I own a 7D and am particularly keen on sports photography. I put in many hours of practice whenever I can. Although I have picked up on framing and getting 'in action' shots, my focus is always off. It always lacks that sharpness, particularly in the features which are 'soft'. I thought that there may be something with camera settings, so I tried a friend's camera to see how I did, and the same happened (it doesn't happen to him).
I can't figure out what I may be doing, neither can others I have asked. Does anyone have any idea what I could be doing, or what I should be checking myself on. I have attached some examples. Would really welcome any tips!
back date it to a clear date; put on project. go into the ...bit where the fav and comment buttons are and copy the number in the box (you can tell I am a technophobe and don't know the proper lingo!) Come back to here and paste the code that you ahve copied and your picture will come up. I hope that makes sense. It works as I have done it for some of the discussions.
@nanderson Thanks Nancy. Yes, I-ve checked it, but I don't think it should effect as I use Auto Focus. But maybe worth checking again anyway. Though I am pretty convinced it is a user error
Looks fairly sharp to me at the focal points. In the first photo the focal plane appears to run through the player in green? In the second photo the man wearing white shorts. At your f-stop of f/3.5 and focal length the depth of field looks fine. Are you desiring that the whole photo be sharp?
@rellimdj Thanks for your reply. No, but what bothers me is the features. Thing is I know I have a problem somewhere as I have swapped cameras with other photographers....kept same everything...mine always have this issue, theirs are fine :-(
I presume you are panning with the action? Have you properly set "tracking focus?" I don't know the precise Canon terms, but Nikon terms are AF-C (continuous servo AF mode) and Dynamic Area or the even smarter alternative 3D Tracking (AF-Area Mode). These do great predictive focus adjustment magic, but need to be understood, initiated and used correctly. And we all thought "auto focus" was so easy... :)
Next, are you shooting in continuous release mode? This often means that later shots in the release series can be "sharper" than the first one since the mirror is already raised and introduces no additional camera motion.
When panning, cultivate proper technique for holding the camera. Left arm (at least the left) locked tight to your body as it fully supports the lens if hand holding, and swivel your torso rather than move your hands independently. You did talk about monopod use, but I can not add too much to proper technique for that.
With your Canon IS lenses, you may have to adjust the IS mode or even turn it off. Nikon lenses have built in panning detection so it's not necessary to adjust them, but I don't know about Canon. Alexis Birkill @abirkill would be able to advise you on that.
I can't imagine that your lens/camera combination would need AF calibration, you did say you tried another camera, but that is also worth looking into if you are curious and really "want to know."
Lastly, sharpen up your shots in post processing. Both the ones you present sharpen very nicely, even from the Internet resolution jpegs.
Believe me, tracking fast sports action is not trivial. AF and IS technology can do wonders, but they do have to be handled properly or they can make matters worse than no employing them at all. And don't forget post processing.
Are you pushing down the button partially to focus first? Or just snapping the shot? That's hard to do when the action is moving. But, that may be part of the issue. Or it may be what you are focusing on. That's the one thing I don't like at auto focus, sometimes it doesn't focus on what I want it to focus on.
Hi Angie, Got to ask how old the 7D is. I had one of the first ones and never did get it to focus well. Thought it was me, eyesight etc then I met Paul @steampowered who was on 365 and he had the same problem. Not sure this helps but mine was that bad I had to get rid of it.
@padlock Thanks for your reply. It's not old, I got it last year. I heard there have been problems, however, I have used other cameras (which work perfectly in other hands) with the same results.
@homeschoolmom Thank you...Yeah, I kind of know when it has 'focused' or not. Because yes, there are times I am not quick enough to push half way and then I expect out of focus. But usually I 'feel' it focus.
@frankhymus Thank you so much for your long answer!! I don't pan in football, I don't think that's really possible - I do it in things like boats and races, but I think in football the action changes too fast and the interesting ones are on the spot rather than moving...I could be wrong, though. Yes, I do use continuous release and Servo. I have not thought about the IS or calibration. I will have to look into that, even I am the fault, it might be helpful anyway.
Yeah, the processing helps, but I usually come home from a match with around 100 shots and some 4000 if it is a tournament, so cant really rely on post processing .:-) (though this does work to save a few favourites)
I have a 7D too. My initial thought was that the wide aperture you are using, and the shallow depth of field that this results in might be the problem. But Lisa's response reminded me that I am trying to get out of the habit of holding the focus for a short time with the shutter half pressed before finally releasing the trigger. I find that if I don't do this but instead release the shutter as soon as I can, particularly when the subject is moving, I get much sharper images.
