dchiaradmd

PROBLEM COMPLETELY SOLVED! I was able to capture crisp, sharp images of dugs running full speed directly toward me. No problem at all.

This was my setup:

AF = C, Dynamic Focus, 85mm f/1.8, Aperture Priority, aperture = 4-6 range, shutter speeds anywhere from 1/400-1/1000.

Thanks for all the help.

Dan

I broke out the camera, manual, and the 85mm f/1.8 last night and employed all the suggestions that were given up to my last post.

I got MUCH better results. Thank you all for your help.

I think the suggestions given since my last post are excellent, too. I'll work on them today at lunch time.

I expect to improve by leaps and bounds by the next time I have a "formal" shoot.

Thanks again.

Dan

Thanks to all who have answered. I appreciate all the advice.

Motion blur and camera shake are not my problems. I shot in broad daylight on a cloudless day between 11:00 am and 2:00 pm in Tucson, Arizona. I had PLENTY of light and my shutter speeds were very fast.

My problem was getting the camera to focus on the dog and snap the picture before the dog had moved out of focus.

I'm going to study the suggestions you've given me and see if I can figure it out. I have an 85mm f/1.8. I'll try that lens combined with the suggestions regarding focus settings and techniques. I may even, grudgingly, break out the manual if I can find it. (Just kidding. I've read the manual, and although I have decent reading comprehension, it is often brief and cryptic.)

Thanks again.

Dan

I shoot with a Nikon D200, and I recently went to the dog park to take

pictures of the doggies running around. I took HUNDREDS of pictures over a 3-

hour period, using a Sigma 55-200 lens, and 95% of the photos turned out

blurry.

The problem, as best I can tell is that the dogs just moved around so

constantly and so quickly that by the time the autofocus zeroed in on the dog

and the shutter clicked, the dog was no longer in the same position.

Pictures where the dog was moving perpendicular to me were fine. Dogs moving

toward or away from me were all out-of-focus.

So, here are my questions:

1. I know that the D200 should be capable of taking an in-focus photo of a

running dog. This can't be in impossibility for such a high-end camera. What

are the correct *camera* settings for this situation? There appear to be two

or three camera settings that would relate to this situation. One is the

focus selector next to the lens that has C, S, and M (constant, sequential,

and manual, I think.) Obviously M isn't a consideration here. Then, there's

the focus area selector on the back of the camera next to the menu button.

Whcih one of those would be best? Any other suggestions?

2. Timing and technique obviously matter. Any tips would be greatly

appreciated.

Thanks in advance.

Dan