Stop Action

ladytxladytx Registered Users Posts: 814 Major grins
edited May 18, 2008 in Technique
Shouldn't a shutter speed of 200 have stopped this action and not blur?

DSC02053copy.jpg
LadyTX

Comments

  • cmasoncmason Registered Users Posts: 2,506 Major grins
    edited May 15, 2008
    I think the problem is more related to focus, your subject is not in focus, the background is. The motion seems fairly stopped, though hard to tell with the focus issue. What focal length lens? if its a 200mm, you may also have a touch of camera shake too.

    if you want to stop motion, highest you can manage is best
  • ladytxladytx Registered Users Posts: 814 Major grins
    edited May 15, 2008
    cmason wrote:
    I think the problem is more related to focus, your subject is not in focus, the background is. The motion seems fairly stopped, though hard to tell with the focus issue. What focal length lens? if its a 200mm, you may also have a touch of camera shake too.

    if you want to stop motion, highest you can manage is best


    My lens was a 50mm 1.7:

    50mm
    f/2.2
    shutter 200
    ISO 100
    Metering - pattern
    LadyTX
  • cmasoncmason Registered Users Posts: 2,506 Major grins
    edited May 15, 2008
    ladytx wrote:
    My lens was a 50mm 1.7:

    50mm
    f/2.2
    shutter 200
    ISO 100
    Metering - pattern

    Try it again, but make sure you focus on your subject
  • ziggy53ziggy53 Super Moderators Posts: 24,129 moderator
    edited May 15, 2008
    ladytx wrote:
    My lens was a 50mm 1.7:

    50mm
    f/2.2
    shutter 200
    ISO 100
    Metering - pattern

    I agree with CMason, it looks like your focus is off. With that lens at f2.2 focus will be shallow.

    Set the focus to center dot only and try again, making sure that the center dot is on your subject.
    ziggy53
    Moderator of the Cameras and Accessories forums
  • CuongCuong Registered Users Posts: 1,508 Major grins
    edited May 15, 2008
    Another thing you can do to help stop action is to time your shot when she's at the top of her jump, but the most important thing is to get the focus on your subject.

    Cuong
    "She Was a Little Taste of Heaven – And a One-Way Ticket to Hell!" - Max Phillips
  • OzoneOzone Registered Users Posts: 74 Big grins
    edited May 15, 2008
    A couple of other tricks to stop this action: Shoot at a different time of day (when more light is striking the area) and use a flash (the shot looks a little dark) set to hi speed synch along with a higher shutter speed (take the shutter speed above regular flash synch). Also, the exif shows a 100 iso setting, you might try a higher iso like 200 or 400 to get the shutter speed up. Also, if you get more light in the scene, you will be able to stop the aperture down a little which will help with focus. I think that it would take a minimum shutter speed of 1/500 to get a decent stop action shot in this scene, great stop action would probably come around 1/1000 or higher.
    Ozone
  • jcdilljcdill Registered Users Posts: 225 Major grins
    edited May 17, 2008
    ladytx wrote:
    My lens was a 50mm 1.7:

    50mm
    f/2.2
    shutter 200
    ISO 100
    Metering - pattern

    Your focus is on the trees, and at f2.2 there's not enough DoF to bring the girl into focus. You need more light (flash, sun, reflector card) or a higher ISO to get a higher shutter speed to freeze all action, and a lot more light (or a lot higher ISO) if you need to increase the f-stop to have enough DoF to have both the girl and background in focus.

    Personally, I feel that freezing all action is highly over-rated and the resulting photos can be sharp and crisp and... ordinary. Although I've taken a LOT of them as a sports photograher, and they sell quite well! (Note, I'm not saying my example photos at the links below are extraordinary, they are just examples!) Often blur conveys action in a way that a perfectly frozen image never shows. See:

    http://www.flickr.com/photos/jcdill/2500273922/in/set-72157605041530969/

    The motion blur helps emphasize how fast the man in the foreground is running, compared with the man who is walking in the right side of the photo. Also see:

    http://www.flickr.com/photos/jcdill/2484072334/in/set-72157605041530969/

    where you can get motion blur mainly on the background (and less on the subject) by panning with a somewhat slow shutter, again to emphasize the motion of the subject. So before you strive to freeze all motion, consider if this will create the best image for your purposes.
    JC Dill - Equine Photographer, San Francisco & San Jose http://portfolio.jcdill.com
    "Chance favors the prepared mind." ~ Ansel Adams
    "Light thinks it travels faster than anything but it is wrong. No matter how fast light travels, it finds the darkness has always got there first, and is waiting for it." ~ Terry Pratchett
  • gusgus Registered Users Posts: 16,209 Major grins
    edited May 17, 2008
    ladytx wrote:
    Shouldn't a shutter speed of 200 have stopped this action and not blur?

    No...you need a faster speed.
  • ladytxladytx Registered Users Posts: 814 Major grins
    edited May 18, 2008
    A BIG thank you to all that have taken the try to help. I have read all the instructions and checked out the links. I will be applying it all to my photos and keep trying.

    Thanks again.
    LadyTX
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