amitymamaThe Attachment Parenting Community

meemee · 06-30-2008, 11:09 AM

Lauren and John both made allstars in softball/baseball...I would like to get some good shots of them playing. My kit lens (14-42mm) does not get in close enough.
Also, is this a situation where I should just use the auto "sports" mode, or should I try manual? If so, what settings whould you recommend for late afternoon?
Sorry for all the questions, I have some books on the way..so hopefully in a few days I can stop buggin y'all!

Maiden Comfort · 06-30-2008, 01:23 PM

Practice

Have the kids run around the yard, and try out the sports mode. Otherwise, you want a fast shutter speed. You can also set your camera to shutter priority (S) and it will pick the aperture and maybe ISO to go with what light you have and your shutter speed.

As far as lens, I would get a zoom with at least 200mm in the range.

mamaferreira · 06-30-2008, 01:52 PM

I use a 70-300mm zoom for sports stuff. I use burst mode and the sports setting. I'm not knowledgeable enough yet to be fiddling with the settings on the fly during a fast paced game (I mostly shoot soccer games), so I let the camera do it for me.

bluehalo · 06-30-2008, 02:12 PM

I have a 55-200 that I use for baseball -- Wish it was longer, but oh well

I usually stick to sports setting and burst mode as well. My best advice is just to take tons of pictures -- that's the only way with sports that I'm guaranteed to come home with plenty of good ones. DH makes fun of me b/c my camera is constantly clicking

Michele · 07-07-2008, 02:17 AM

I like my 70-300mm for youth sports action shots. I don't believe in auto modes so I would use manual. You're gonna need a fast shutter speed to freeze the action. Late afternoon with no overhead sun (i.e. still light out but sun low in the sky) I would probably start with ISO 100, 1/5ooth and f/5.6 or so and see where that gets me on the meter and do from there. You may need to increase the ISO to keep the shutter speed up there. Just take care not to underexpose once you start increasing ISO. If we're talking bright and still sunny out - your shutters will likely be a lot higher....1/1000th and faster.