D-200, $200 down and the wait!!!

[Brew]

:redface:

You people are a very bad influence on me:Angry: :tongue:
Especially with my situation here at work, but your kids are only young once right!!!

Can't wait until it comes in and hey I'm only 11th on the list at a local store...

I'm hoping with this camera I can get more keepers at my son's Basketball game. My kid is so fast that if he's coming at me only the first picture is in focus and the rest are blurred in continuous shoot mode with my D70. :Sad:

I like most everything else about my D70 but the focusing is a little slow.

 

[SilverEagle]

The D200 should help. Of course the lens is a factor also. Some lenses focus faster that others. The D200 is a great camera. We are all a bad influence on each other, but it sure is fun! Enjoy.

 

[mf44]

Bruce,

For the most part, the D200 isn't going to fix the problem you are experiencing with focus. The problem lies with the fact that the subject is moving and focus can not track because you are shooting. When you take a photo, the mirror flips and the shutter opens and shuts. During this time the auto focus cannot continue to track the object in view. As such it needs to re-lock focus before the next photo will be in focus. The best way to get the shot is to avoid machine gunning on continuous and fire only when the photo you want is in the viewfinder.

This is not to say the focus won't improve. Acquiring and tracking objects will be faster, especially if you have fast glass with AF-S. But, to me, it sounds like your main problem lies in the fact that the technique you are employing is the best for your shooting environment.

Edit: Let me add a few things to clarify. Peformance will improve over the D70 because of the faster focus and the faster mirror response. But, regardless of this, you shouldn't expect to fire bursts off at continuous and get all the photos in focus. Even using my D2x at a football game in broad daylight (which makes AF much easier) I cannot fire off long bursts when the players are coming towards me and get many in focus shots. The first will be sharp, but the rest are usually trash. Practice shooting in single shot and you'll get much better. I learned to shoot sports on a slow camera so I was brought up on that method. Then when you add in the quicker frame rates you can get to the point where you can fire a short burst (maybe 3 or 4 at 8 fps for me) and get a few keepers, depending on where the action is moving and how close it is to you. Regardless, I feel 3 fps of the D70 is much too slow for continuous use at a sporting event. A lot happens in between that 1/3 of a second. I don't even like 5. Heck, many times 8 fps still has me missing the key shot. Try not to rely on continuous and you'll get better. It worked for me at least.

 

[Brew]

Mike, I think you hit the nail on the head and I will give single shots a try next home game. I'm using the Nikor 85-f1.4 so I think my glass is good. I also hope the D200 higher ISO settings will be better than my D70. I usally shoot in the gym at f1.4 and 500iso to get the shutter up to about 4 or 500 if I'm lucky.

I just hope I get it befor basketball season ends but then there is always baseball right around the corner where there is usually much light to be had.:biggrin:

 

[charlieworton]

Hi, Bruce!

If you're shooting an 85 mm f1.4 near wide open, you're going to have a vanishingly thin depth of field issue. This is exacerbated by the fact that the 85 mm lens turns into an effective 130 mm telephoto on the D200, further diminishing the depth of field.

When I did sports photography - 35 years ago - I used a powerful Metz flash and got spectacular results due to the combination of a small aperture and a 1/1000 second exposure from the flash.

If a powerful flash is not an option, you might consider choosing a good spot, plunking the D200 down onto a tripod and pre-focusing on a known target (like the net in a basketball game). Leave your auto focus turned off, and just shoot away. All your shots will have the same focus point, and if you've chosen it correctly all your shots will be sharp.

I'd also consider doing anything possible to increase that depth of field. Perhaps try a few experiments with higher ASA ratings and slower shutter speeds, and see if you can find a combination that works for you.

Hope that gives you a few more options! Best wishes, Charlie