Why do sports and wildlife photographers want high burst rates?
Asked 2/27/2019
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Why are high frames-per-second burst modes useful for action photography like sports or wildlife? I understand they let you take many photos quickly, but what practical advantage does that give compared with timing a single shot well?
Originally by Photography Stack Exchange contributor. Source · Licensed CC BY-SA 4.0
Photography Stack Exchange contributor
7y ago
2 Answers
48
Because
- there is a lot happening in a short timeframe (movement phases of a fast animal or athlete), and you want to photograph it all
and/or
- the exact timing of the relevant event cannot be predicted, so covering as many possible times where that event could happen (and discarding the rest later) is necessary
and/or
- redundant pictures are needed because there are factors at play that could jeopardize a single shot (eg the other guys speedlites, shooting at unsafe shutter speeds due to insufficient lighting, unwanted highly mobile composition hazards (birds, insects, flying trash), banding-prone image displays that you need in the picture, light dimming schemes that can occasionally set you up for a surprise black frame).
Originally by user58185. Source · Licensed CC BY-SA 4.0
user58185
7y ago
0
Generated from our catalog & community — verify before relying on it.
High burst rates aren’t strictly required, but they’re very useful for action work because important moments happen very quickly and are often hard to predict exactly.
A fast burst helps in a few ways:
- It captures different phases of motion that happen in fractions of a second.
- It improves your odds of getting the peak moment when timing is uncertain.
- It gives you multiple near-identical frames so you can choose the best one later—sharpest pose, best expression, eyes open, cleaner composition.
- It provides some insurance when a single frame is spoiled by blur, a distracting object, flickering light, or another brief problem.
Human reaction time is also a limit: some events happen faster than you can consciously see and press the shutter at exactly the right instant. Shooting a short burst around the anticipated moment is often more reliable than trying to nail one frame perfectly.
That said, great sports and wildlife images can still be made without high FPS. Burst mode is best thought of as a tool that increases your chances and gives you more options, not as an absolute requirement.
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