Camera help - little OT

[LilGMom]

I know that there are some great photographers here so I am hoping that someone can help me or at least point me in the right direction.

I have a Canon PowerShot SX 110 IS that I think I could really love. If I am completely still and taking a picture of something stationary the picture turns out really good. Occaisionally I can take a picture of something moving and it looks pretty good. I do have a few 'action' shots (the ending explosion at LMA or the what from the torpedo at Backlot Tour) that look ok but I am hitting my head on how to get consistently good action shots. I have tried the "Kids/Pets" setting (aka Sports) but have messed with the speed, etc. so now I'm getting streaking and ghostly looking people. Right now I'm trying to get some decent shots of my DS7's basketball games and they are awful. But we have a trip coming up and I'd like to take some good shots of the parades, FOTLK, on Safari, Streetmosphere Performers, etc. so I want to know how to use this camera prior to the trip.

Does anyone know of any good websites that can give a photography newbie some good hints in language a complete novice can understand?

TIA!!

 

[cyberbox2]

Hey LilGMom,

Don't get discouraged, this has happened to everyone of use at one time or another. You just need a little coaching on how to use this powerful and sometimes confusing tool.

I like to go to www.dpreview.com myself, they have a great forum and the people are really helpful.

Just remember that the more light you have, the better the 'action' shots will be. And also remember that your on camera flash can only illuminate a area of about 6 feet in front of you, so don't expect that just because the flash is on that you will get a correctly metered and exposed shot of a parade that is 20 feet away.

You can do it!

 

[Launchpad11B]

I know that there are some great photographers here so I am hoping that someone can help me or at least point me in the right direction.

I have a Canon PowerShot SX 110 IS that I think I could really love. If I am completely still and taking a picture of something stationary the picture turns out really good. Occaisionally I can take a picture of something moving and it looks pretty good. I do have a few 'action' shots (the ending explosion at LMA or the what from the torpedo at Backlot Tour) that look ok but I am hitting my head on how to get consistently good action shots. I have tried the "Kids/Pets" setting (aka Sports) but have messed with the speed, etc. so now I'm getting streaking and ghostly looking people. Right now I'm trying to get some decent shots of my DS7's basketball games and they are awful. But we have a trip coming up and I'd like to take some good shots of the parades, FOTLK, on Safari, Streetmosphere Performers, etc. so I want to know how to use this camera prior to the trip.

Does anyone know of any good websites that can give a photography newbie some good hints in language a complete novice can understand?

TIA!!

Try the photography board right here on the Dis. Those people live and breathe photography!

 

[LilGMom]

Hey LilGMom,

Don't get discouraged, this has happened to everyone of use at one time or another. You just need a little coaching on how to use this powerful and sometimes confusing tool.

I like to go to www.dpreview.com myself, they have a great forum and the people are really helpful.

Thanks so much! I'll definately be bookmarking that site.

Try the photography board right here on the Dis. Those people live and breathe photography!

Doh! I didn't even think about that, I don't venture out too often.

 

[kevrab]

I've been a newspaper photographer/photo editor for 25 years now and have shot alot of sports. The general rule of thumb when shooting sports is to not go under 1/250 of a second. I don't know if your camera has a manual setting but if it does push your ISO from 1200-1600 for inside use. Anything under 1/250 and your photos will be blurry. Obviously when shooting outdoor daytime sports events during day light you'll get better images. The challenges (for everyone) is getting trying to get good photos in badly lit conditions. Good luck--hope this helps abit.

 

[LilGMom]

I've been a newspaper photographer/photo editor for 25 years now and have shot alot of sports. The general rule of thumb when shooting sports is to not go under 1/250 of a second. I don't know if your camera has a manual setting but if it does push your ISO from 1200-1600 for inside use. Anything under 1/250 and your photos will be blurry. Obviously when shooting outdoor daytime sports events during day light you'll get better images. The challenges (for everyone) is getting trying to get good photos in badly lit conditions. Good luck--hope this helps abit.

It does help, thanks. The camera has a lot of standard settings ('Kids/Pets', 'Portrait', 'Landscape', etc.) but it also has a manual setting where I can play with the numbers.

 

[firsttimemom]

I second the recommendation of visiting the photography board. At the top look for the sticky "equipment recommendations/photo techniques. There are hundreds of tips on how to take good pics on the safari ride or of the parades, etc. I printed them all out one year and read them on the plane each time we fly down.

As to your basketball issue, lighting is going to be your biggest problem (I'm assuming this is indoors). Increase your ISO to 1600 for indoor/nonflash shots.

I followed this "12 week to better photos" course a year or so ago and it finally got me to start shooting in manual mode and pretty much understand what I was doing. All 12 weeks are archived here so you can pick and choose what you want to focus on before your trip.

http://www.twopeasinabucket.com/cg_list.asp?archive=true&t=55&year=2008&x=16&y=4

Hope this helps!

 

[noladave]

I did a quick google on this camera at DPREVIEW.COM (one of the best free sites on the internet), and here is the link:

http://www.dpreview.com/news/0808/08082603canonsx100is.asp

Some good news - you have image stabilization on the camera, and it has ISO 1600. Without going into all of the details of your specific camera (each has its own unique way of doing things), you should try several things -

1. use a ISO 1600, and use Aperature priority. This will get you the fastest shutter speed for your given film speed (ISO 1600), along with your F-stop of the lens. Your lens is pretty fast, 2.8-4.3, so with some practice you should get some night time shots.

2. use the "night scene" setting for parades and things. Not sure what it is exactly, but it sounds like they've done some settings to help with night pictures. I noticed they even have a fireworks scene for this camera.

3. for your kids basketball, you can try indoor, and play with a white balance of flourescent (and) flourescent H.

Also, for your kids, go to someone else's game before hand, and try all of the different setups. That way, you don't have the pressure of trying to get a good picture, and making sure your son is in it at the same time!

If you look at the manual, they will probably give you examples of what settings to use for a given situation.

The best advice I can give is EXPERIMENT! You never know what you are going to end up with until you try something. With Digital, you don't have to worry about wasting film - just shoot, and if you don't like it, delete it.

I shoot for Tulane University, and shoot in an old basketball arena built in the 1940's, so it can be done.

see here: http://tulanegreenwave.cstv.com/view.gal?id=40901

Good Luck!