Flash or not?

Silver Simon

Silver Simon

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I'm going to a local footy match tonight, Wimborne v Bridgewater.

I'm guessing I shouldn't use a flash, I'll be about 2 - 2.5 metres away from the touchline.

There won't be floodlights for the first half but possibly for the second, depending on cloud cover. Is it okay to use the flash with floodlights on?

What is the written or unwritten 'rule'?

Thanks.
 
Just think I've seen the answer after a few searches ..... Don't use a flash.
 
You'd be too far away from the action most of the time for a flash to be of any use anyway.
 
I didn't use the flash and for the first 30/35 minutes it was okay. The clouds came over and even though they switched the floodlights so at half time I went home.

I'll post a couple later from the start and from the end of the half for other newbies like me to see the difference.

I must say it really was an interesting 45 minutes for me to see how much difference there was with the clouds coming over and how much I had to crank up the ISO. I had my 70-200 on f2.8 with shutter speed anything from 640 up to 1250.
 
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Photograph my sons under 14's team and when it gets to the darker months my D50 struggles even more lol usually no floodlights unless on 3G pitches
 
with a 7D and f2.8 glass I thought that you'd be okay,
1600ISO and then max jpeg with some noise ninja and then resizing to 8MP images later, should have covered a multitude of sins
do you have any sample images?
 
DizMatt said:
with a 7D and f2.8 glass I thought that you'd be okay,
1600ISO and then max jpeg with some noise ninja and then resizing to 8MP images later, should have covered a multitude of sins
do you have any sample images?
Click to expand...

I've got some jpegs straight out of the camera I can put up lunchtime, I'll just resize them.
 
So here there are, not touched at all, straight from the camera apart from resizing. The first must have been at about 19.50 and the second 20.25.

1 f2.8, 1/1000, ISO 2000, 70 - 200 @ 120mm

wim.png


2 f2.8, 1/800, ISO6400, 70 - 200 @ 70mm

wim1.png


As much help as you can give please. :)

Thanks.
 
Use the zoomy bit on your lens and get in a lot closer, no one is interested in the grass or all the other bits arround the players, I suspect that is also why ther is so much in focus aswell so the players don't really stand out against the background.
 
^^^ this and get right in there, the zoomy bit!!!
capture the action close up so it's not just about the game but more about the people
max resolution so you can crop down to the money shot,

f2.8, 1/800, ISO6400, 70 - 200 @ 70mm
f2.8 is fine, but in high action and zoomed it you might lose some sharpness and maybe even other players in the minimal DOF, depends on the range to your subject I think too.

but that's a high ISO and fast shutter. if you can shoot plane props at 1/300 and freeze them then 1/800 is pretty fast!
I would use a monopod and aim for 1/320 or even 1/200 if you can stabilise your shots and reduce wobble
then in Tv mode set the ISO to something manageable, ISO1600 maybe? so that the aperture isn't wide open, 3.2 or more?
get in close and keep shooting.
1/800s in my limited opinion isn't needed unless you're capturing the exact impact of a kick
alternately, Av mode, at f3.2 and then set the ISO so that the shutter doesn't drop below 1/125s maybe?

question...If you go manual, Av 3,2 and shutter 1/200 but set the ISO to auto, will this level out the ISO to the lowest possible to maintain the shot? I thought manual didn't do this, and the ISO was fixed, but I was corrected/contradicted recently and haven't tested it out since.
 
DizMatt said:
^^^ this and get right in there, the zoomy bit!!!
capture the action close up so it's not just about the game but more about the people
max resolution so you can crop down to the money shot,

f2.8, 1/800, ISO6400, 70 - 200 @ 70mm
f2.8 is fine, but in high action and zoomed it you might lose some sharpness and maybe even other players in the minimal DOF, depends on the range to your subject I think too.

but that's a high ISO and fast shutter. if you can shoot plane props at 1/300 and freeze them then 1/800 is pretty fast!
I would use a monopod and aim for 1/320 or even 1/200 if you can stabilise your shots and reduce wobble
then in Tv mode set the ISO to something manageable, ISO1600 maybe? so that the aperture isn't wide open, 3.2 or more?
get in close and keep shooting.
1/800s in my limited opinion isn't needed unless you're capturing the exact impact of a kick
alternately, Av mode, at f3.2 and then set the ISO so that the shutter doesn't drop below 1/125s maybe?

question...If you go manual, Av 3,2 and shutter 1/200 but set the ISO to auto, will this level out the ISO to the lowest possible to maintain the shot? I thought manual didn't do this, and the ISO was fixed, but I was corrected/contradicted recently and haven't tested it out since.
Click to expand...

