20 photos added -- Ack! I'm shooting a soccer game in one hour! Need help quick!

[stayathomedad]

I'm shooting a soccer game in one hour...

D300

70-200

TC-14E II

I've never shot a soccer game before and I've never used the TC-14E II before... What should I know and what settings should I use?

I'm assuming I'll want to have the shutter speed at least at 1/200th...

But what about the aperture settings and ISO? Which is more important to set?

I'm thinking if I keep it at ISO200, I'll need to have it wide open at f/2.8... But I can gain a bit more DOF if I jump up the ISO to 400 or 800...

Any other camera settings I should worry about?

And what about the AF settings... 9 point?

Thx

 

[stayathomedad]

One more thing... I'm assuming I'll need to turn of the VR... But more importantly, I will NOT be using a monopod... I do have a tripod, but it seems a bit bulky to use... no?

 

[Gary7770]

If your shooting a game in an hour, and your posting at 9:30 pm. Your pretty much screwed ...

Put your camera in Auto-Iso, Auto white balance, manual shutter of 1/250, manual aperature of 2.8 without the TC or 4.0 with. And pray for the best.

What time is sundown in Alaska?

Gary

I'm shooting a soccer game in one hour...

D300

70-200

TC-14E II

I've never shot a soccer game before and I've never used the TC-14E II before... What should I know and what settings should I use?

I'm assuming I'll want to have the shutter speed at least at 1/200th...

But what about the aperture settings and ISO? Which is more important to set?

I'm thinking if I keep it at ISO200, I'll need to have it wide open at f/2.8... But I can gain a bit more DOF if I jump up the ISO to 400 or 800...

Any other camera settings I should worry about?

And what about the AF settings... 9 point?

Thx

 

[stayathomedad]

I will be shooting at 7pm

Sunset tonight is at 11:20pm

 

[Gary7770]

I will be shooting at 7pm

Sunset tonight is at 11:20pm

My suggestions stand then ... If you wanted to start out at manual f5.0 and then move towards 2.8 as the light grew scarce, that wouldn't be a bad thing. But since your posting for help at such a short hour, I have to assume that your panicing and should probably error on the side of caution with a larger aperature and faster shutter...

Gary

 

[stayathomedad]

What auto iso settings should I use?

 

[chettrick]

Maybe too late but when I shoot soccer, it takes at least 1/1000 to freeze the ball, it makes a difference in the final shot. A player running might work at 150th but the ball frozen in mid air makes it look really good.

 

[kiz5]

Shooting 1/640th of a second is a minimum, unless you have no light at all. Then, feel free to drop down to 1/500th, capture the slower action, and bump your ISO as needed.

Feel free to even use manual ISO, and use it up to 1600.

 

[kiwi]

AF-C
21 Pt Dynamic
Standard Pic Control
ADL Off
NR Off
AutoISO or F/2.8 SS 1/800s +
ISO OK to 2000 or so, try to keep 1600 or so
Shoot horizontal
Forget the TC
Stay on the line of the goal mouth

Have fun
Post the results

In time ?

 

[stayathomedad]

yep

 

[stayathomedad]

Much harder then I was expecting...

Got there late (wife and kids came along), so I only had 20 minutes of game left...

Focusing was an issue... following the action was issue...

I wish I had the battery grip or a monopod... or both...

The colors looked washed out... and everything looked muted when I was zoomed in all the way... I was expecting more crispness as well...

I'll post a few in a while...

 

[stayathomedad]

Minor post... a bit of crop and such...

I'm going to try to get another game in on Wen...

I think my location was part of the problem... I'll try to move closer to each end of the field next time...

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[Voyager1968]

AF-C
21 Pt Dynamic
Standard Pic Control
ADL Off
NR Off
AutoISO or F/2.8 SS 1/800s +
ISO OK to 2000 or so, try to keep 1600 or so
Shoot horizontal
Forget the TC

Those settings are pretty much what I use. The only difference is that I try to stay at ISO 800 or lower. 400 if I can get away with it. Just makes for cleaner photos. For baseball, which is what I'm shooting now, I like to keep SS at 1000 or higher. I don't have a TC, but with the D300 being 12.3 mp, cropping isn't TOO MUCH of an issue. That being said, a 120-300mm lens would be nice, but for now the 70-200 has to do.

Most of my games have been starting at 6:00PM, so lighting is definitely an issue. That golden sunlight is perfect for landscape photographers, but isn't exactly the greatest for shooting sports. Way too many long, harsh shadows, and the low angle means shooting directly into the sun at times.

 

[kiwi]

I dont think youve done too bad first time out !

 

[Voyager1968]

I dont think youve done too bad first time out !

I agree, and I forgot to mention that to the original poster. Good job, stayathome! :smile:

 

[GeoffBolte]

Shots look good for a first time shooter.

 

[spalding12]

well done for the first time (or, third)
so......
was this a PAID GIG?
got there late?

i hope that the next time out allows you to get there very early and set up
standing at either end.... right next to the goal would be a very good vantage point


the "LIGHT" in alaska at THAT hour... is something that most of us have NEVER seen
very low in the sky... yielding very "FLAT" images
there isn't much that can be done to change that, unfortunately

again.... i think you are doing well

 

[Aqualung]

I agree, nicely done for a first time effort. Did you have time for any post-processing on these? I.e. did you sharpen them?

 

[stayathomedad]

It was not a paid gig... one of the players is a family member...

Just ran each one through ACR with minor adjustments (did not spend much time on each), and pretty much applied the same USM settings to all.... Somewhere around 120, 1-1.5, 3-4... about 30 seconds on each...

 

[stayathomedad]

It stays light long time... ha...

Third image was taken at 7:22... f/4 1/800 iso220

Last image was at 7:40... f/4 1/1000 iso800