Setting combinations for 40D, 580EXII for indoor basketball

[paul_ingram]

Canon 40D with 70-200 2.8 IS and 24-70 2.8; have been getting acceptable manual exposures at our basketball

games at ISO 3200, 1/320 @ f2.8 or ISO 1600, 1/250 @ f2.8. I also preset the white balance shift to B5 M5 to deal

with our HID lighting.

 

I am experimenting with lower ISO and my 580EXII flash because the newspaper guys always uses flash and get

sharp, saturated photos.

 

I have tried flash ETTL and M settings with various output levels, and am surprised at all the variations in exposure

from shot to shot, not to mention the camera seems to slow down firing with the flash on. I have it set for high-speed

flash (1/250) and I have an external power supply for the flash. With so many camera setting options and so many

flash unit settings, I would appreciate some advice on where to experiment on camera and flash settings to best

capture fast moving indoor sports with Canon EOS and Canon flash units, with the fewest amount of constant on-the-

fly manual setting changes.

 

And I have read all the manuals.

[mark u]

Mixing flash (especially on shoe where inverse square effects and ghoul shadows will be problematic) and HID

lighting is a recipe for disaster. I would suggest either you get yourself some fast primes - e.g. Canon 85mm

f/1.8, Sigma 50mm f/1.4, or you forget about trying to use a 580 and think about a wireless flash setup that will

truly cover the court with reasonably even flash lighting that will be strong enough to dominate the exposure. 4

Vivitar 285s on Pocketwizard triggers mounted high up and angled down covering half the court might be a starting

point (using more speeds recycling): some ceiling mounted Speedotrons would be even better. Radio triggers are

essential to counter what any other shooters may be using.

 

To get the flash to dominate the exposure, you need to ensure that the ambient exposure is at least 2 stops down

- shooting at f/6.3 and 1600 ISO and 1/200th for example, or perhaps better using 400 or 800 ISO and a wider

aperture. On no account exceed max X sync - indeed, if you use wireless triggered flash you may need to slow

your shutter speed still more. I think a 580 on its own is going to struggle if you try using it for bounced

flash - you have twice the ceiling height as your flash to subject distance and you will lose 1-2 stops to

absorption by the ceiling/walls.

 

I would imagine that a custom white balance would be superior to any in camera settings given the peculiarities

of the spectrum of HID lighting with its strong peak in the sodium D lines if you are going to use ambient light.

1/500th at f/2 will give you rather sharper shots than 1/250th at f/2.8 so far as motion blur is concerned. The

faster lens route has the advantage that you aren't dependent on flash recycle times and you don't risk upsetting

the players and officials with your flash arrangements.

[christopher hartt dallas]

Paul, you have to remember that especially with a lens like the 70-200, your focal length capability can quickly outrun the capability of your flash to provide the necessary light. If you're shooting B-Ball games for instance, have the mindset of shooting in Av and using flash for maybe a bit of fill. With the 24-70 your 580-2 can cover the entire range pretty well and Manual is a good choice for consistent exposures, but less than 24mm or greater than 105 and standard flash units aren't going to respond well.

[elliot1]

I took some basketball shots last fall in a gym and found I was able to get good exposures with reasonable shutter speed by bouncing the 580 flash off the ceiling. Results will obviously vary depending on the height of the ceiling and its color but you might want to give it a try. Although the effect of the flash is minimal, it was enough to get very pleasing pictures. Since you are getting reasonable results now, a little bit of bounce flash may just work for you. I believe I turned the flash compensation up to +3. Good luck!

[dave_holland]

To me the main advantage of flash happens when you get the light off camera. Of course with a toe in the creative water you need to be prepared for lots more throw-aways. I have found that the combination of manual flash, manual exposure, a set of (3) pocketwizards, and two flashes set to max sync speed (with HSS turned off) works great. You might think that with a shutter speed of 1/250s, it is not fast enough to freeze action. That only applies if you light is close to ambient -- As above, blast away above ambient, and you will have little flash ghosting and really dramatic shadows. Those little battery powered strobes are probably better using direct flash, because of power considerations. This will give you a shooting zone that you have to stick inside, because when your players leave your shooting zone you will get underexposed images.

 

There is a great paper specifically written for basketball on the s t r o b i s t website discussing the above approach.