heyjoe Loc: cincinnati ohio

if you are new at this,set shutter at 100 f stop to 1,8
move iso up as needed,this lens should give you pro like photos

PhotoGator Loc: Florida

With a 50mm f/1.8 distance to subject is important.
This "cheapo" lens is consider the best lens in comparison to others in class.
Do not blame your gear for your lack of proficiency.

RichieC Loc: Adirondacks

Send your settings... If you have PhotoShop go to File > File Info.

All the specs of your shot will be in there, including, but not limited to:

Make
Model
Shutter Speed
F-Stop
ISO
Lens
Focal length

50MM f/1.8 depending on make, is an relatively inexpensive lens to make.. don't be confused with quality vs. price in determining quality alone.

billwassmann Loc: Emerson, NJ

If you're shooting digital, increase your ISO; if you're shooting film buy something faster.

PhotoGator Loc: Florida

Richie, the Canon 50mm f/1.8 has the best IQ in his class.

RichieC Loc: Adirondacks

EXACTLY, That is my point! My Nikon 50mm 1.8 is as well.

It is not however an expensive lens compared to others that are wider or longer! All I was saying is don't judge lenses quality at this length by price alone... perhaps I worded it poorly. I was actually backing you up! LOL

darkonc

I'm gonna go from the presumption that your base problem is with camera shake.
If you want to get really good at it, you can go down to 1/4 of a second or less and still get good results with slow moving subjects -- but it takes practice and technique. If you really want to get some good pointers, try reading up on sniper techniques... It's the same idea.. The more steady your hand, the better the results will be.

If you want, you can start by buying a monopod (a one-legged tripod). Get that with a ball head. It'll help you steady the camera, and it takes up roughly the same floor space as a cane. Sometimes you won't be able to use it, but when you can it will help

Next: remember to use Higher ISO settings. Most DSLRs will do quite good at 800, and in many cases, the loss of intrinsic film quality you get at higher speeds will be made up by the lack of motion blurr (both camera and subject) that you'll get with faster shutter speeds.

First thing. Don't bang on the shutter. You want to press down as gently as you can. The more pressure you use, the more likely that you'll shake the camera.
Breathe slowly. In between shots, you can breath heavier than usual so that you can slow down when taking the shot -- be aware of hyperventilation.
Try taking yoga or martial arts courses where you learn to slow down and even control your heart rate to limit jitter. If you're serious about this, then go for it.

If you've got a single moving subject, then try following/leading the subject -- same as with sports photography, just longer exposures.

Remember to hold still until you hear the second click of the shutter closing.

I've attached some pictures showing what you can do with practice. All shots are handheld.

Long (3s) exposure with noticable shake -- Notice the point light sources. They track the camera movement.


Picture of my mom talking to my aunt. 1/2 second exposure. Mild camera shake, my mother is moving some (most notably her hand). You can tell by the background that I did a decent (but not perfect) job of keeping the camera still.


Second picture of my mom. She's slowed down listening to my Aunt (in the foreground). You can tell by the background that I did a good job of keeping the camrea still (another 1/2s exposure). When shooting people, timing is critical. If possible, pre-focus and wait for people to stop moving. - or pose them (I generally dislike posed photos).


This is a 2 second exposure with good shake control and no people to worry about moving. I think I braced myself against the wall for better shake control. The lens is also wide (18mm DX) which minimizes the effects of hand shake. All 4 pictures were taken at 1600ISO with a Nikon D50. Newer cameras do even better at high ISOs.

cecilia delacroix Loc: near Seattle

If your main subject is friends and family, ISO is the least-important variable, so definitely increase it to ISO 1600....I've got a Canon T2i also, and it handles 1600 fine for that purpose. Doing that, you can then try stopping down your lens a little, maybe try f/4. Many inexpensive lenses become noticeably improved and plus, your depth of field won't be as razor-thin as it is at f/2.8. And practice the suggestions others posted about steadier shooting. For your purpose, shutter speed is the most-important variable.

high-flyer Loc: Texas

Looks like you have a good lens. For that lens the minimum shutter speed for hand holding should be 1/50 of a second. If you are not getting shutter speed then bump your ISO up to 200 or 400. That lens should be fine for available light photography but there does still need to be some available light. Consider a tripod if you have to shoot at a slower shutter speed. Each time you double ISO you can double the shutter speed for the same exposure. Bumping up ISO can effect noise in the picture (picture quality) but if for low ISO numbers this should be minimal

tainkc Loc: Kansas City

Let me simplify things. Open that sucker all the way up. F1.8 if it lets you. Start at ISO 400. Set you camera to AV mode. Take some shots and adjust your ISO from there if you need to. If you have little kids running around, well, good luck!

Wabbit Loc: Arizona Desert

Hey Doc ..... the OP disappeared .....

tainkc Loc: Kansas City

Oh.

Daryl New Loc: Wellington,New Zealand

Use a tripod.

Wabbit Loc: Arizona Desert

Hey Doc ..... got mine .....

Sreejib Loc: Calcutta, INDIA

Wabbit is right, if the camera is shake during the snap is taking in low shutter speed (less than 1/80) then you may use a mono-pod or tri-pod or jump up your ISO. If the subject is moving then you need to higher shutter speed to freeze the same.
As you are using canon T2i, it is a aps-c sized sensor camera with 1.6x crop factor, compare with the full frame sensor. That means, when you are using a 50mm lens actually the the focal length is 50 x 1.6 = 80mm. For that reason you always try to keep your shutter speed greater than the focal length. And your camera is capable to handle the noise level up to ISO 800.