how to get faster shutter speed

[pat_hamil]

<p>I'm shooting indoor basketball on the sideline with canon xsi 85mm 1.8, manual mode ISO at 800(1600 is too grainy) f1.8. For good exposure I cant go over 1/350. What else can I do to shoot at 1/500 or more.</p>

[phule]

<p>Learn how to reduce noise in post-production and shoot at ISO 1600. You also can practice your timing and photograph not at when the action is the fastest but when 1/350 shows either minimal blur or blur of more expected elements (hand and feet but not face)</p>

<p>Otherwise you'll either need to buy a faster (larger aperture) lens or a new camera body.</p>

[Matt Laur]

<p>Or, add light. Which may not be an option for you, since some venues/leagues/coaches won't want strobes (on camera, or even remote) distracting the players. Can't hurt to ask.<br /><br />If you go to ISO 1600, just make sure you're not under-exposing. That will keep the perceived noise way down. <br /><br />Also: how are the images actually going to be used? Noise you see at 100% on your computer display could well be completely insignificant when seen on a standard web layout or 5x7 print. So, that's an important part of the equation, here.</p>

[phule]

<p>[[Or, add light. Which may not be an option for you, since some venues/leagues/coaches won't want strobes (on camera, or even remote) distracting the players. Can't hurt to ask.]]</p>

<p>I was going to suggest that, but how well would basketball motion freeze with the flash if you're forced back down into sync speed range of 1/200th? Might just be trading one problem for another.</p>

<p> </p>

[lornesunley]

<p>If you stop down to reduce ambient for the exposure the strobe flash determines the effective shutter speed for stopping motion. Given that most strobes have a duration of 1/1000 second you will get a "better" stop motion and depth of field than you will shooting at f/1.8 and 1/500 sec exposure.</p>

[rayt]

<p>Actually strobes do quite well at stopping the action. Use a low enough ISO and f-stop to eliminate ambient light issues. Basically you want the strobes to supply as much light as possible for the image. If you don't you have ghosting problems. The strobes produce the shortest flash duration on the highest power setting. Use the speed of the strobe to freeze the action.</p><div></div>

[richard_crowe4]

<p>The example shot appears if it was as done with more than one strobe, located in strategic areas of the court.</p>

[rayt]

<p>Indeed it was Richard. Two of them to be exact. Mounted as high I can get on the wall which is about 12 feet above court level, back from the center line of the backboard, pointed at the ceiling and wall, opposite each other. Not ideal for a couple of reasons. One is that if I shoot towards the wall I get a really blown wall. Can't avoid it unfortunately. The second problem is that the far end of the court is not usable so I have to stay on one end.</p>

<p>HS gyms are limited and are a tradeoff between problems. Get the lights too low and the refs ban the lights. Can't use lights from the end court position as again the refs will ban the lights. You have to respect the players so finding a good position is difficult. In my case the lights are clamped to some of the steel support beams.</p>

[chip_degrace]

<p>I've gone through the same progression. Shoot the highest ISO that your camera will allow, and fix the resulting noise in NoiseNinja (or some other software of choice). </p>

<p>I agree that strobes or other artificial light sources allow for the faster shutter speeds that the action dictates, but as a player, coach and fan, I find them very distracting, and many venues or high school associations simply don't allow them.<br>

Your lens is plenty fast enough, shoot 1600, and use noise ninja. Trust me, you will be amazed at the results.<br>

Final comment, you can fix exposure and noise issues in post-production, but if the shot is blurry, due to motion of the subject (or your camera), the shot is lost.</p>

[chip_degrace]

<p>Pat,<br>

take a look at my shot, with my 7D, 6400 ISO, manual exposure at f/2.8 and 1/1000 sec. Run through noise ninja and 'oila</p><div></div>

[rice1]

<p>Pat, it all depends on how you are going to use your photos. if they are for personal use on the internet and email, then accept the noise at 16oo and fix alittle post prod.<br>

if you submit to a paper, the same applies. alittle noise is better than blur.<br>

if you want to print at 8x10 or larger, then upgrade your cam body to one that does high iso well.<br>

i shoot the same lens and find that 1 stop up is best (2.0) and a min of 1/400 is necessary, so i often end up at iso of 2500. also, dont forget to set custom WB, to me, it makes a significant difference.<br>

good luck.</p>

[chip_degrace]

<p>chris,</p>

<p>excellent point about custom white balance. turns out, the inside of my lowepro bag is a very nice neutral gray....perfect for setting the CWB in the gym. I agree, it makes a big difference.</p>