photos posted for C&C

marino420td wrote:

2. How do I assure that the camera/lense is focusing on my subject. I often get shots (like #3 above) in which another subject in the photo appears to be in sharper focus?

You really should be using the * on the back of the camera and the center focus point to focus. Also make sure that you HOLD the * as you you track the action and continue to hold the * as you press the shutter.

It is also very easy to move the focus point off of the target for a second and screw up your focus tracking. Shooting even a short burst sequence helps.

One other suggestion... Can you find a different position to shoot from? I'm not a big fan of shooting thru the fence. Maybe shooting from a higher angle will help with some of the backgrounds. You might not have the reach to shoot from the stands with your 70-200 but it is worth a try. Move around, even to the other side of the field and see what you get.

Oct 16, 2008 at 10:23 AM


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