football games! any advice shooting at a football game in the late evening or at night?

brandy sanders Loc: louisiana

any advice shooting at a football game in the late evening or at night?

DanielB Loc: San Diego, Ca

brandy sanders wrote:

any advice shooting at a football game in the late evening or at night?

High ISO and long fast lens. What kind of equipment are you using?

brandy sanders Loc: louisiana

DanielB wrote:

brandy sanders wrote:

any advice shooting at a football game in the late evening or at night?

High ISO and long fast lens. What kind of equipment are you using?

nikon d90 with i think 85-300 lens

brandy sanders Loc: louisiana

my shots are ok as long as they are not moving. but for action shots they are not to good

football

brandy sanders Loc: louisiana

brandy sanders wrote:

my shots are ok as long as they are not moving. but for action shots they are not to good

this is what most of them look like

brandy sanders Loc: louisiana

brandy sanders wrote:

my shots are ok as long as they are not moving. but for action shots they are not to good

iso is 3200 and in sports mode

DanielB Loc: San Diego, Ca

brandy sanders wrote:

DanielB wrote:

brandy sanders wrote:

any advice shooting at a football game in the late evening or at night?

High ISO and long fast lens. What kind of equipment are you using?

nikon d90 with i think 85-300 lens

What f stop is that lens for instance I have a 70-200mm f2.8?

DanielB Loc: San Diego, Ca

brandy sanders wrote:

my shots are ok as long as they are not moving. but for action shots they are not to good

iso is 3200 and in sports mode

Stay out of sports mode your leaving the speed and aperture settings to the camera. Use manual mode and set shutter speed to min 1/250 sec. Start with aperture wide open and adjust down if needed. ISO 3200 should be plenty good for shooting under the lights. If I were to guess your lens is probably too slow - f4 or 5.

Kathi Loc: Pennsylvania

Hi Brandy,
I have to agree with Daniel. I shoot with a Nikon d700 and use the 70 -200 f2.8 lens (which I love!) and get the focus on the central players or subject and the background blurs out, also referred to as panning. Keep playing around with it! Is there a some place local to rent a lens for you to try out at the next game?

dirty dave

I had the same problem and could not aford a fast zoom lens at the time. One trick you might try is to shoot a wider shot and crop later, as you zoom in the lens get slower. you might even use the kit lens.and don't worry about zooming at night. Of course if you are a sports photographer and are getting paid for your shots it would be worth the investment for a fast lens. my 2 cents Dave

rocco_7155 Loc: Connecticut/Louisiana

Brandy,
I also would suggest a monopod. It keeps your horizons and field lines straight and allows you to pan with the play and snap aqs you pan. This helps freeze the action. I always use this technique shooting soccer and football.
Rocco

brandy sanders Loc: louisiana

DanielB wrote:

brandy sanders wrote:

DanielB wrote:

brandy sanders wrote:

any advice shooting at a football game in the late evening or at night?

High ISO and long fast lens. What kind of equipment are you using?

nikon d90 with i think 85-300 lens

What f stop is that lens for instance I have a 70-200mm f2.8?

i think the f stop is 4.5

brandy sanders Loc: louisiana

dirty dave wrote:

I had the same problem and could not aford a fast zoom lens at the time. One trick you might try is to shoot a wider shot and crop later, as you zoom in the lens get slower. you might even use the kit lens.and don't worry about zooming at night. Of course if you are a sports photographer and are getting paid for your shots it would be worth the investment for a fast lens. my 2 cents Dave

thanks dave.

brandy sanders Loc: louisiana

rocco_7155 wrote:

Brandy,
I also would suggest a monopod. It keeps your horizons and field lines straight and allows you to pan with the play and snap aqs you pan. This helps freeze the action. I always use this technique shooting soccer and football.
Rocco

thanks

Kathi Loc: Pennsylvania

Hi Brandy,
4.5 is going to be "slow" to get good action shots. Best suggestion is to get as close as you can and use a mono-or tri-pod if you don't have the capability of opening your lens to a 2.8 or wider.