Sorry, but no. Just no.

1/300th will be nowhere near fast enough to freeze action, unless it's head on- and even then it's iffy.

1/640-800 is pretty much the minimum to aim for, circumstances, light and artistic interpretation aside (ie panning or motion blur).
 
Even at 1/800th you can see blur in the goal keepers hand when he punched the ball. you can get away with slightly slower shutter speeds at lower levels 1/500 maybe for 6 and 7 year olds as they don't move so fast but your pushing it there.
 
Wow Matt, id really love to see some of your football stuff, you even say to be going as low as 1/125th which made me waz my keks.

For some serious low light stuff look here http://gcsports.zenfolio.com/p412575485 i started off at ISO 8000 and ended up at ISO 25,600, shot manual with auto ISO and an amerture of f/2.8 and a shutter of 1/500th

i personally would never shoot under 1/800th unless it meant upping the ISO above 6,400

You have in all seriousness given some terrible advice and advice the OP should totally ignore

DizMatt said:
^^^ this and get right in there, the zoomy bit!!!
capture the action close up so it's not just about the game but more about the people
max resolution so you can crop down to the money shot,

f2.8, 1/800, ISO6400, 70 - 200 @ 70mm
f2.8 is fine, but in high action and zoomed it you might lose some sharpness and maybe even other players in the minimal DOF, depends on the range to your subject I think too.

but that's a high ISO and fast shutter. if you can shoot plane props at 1/300 and freeze them then 1/800 is pretty fast!
I would use a monopod and aim for 1/320 or even 1/200 if you can stabilise your shots and reduce wobble
then in Tv mode set the ISO to something manageable, ISO1600 maybe? so that the aperture isn't wide open, 3.2 or more?
get in close and keep shooting.
1/800s in my limited opinion isn't needed unless you're capturing the exact impact of a kick
alternately, Av mode, at f3.2 and then set the ISO so that the shutter doesn't drop below 1/125s maybe?

question...If you go manual, Av 3,2 and shutter 1/200 but set the ISO to auto, will this level out the ISO to the lowest possible to maintain the shot? I thought manual didn't do this, and the ISO was fixed, but I was corrected/contradicted recently and haven't tested it out since.
Click to expand...
 
Gary Coyle said:
Wow Matt, id really love to see some of your football stuff, you even say to be going as low as 1/125th which made me waz my keks.

For some serious low light stuff look here http://gcsports.zenfolio.com/p412575485 i started off at ISO 8000 and ended up at ISO 25,600, shot manual with auto ISO and an amerture of f/2.8 and a shutter of 1/500th

i personally would never shoot under 1/800th unless it meant upping the ISO above 6,400

You have in all seriousness given some terrible advice and advice the OP should totally ignore
Click to expand...

DemiLion said:
Sorry, but no. Just no.

1/300th will be nowhere near fast enough to freeze action, unless it's head on- and even then it's iffy.

1/640-800 is pretty much the minimum to aim for, circumstances, light and artistic interpretation aside (ie panning or motion blur).
Click to expand...

Little John said:
Even at 1/800th you can see blur in the goal keepers hand when he punched the ball. you can get away with slightly slower shutter speeds at lower levels 1/500 maybe for 6 and 7 year olds as they don't move so fast but your pushing it there.
Click to expand...

:plusone:
 
Wow thanks guys for the help. Getting a tad confued at the mo. :D

Anyway here's another taken about 20.20. 1/800 at f2.8 ISO 6400, 70 - 200 @70mm.

keep.jpg
 
Just ignore DizMatts advice

you do need to use your zoom though and try to fill the frame as much as possible, the shot above at 70mm could probablt have neen captured at 150-180mm and filled the frame therefore reducing the apparent effect of noise in the image, or to put it another way, the more you have to crop an image the more noise will stand out
 
Gary Coyle said:
Wow Matt, id really love to see some of your football stuff, you even say to be going as low as 1/125th which made me waz my keks.

For some serious low light stuff look here http://gcsports.zenfolio.com/p412575485 i started off at ISO 8000 and ended up at ISO 25,600, shot manual with auto ISO and an amerture of f/2.8 and a shutter of 1/500th

i personally would never shoot under 1/800th unless it meant upping the ISO above 6,400

You have in all seriousness given some terrible advice and advice the OP should totally ignore
Click to expand...

Brilliant Gary, i have tears coming down my cheeks. You have a great way with words. :clap:
 
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