indoor action shots with d7000

<p>i am somewhat new to photography need some help with indoor action shots.<br>

i have a nikon d7000 with a sigma 18-70 f2.8 lens.<br>

my problem is with my camera set on s mode with my iso set to auto and my iso ceiling set to 6400 and the minimum shutter speed set to 1/500 i can't get my shutter speed faster than 1/250th with the flash on.<br>

any ideas of how i can get my shutter speed to atleast 1/500th without the flash and still maintain a good exposure and stop the action?</p>

<p>one other question...i have my auto focus set to continuos spot center.<br>

would i be better off using another setting for wrestling pictures?</p>

So you are already at your top ISO, and you want a fairly fast shutter speed, the easiest solution is to get a lens that is

faster than f2.8. How about get a 50mm/f1.8 AF-S lens? Do you use your zoom at 50mm a lot? There is also a 35mm/f1.8

DX AF-S.

<p>i'm kinda stuck budget wise in that f2.8 area and am planning on adding a 70-200 f2.8 sigma lens to my bag.<br>

if i am at the edge of the mat the 18-70 distance wise is enough but if i don't have the ability to get right there i would need the 70-200. attached is a sample of a better shot with decent lighting.<br>

i really need a solution that uses some setting on my camera as a solution to the problem<img src="http://sphotos-b.xx.fbcdn.net/hphotos-snc7/s480x480/419747_4831277953064_475148802_n.jpg" alt="" width="480" height="317" /></p>

<p>next is a typical shot in a lower light situation...not so good.<img src="http://sphotos-a.xx.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ash3/528943_4830444292223_354162399_n.jpg" alt="" width="960" height="635" /></p>

<p>it kinda gets worse from this point...from really grainy and out of focus.</p>

<p>Well, you are up against the simple laws of physics. Each one among the rest of us is also limited by those same laws.</p>

<p>Essentially you don't have enough light at the venue. You can:</p>

<ul>

<li>Allow more light into your exposure by exposing your sensor for longer with a slower shutter speed, or you can let more light in with a faster f1.8 or 1.4 lens.</li>

<li>You increase the sensitivity of the sensor, but beyond ISO 6400, your D7000 will be in the Hi 1 range, and the quality really suffers.</li>

<li>Or you can light up the venue. If you can't change the lights, maybe you can try to use a flash if that is permitted. With Nikon's i-TTL system, you can use FP sync and can actually use faster than 1/250 sec.</li>

</ul>

<p>And if you need a faster, longer lens, there is also the 85mm/f1.8 AF-S that is around $500.</p>

<p>i could use a fixed lens to solve my issue.<br>

the only thing is when the action is at the far end of the mat i wount have the ability to zoom to the action.<br>

with that lens assuming i get the shot in good focus and it is exposed correctly will a taken from across the mat come out acceptable?</p>

<p>Steve. The Best way to get a good exposure is to set the camera on manual iso 6400 2.8 at 1/600 sec. This should get you close Then ajust In 1/3 shutter speed increments to get the exposure. This will work in other gyms as well</p><div></div>

<p>Or you just might want to shoot shutter priority if you are shooting action shots--then adjust the other variables based on what you are getting. ISO 6400 is really quite high for the D7000. It would really be better if you could save a stop with a faster lens rather than by pushing ISO so far.</p>

<p>--Lannie</p>

<p>I have a D7000 and an 85mm f1.8D that I would use for your indoor event. I am assuming that flash is not allowed. I would prefer to <em>not</em> use auto ISO, but rather shoot at ISO 3200 if at all possible. If you shoot RAW, you can recover more easily from some underexposure. The 85 1.8 gathers good light for auto focus, but f1.8 is a very shallow depth of field, and may require shooting at f2.0 or smaller aperture (larger f/number). As far as shutter speed, it's a tough call to attain 1/500. You may have to shoot at 1/200, and accept some motion blur, like hand movement. You could shoot in 3-shot bursts, and editing for the best of three.</p>

<p>If the action is at the far end of the mat, shoot with the 85 1.8, and crop in post processing to tighten your shots. The D7000's high resolution sensor allows for considerable cropping. For me, the 85mm f/1.8 is a versatile, competent fast prime on the D7000. My version is AF-D. Today I would choose the AF-S Nikkor 85mm 1.8G.</p>

<p>wait, you're using flash at ISO 6400? no wonder your pics look overexposed. both of them. look at the skin tones. if you have an FP setting you can get a higher flash sync shutter but at the expense of flash power. regardless, i question whether you need to use flash at all in that situation. assuming there is _some_lighting, 6400 should be pretty decent on its own. i typically dont turn up my ISO past 800 or so if i'm using flash, and i'd be hesitant to go above 1600 in all but extreme cases. i'd try not using flash at all, maybe adjusting exposure compensation, if you need to shoot at that high of an ISO value.</p>

<p>You need an external CLS / FP capable flash (or flashes) to use any faster than X-Sync flash/shutter speeds.</p>

<p>Your in-caamera popup flash is not capable to use FP mode, not having sufficient power. Get SB910/900/800 and then you will be able to use FP at any shutter speed.</p>

<p>The built-in pop-up flash has sufficient power to work as a CLS commander for the FP mode, but cannot produce FP mode flash lighting alone.</p>

<p>Some large studio strobes with very long light duration, can work to cover the time when shutter slot travels across the sensor, but this technique is for more advanced flash users.</p>

A couple of things...Try Manual (M). While in M with flash, can you sync up your flash by adjusting the

shutter speed to 1/800 while jacking up the ISO until you reach that shutter speed & correct exposure

while in f/2.8? I do this with my D700 all the time. Also, while in M without the flash, adjust aperture to

f/2.8, shutter to 1/800, and then adjust ISO until you reach correct exposure. I do not know where you are

shooting from, but with a standard zoom, you should be able to achieve good results, with the exception of

noise. I do have a D7000, but use it for specific applications. Also, make sure you adjust the White

Balance to either Auto or Fluorescent, based on the type of indoor lighting...then make the corrections in

post processing.

<p>Are you shooting RAW? How you processing your images? What size prints are you making?</p>

<p>FP mode will work, partially. Shooting range is quite limited in FP mode and unless you are close to the subjects, you may not be able to take advantage of it. I am surprised you are even allowed to use flash at these events.</p>

<p>First advice - get off of auto ISO. Manually set the ISO at 3200. The only time I go to 6400 is at one swimming venue where it is so dark - that it's almost like midnight swimming. </p>

<p>Auto ISO and aperture preferred is a recipe for disaster. You're asking the camera to set both ISO and shutter speed and something has to give. That plus the tendency of Nikon Auto ISO to over exposure by at least 1/3 stop. </p>

<p>Set the camera to M - ISO 3200 - F2.8 - shutter speed 1/500 and try a shot. Make sure your exposure comp in set to 0. Chimp the shot (look at the LCD) and adjust shutter speed or aperture to get it dialed in. If the lighting changes a lot, then go with Shutter mode. </p>

<p>Dave</p>

 

<p>I've shot a number of professional sports...mostly the NBA back in the day. Those were well lit arenas for games, but not so much in practice facilities. If your sport does not move at the high speed of basketball, horse racing, etc., you might consider slowing your shutter speed. My guess is you might be very pleased with the results at 1/60th or 1/125th and pleasantly surprised at what you see at much slower shutter speeds like 1/30th or even 1/8th -- particularly if you are using some support, like a monopod.</p>

<p>Best of luck.</p>

<p>thanks for all of the input...i will take it all and try them until i get something that works for me.</p>