Help with shooting outdoor sports, thanks

[digikamkilla]

OK so I finally took the plundge and purchased a canon rebel xs. I love it so far but have only been shooting in the auto modes. Tonight my daughter has cheerleading practice and I really wanna WOW my wife. I basically wanna show her that the money we dropped on this camera was worh it.

Now I'm only working with the 18-55 kit lense so keep that in mind. But what I need help with is what settings should I set the camera on? What mode? and anything else I need to know to achieve the best results. It'll be in direct sunlight, well not much sun today but it'll be bright out. Until I get to fiddle w/the camera a little more, I would love it if you could help me out and get me through tonight!

Thanks in advance

[dmcantrell]

To stop action for sports, you will need fast shutter speeds. I'm guessing 1/400 and faster. You may have to use "manual" or "shutter priority" to achieve this.

When you set the camera to make these fast shutter speeds, you will probably find it difficult to get a nice, bright exposure. You may have to raise your ISO settings to alleviate this.

Lastly, you will need to practice focusing. If your camera has a "continuous" focus mode, then try to use that.

There's lots more, but these three tips should get you pointed in the right direction.

[digikamkilla]

great thank you very much. I think i'll go with shutter priority. the less I have to adjust the better. Im still new and havent learned the camera yet. Im hoping to learn a little in these next couple of hours so I can preset the camera before I get there.

not sure about continuous focus but it does have the auto focus on the lense. Should I leave that on or manually focus?

[dmcantrell]

Originally Posted by digikamkilla

not sure about continuous focus but it does have the auto focus on the lense. Should I leave that on or manually focus?

I believe this is a copy of your owner's manual : http://pdisp01.c-wss.com/gdl/WWUFORe...000d-im-en.pdf

See page 60 of the manual, "Changing the AF mode".
* One-Shot means the camera focuses once and stops. Suitable for still subjects.

* AI Servo means the camera will auto-focus continuously. As you move the camera around to track a moving subject, the camera will try to keep the subject in-focus automatically (while the shutter button is half-pressed).

[digikamkilla]

I was actually reading the manual as I refreshed this page. Thanks for your help. So currently I set the camera on Tv mode, set the shutter speed at 1/400, iso 200 and set the focus on AI Servo. I'll play w/the iso at practice. I took a couple of shots here at work but 200 is still dark. I bumped it up to 400 and the exposure came out ok but the noise was a little too much for me. Im thinking its because im indoors.

[dmcantrell]

Originally Posted by digikamkilla

I was actually reading the manual as I refreshed this page. Thanks for your help. So currently I set the camera on Tv mode, set the shutter speed at 1/400, iso 200 and set the focus on AI Servo. I'll play w/the iso at practice. I took a couple of shots here at work but 200 is still dark. I bumped it up to 400 and the exposure came out ok but the noise was a little too much for me. Im thinking its because im indoors.

Yes, these are the issues you will be battling with your setup.

For sports, you have to have a fast shutter speed to stop action. Your 18-55/3.5-5.6 lens will limit the amount of light that gets to the camera sensor, which means you have to raise the ISO. The high-ISO quality increases as you walk up the camera body offerings from Canon.

I feel that grainy, in-focus shots are always better than low-noise blurry ones.

This is why sports shooters spend so much money on f/2.8 lenses and top-end camera bodies with top-notch ISO performance.

In bright sun, you should be fine with what you have. The 55mm focal length on the long end of your lens might leave you longing for more though... Wait till your wife hears that your plans for that new 70-200 f/4 lens!

[humminboid]

Hey:
GOOD equipment! Sports mode is a good alternative, and set your ISO to 400, if necessary, although in daylight, hardly. Read your manual beforehand, (again) and take it with you, with the required pages turned down. Learn two or three programs/features that you think you may use in your shoot. Next time, learn and try a couple more useful ones.

Is Tv "time value"? or "shutter priority" as known by that "other brand"?

Since this will be a "learning experience", try a little bit of everything, and keep notes , so you can tell what it is that pleases you the most, and can repeat it.

No sense in paying all that money for those marvelous features that brought photography out of the dark ages, and not use them, particularly starting out.

Start with Sports Mode, then try P, or program, then try shutter priority...anything from 1/125 to 1/500 will be sufficient to your needs. I bet 1/200-1/250 sec. will eventually become your go-to speeds for cheerleaders and similar subjects...it's what you like.

Then... aperture priority...Set your lens anywhere in the neighborhood of f/5.6-8-or 11, (a very nice neighborhood, by the way.) and let the shutter speeds fly. Wait for it...every motion has a "stop": where the jump is at its height, and the body pauses...just for a little..before it starts back down, or the hesitation at the end of a twirl. You won't get it right the first dozen or three times, but keep at it, and you will.

Most of all, HAVE Fun! Photography is a magical pastime, and should be enjoyed as such. Good luck, and shoot lots! Pixels are cheap!

[TxLerman]

while everyone has given you great suggestions on how to set-up your camera, there is also something else you can do. You started the thread saying you wanted to WOW yoru wife. I would like to add the suggestion that you search here, Flickr and other photo sites for pictures of cheerleaders and get a feel for what types of pictures WOW and what pictures do not look so hot. Having an idea on what compositions look good will also help you WOW your wife.