Best settings for low-light outdoor hockey with a Nikon D90 and 50mm f/1.4 or 70-200mm f/2.8
Asked 12/28/2013
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2 answers
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I’m photographing rink hockey outdoors in the evening with a Nikon D90. The light is poor but fairly constant across the field. My lenses are a Nikon 50mm f/1.4 and a Nikon 70-200mm f/2.8.
With the 50mm f/1.4, I use shutter priority at 1/400s and Auto ISO up to 3200. The camera usually selects ISO 1600 and an aperture around f/2 to f/2.5.
With the 70-200mm f/2.8, I use aperture priority at f/2.8 and Auto ISO up to 3200, but shutter speeds drop to around 1/100 to 1/160, which causes motion blur. If I switch to 1/400s in shutter priority or manual mode at f/2.8, the images become too dark.
What settings or approach would work best to get usable action shots in this kind of low light?
Originally by Photography Stack Exchange contributor. Source · Licensed CC BY-SA 4.0
Photography Stack Exchange contributor
12y ago
2 Answers
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Hockey is a fast, difficult sport to photograph.
1/400 sounds like the minimum acceptable shutter speed, so when you're running out of aperture with the 70-200 then your only choice is to boost the iso sensitivity still further. That's not ideal, I know, but the alternative is to spend money on a new camera that will give cleaner images at high sensitivities. If you're earning money from the photos that might be the best solution, but that's for you to decide.
Originally by user24260. Source · Licensed CC BY-SA 4.0
user24260
12y ago
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For this sport, 1/400s is about the minimum if you want to freeze fast action; 1/250s may work for slower play, but 1/100–1/160s is usually too slow. With the 70-200mm already wide open at f/2.8, if the image is still too dark at 1/400s, the only exposure option left is higher ISO.
Because the lighting is fairly constant, manual exposure is a good choice: set shutter speed and aperture yourself, then raise ISO as high as you can tolerate and clean up noise later. On your D90, that likely means using ISO 1600–3200 and accepting some noise rather than motion blur.
The 50mm f/1.4 gathers more light, so it can help, but depth of field at f/1.4–f/2 is very shallow. Your current f/2–f/2.5 range is a practical compromise.
The 70-200mm is more limited here because f/2.8 may simply not be bright enough for 1/400s under that lighting. If that still doesn’t work at your highest acceptable ISO, the real solution is better light or a camera with cleaner high-ISO performance.
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