The aperture seems too wide for what you want I think? I would up the ISO some tighten the aperture and increase the shutter speed. Needs to be a good clear day though! Soccer/football takes a bunch of shots. AI servo drains the battery for me and doesn't work as well with really quick moving subjects, but I don't think my camera is as good as yours. Your aperture seems wide to me, though, so you have what you are looking at in focus and the rest will be luck in my opinion. I am noooo expert though!
I would agree with Daryl O'Hare. Increase your ISO, close down your aperture (ie make the number bigger) and see how that goes. You shutter speed is quite fast, so that is good, but I think that changing your aperture and increasing your ISO will help. May need to slow down your shutter speed to compensate though
Oh, I had one other thought. Your focus might be on one central area and you may want to adjust that to include more (it's the bunch of dots that say where your focus should be--if you highlight all, it might bring in more), but overall, to me, the aperture is the biggest issue (and ISO)
@jantan Thanks so much Jan. This really makes sense to me. I really had problems getting any focus at all when I started and so I know that I do have a habit of holding the shutter. This will be the first thing I will work on at the next tournament. Really thanks for your help!
@stuckinoz@darylo Thank you so much for your feedback. The aperture is very wide, that's very true and this was one of my first thoughts. However, this is the norm in high speed action shots (I have done quite a bit of reading...LOL). I have tried with a narrower aperture which is fine when wanting to capture the 'game' but not good for capturing individuals as they do not stand out enough. Also, all the guys who work with we shoot at f2.8, or 3.2 maximum and so not have my problem!
I have not tried increasing the iso, and this does make sense. I will definitely give that a try.
I will have a go at the multi focus too. Though generally this is not recommended for high speed as it's a bit too much for the camera to 'think' about and will get too much of the scene in focus. Most of the time, what you want, is to isolate the person you are focusing on. But no harm in trying to check out what happens. Roll on next tournament so I can give all these ideas a go :-)
@angiec I had one more thought. Sorry. I try to capture soccer a whole bunch too, and I get more awful shots than good ones. :) One thing about the shot with the man's leg coming toward you. The camera may not be on the faces as much as you think only because you are moving too--just part of it. so the leg extended toward the camera might be one reason. If you are loading into a processing program, you can do some presets for sharpness as well so you don't have to individually try to process some. I would do some practice shots of just a few and see if that makes a difference. Like you, I don't have time to do that much editing when I'll take hundreds at a single match. I haven't tried it, but it just occurred to me. OR you could process one and then synch the processing to the other photos automatically. I did that recently with an event I covered and had to change a bunch of things about the lighting, so I synched the settings with the other similar shots after I changed the first one. Soccer is hard. Plain and simple. Let me know what works as I'm going through the same issues, but not with as much diligence!
@darylo Thanks so much again for all your time and help. This sounds good. It really makes sense to give it a try, sounds like it could save me a few hours :-) Isn't it just so difficult to get the focus right where you want it, but I really do get a buzz from it:-) I usually aim for the mid riff and only expect the one player in focus, if I want more then I narrow the aperture. I have taken my camera for repairs as I have had some other problems with it. I will try all these out at the first chance I get
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@callymazoo Thank you so much! Managed :-)
Next, are you shooting in continuous release mode? This often means that later shots in the release series can be "sharper" than the first one since the mirror is already raised and introduces no additional camera motion.
When panning, cultivate proper technique for holding the camera. Left arm (at least the left) locked tight to your body as it fully supports the lens if hand holding, and swivel your torso rather than move your hands independently. You did talk about monopod use, but I can not add too much to proper technique for that.
With your Canon IS lenses, you may have to adjust the IS mode or even turn it off. Nikon lenses have built in panning detection so it's not necessary to adjust them, but I don't know about Canon. Alexis Birkill @abirkill would be able to advise you on that.
I can't imagine that your lens/camera combination would need AF calibration, you did say you tried another camera, but that is also worth looking into if you are curious and really "want to know."
Lastly, sharpen up your shots in post processing. Both the ones you present sharpen very nicely, even from the Internet resolution jpegs.
Believe me, tracking fast sports action is not trivial. AF and IS technology can do wonders, but they do have to be handled properly or they can make matters worse than no employing them at all. And don't forget post processing.
Good Luck!
Yeah, the processing helps, but I usually come home from a match with around 100 shots and some 4000 if it is a tournament, so cant really rely on post processing .:-) (though this does work to save a few favourites)
Once again, thanks so much!
I have not tried increasing the iso, and this does make sense. I will definitely give that a try.
I will have a go at the multi focus too. Though generally this is not recommended for high speed as it's a bit too much for the camera to 'think' about and will get too much of the scene in focus. Most of the time, what you want, is to isolate the person you are focusing on. But no harm in trying to check out what happens. Roll on next tournament so I can give all these ideas a go :-)
Thanks again!