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Jigotai

By Jigotai
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Jigotai Member

Jigotai

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As well as fishing I am quite passionate about my judo. I have been doing this for years and looking back I have never been able to take any decent pictures of it. One of the main problems is Judo is an indoor sport and lighting is not the best for taking action shots. I had a go tonight with my new camera and the pictures were better than my old point and shoot but I still think they could be a lot better. Below is a picture of my daughter performing a forward roll, can any one give me any pointers on how I could improve on this.

IMG_0317.jpg

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Cameraman Member

Cameraman

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Fast shutter speed and a slave flash should do the trick, a small slave could be placed on the floor off the matted area. Also make sure your white balance is set for the correct lighting.

IMG_0042.jpg

If all else fails, follow the intructions.
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MrWiggly Member

MrWiggly

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Hi Jigotai .. :D

 

I did Judo when I was a lot younger ... managed to get to 1st Dan ...

 

The problem with high action indoor shots is shutter/flash speeds.

 

I'm not sure about your camera, but most cameras set an automatic S/S of 1/60 when the in-built flash is used. Some Canons do go as high as 1/125 ... but it is still not fast enough to "freeze" fast action. Take a flash shot with your camera, and then check what S/S the camera has set.

 

Altho a slave flash may improve the shot somewhat you still have the problem of the 1/60 shutter, and getting blurring as a result.

 

I'm afraid the only real answer is to get hold of a "dedicated" external flash gun that fits into the hot shoe on top of your camera. Have a look in your camera manual towards the back and you should see a layout of all the kit that is dedicated to your camera. Among that lot should be suitable flash guns made by Canon. (Speedlites -EX 420/EX430/EX500 ?) Rather expensive I'm afraid .. But if you keep an eye on EBay you should be able to pick up a decent used one.

 

Once the DeD Flash is fitted it overrides the auto settings on the camera, and using Shutter-Prority (TV) settings you should be able to take flash shots as high as 1/1000 sec or even above, which is usually fast enough to "freeze" most action shots. The DeD flash also gives out a much higher output than the inbuilt one, it also should have a "Swivel" head enableing you to "bounce" flash of ceilings/walls and cut down on flash shadows.

 

Hope this helps .... :lol:

 

Wiggly. :rolleyes:

Edited by MrWiggly

The Older I get .. The better I was.

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Jigotai Member

Jigotai

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Thanks for your help, I was wondering if a better flash would improve things. A friend has an EX420 flash that I can borrow, so I'll give that a go and see if it helps.

 

Andy.

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MrWiggly Member

MrWiggly

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No problem Andy .. glad to help !

 

By the way .. the link at the bottom of your postings don't work !!

 

Wiggly. :rolleyes:

The Older I get .. The better I was.

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Jigotai Member

Jigotai

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No problem Andy .. glad to help !

 

By the way .. the link at the bottom of your postings don't work !!

 

Wiggly. :rolleyes:

 

That's a shame, the site no longer appears to be running, I'll take it off. Type dog judo in youtube and you'll see what it was about.

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RobStubbs Member

RobStubbs

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I'm no expert on this but agree the separate (dedicated) flash is a necessity. Not sure about the flash setting the camera to faster shutter speeds is the solution, it's more the flash being much more powerful that it gives sufficient light in a very brief burst to freeze the action and to kind of overrule the camera itself. The flash may well for example give the strong burst in 1/1000 or 1/2000th of a second. That was what I was told with my old film cameras and it certainly seemed to do the trick. Whatever the reason, the problem is solved.

 

Rob.

My photo collection
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MrWiggly Member

MrWiggly

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An interesting point Rob. :D

 

This was the standard thinking back in my "old days" of photography, and the same may still apply today.

 

But with the onset of super-sensative digital processors today, I'm not so sure .. <_<

 

Whatever the theory .. the outcome is the same !! :lol::lol:

 

Wiggly. :rolleyes:

The Older I get .. The better I was.

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Jigotai Member

Jigotai

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Well I tried the ex 420 flash tonight and using 1/200 shutter speed I managed to freeze the action. Still a bit of work to do getting the right settings but I'm pleased with the outcome. Will definitely be buying a dedicated flash soon.

IMG_0455_edited.jpg

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MrWiggly Member

MrWiggly

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Getting there Jigotai ...

 

A bit more exposure I think, and have a look at your White Balance settings to get rid of that yellow cast.

 

Try using the swivel head to bounce the flash off the ceiling to get rid of shadows ...

 

Wiggly :rolleyes:

 

judo.jpg

The Older I get .. The better I was.

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