College Volleyball

fullofpaint

First time shooting volleyball, I think the pictures seem a lil washed out myself....and definitely blurry








(C&C VERY welcome)

Shot with Canon 40d
EF70-300mm f/4-5.6 IS USM
ISO 1600
1/160 to 1/200
f/4.5 to 5.6

The rest of the gallery

donek

Your shutter speed is too slow and your aperture is too small given the light. You could try doubling your iso to get to 1/400 on your shutter speed. If you have faster glass, try it. A lot of people go to the 50mm f1.8 or 85mm f1.8. I'm not familiar enough with the Canon bodies to know your crop factor, but a 70-200 f2.8 might do the trick in a college gym. That lens is going to be tough in that situation though.

fullofpaint

yea unfortunately all I have at the moment is the 70-300 and a 17-85 with the same specs.

Saving my money for a lens that can handle this kind of situation better, but thpse prices are killer for a college student haha. But with any luck come christmas break I'll make enough to have it!

sportsshooter06

you have the right idea, however volleyball is a game of movement.
to achieve good results 1/500 at f2.8 if you can find that.

your angle is good, just need more shutter speed.

college gym, hs gym does not really matter.

most volleyball in college gyms the lighting is just slightly better.

volleyball is not tusually played in the same place at basketball, especially div1.

you need more shutter and more aperture.

good luck

bandgeekndb

Saving my money for a lens that can handle this kind of situation better, but thpse prices are killer for a college student haha. But with any luck come christmas break I'll make enough to have it!

Since fullofpaint so kindly mentioned the college student dilemma, what is a good, relatively inexpensive sport lens? For example, my 55-200 VR from Nikon is great, as long as it's almost noonday sun. As soon as the sun starts setting though, my shutter speed goes way down and the ISO goes way up!

I attend college myself, so I'd be interested in getting shots of our sports teams in action. I will say, unless I sell a truckload of prints, I will never be able to justify a 70-200 f/2.8 unless it's dirt cheap, used, etc.

So, with that in mind, any recommendations? Also, who is normally the best person to approach about a sideline photo pass? Do they normally give them out to casual photographers?

Thanks!
~Nick

i_worship_the_King

I work for the college newspaper and have great results with 2 main lenses. f/1.8 50mm and f/1.8 85mm. For $250 you can have both, and they are like night and day coming from a f/4.5-5.6. Additionally, I find that I consistently get better shots shooting something constant aperture.

These lenses are also applicable when shooting in our stupid theater. There's about 5 candles worth of light in the whole joint and it's basically useless without fast glass.

If I had the money, though, I'd love to add the 24mm f/2.8 to the kit, rounding out the ranges.

bandgeekndb

where the heck did you find these 2 lenses for $250 together?!?!? Also, these lenses won't be autofocusing on my D40, will they? I found a 50mm f/1.4 AF-S which should autofocus, but the 85mm was only AF, which shouldn't focus, right?

Thanks!

rockcanyonphotos

bandgeekndb wrote:

where the heck did you find these 2 lenses for $250 together?!?!? Also, these lenses won't be autofocusing on my D40, will they? I found a 50mm f/1.4 AF-S which should autofocus, but the 85mm was only AF, which shouldn't focus, right?

Thanks!

The 50 and 85 f1.8 lens will operate just fine on your 40D. I use them both on my 30D with no problem. The AF-S designator only limits the cameras those lenses will work on... the entire line of canon lens will work just fine on your 40D.

bandgeekndb

ah, gotta love canon!...yet I'm a nikon user!

I'll clarify, my Nikon D40 is what I'll be trying to use these lenses on!

Thanks,
Nick

rockcanyonphotos

bandgeekndb wrote:

ah, gotta love canon!...yet I'm a nikon user!

I'll clarify, my Nikon D40 is what I'll be trying to use these lenses on!

Thanks,
Nick

OOPS :-) ... guess I should pay closer attention to the equipment list at the bottom of your post. Not as familiar with Nikon but I think the same principal applies... I don't think you are limited to the -S type lenses... The -S type lens can only be used on those specific digital cameras... but heck, just take your camera with you down to your local camera shot and try it out to make certain.