Dog Agility shoot - indoors

<p>I am shooting a friends dog indoors doing agility this week. I have taken a couple of pics in the past and they did not turn out as sharp as I would like. I have a 50D and use either a 86mm 1.8 or 50mm 1.8. The lighting is not the best. Any suggestions on settings. I am also so new to AF options on my camera and have been reading and trying to understand it. I usually use TV and Center AF point. Attached is an example of the photo with the EXIF information. My friend said she would like the dogs feet to be in more focus along with the rest of the dog. I shot this with my Canon Xsi because I had to send in my 50D for power issues. Any help would be great!<br>

EXIF -</p>

<table border="1" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="3" width="99%" bgcolor="#ffffe1">

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<td>Exposure Time:</td>

<td>1/320 Second</td>

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<td>Aperture / Fstop:</td>

<td>F1.8</td>

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<td>Focal Length (zoom):</td>

<td>85mm</td>

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<td>ISO Speed:</td>

<td>400</td>

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<p>Also, this is the unedited photo!</p>

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<p>Looks good to me.<br /> I'd check the histogram regularly while you're shooting and maybe add a bit of positive exposure compensation. At the higher ISOs you don't want to be underexposing.</p>

<p>I'd stick with the 85mm f/1.8. My experience is that the micro-motor focusing in the 50mm f/1.8 hunts <strong>a lot</strong> in low light and doesn't get many in-focus shots.</p>

<p>I use Av mode in low light and set the lens wide open. That way you will get the fastest shutter-speed available for the ISO you've selected. If the shutter speeds are too low, all you can do is up the ISO...</p>

<p>I'd use AF-servo mode for focusing. Personally, I use the "AF On" button that falls under your thumb (on the back of the camera behind the grip) to start the AF with the subject further away than you want to start photographing. Hold the "AF On" button and just press the shutter release when you want to take a shot. That gives the servo-mode the best chance to "lock on" the subject and track it.</p>

<p>Alternatively, you can try pre-setting the focus and shooting as the subject comes into the pre-set spot. With the shallow DOF from the 85mm f/1.8 that may give you fewer "keepers" than AF-servo.</p>

<p>The apparent lack of sharpness appears to be due to the wide aperture you're using...note especially the dog's hind feet as compared to the bar he's jumping. If these are practice runs instead of actual competition and a little distraction could be tolorated, I'd suggest a fairly powerful strobe and a much smaller aperature; while not a "cure-all", the added strobe light and a small stop would give you a great deal more depth of field while stopping the motion.</p>

<p>You don't have enough in focus depth for what you want, at your current setting. These are what you can do to get more. Bump ISO to 1600 from 400 and shoot at f4 (trade noise for DOF). Use a 50mm instead of 85mm (get more DOF from shorter focal length). Crop photo to 85mm (Trade mpixel for more DOF). Put center focus point at the eyes instead of the frame (optimize DOF). </p>

<p>Depth of field and inadequate light are your big problems here. You should be using a relatively powerful strobe (flash unit) located near the bar such that you can shoot around f5.6-8 from your current distance - the short duration of the strobe (~1/1000-1/10,000) will stop action (even though the shutter alone wouldn't do that), and the smaller aperture will give you increased depth of field to get everything in focus. Lastly, I wouldn't be relying on the camera to autofocus for you, rather I would preset the focus manually (assuming you are using a tripod) on the location of the bar, and when the dog jumps press the shutter release to catch him/her at bar height with his/her feet just coming across the bar. It takes a little practice, but will result in really good shots which should please your customers.</p>

<p>Fair warning, thought: some venues (or dog clubs, or event judges) don't want you to use strobes around dogs that are doing agility. It can be distracting for dogs (and people) in the competition. If you're not making huge prints, noise won't matter much. Use a high ISO, as mentioned above, and just be sure you don't underexpose.</p>

<p>Aperture is what your problem is. The dog itself isn't as in focus as the stand-up bar. Try locking the focus at the approximate location of the dog before the jump. Maybe you can use a mirror to direct natural light at the subject (not any place that distracts). I'm fairly new to photography, these are just my thoughts.</p>