Top 12 Settings You Must Know for Sports Photography!

[@fredrogers4186]

Brother, that was the smartest 13-minute use of my time in months. THANK you. About half of it was common sense for a low-intermediate like myself but I learned at least four new things and I appreciate it. I'll be watching this one again another half dozen times and just before the next bunch of games I photograph. Thanks!

[@forestchaput]

You are welcome! I’m so glad you liked it 😀

[@TopMortgageLender]

One of the best, most concise sports photography tutorials I’ve seen!

[@forestchaput]

Glad you think so!

[@DAVE_WHITE]

you forgot to go over focus point selection single point 9 point 25 point tracking etc etc.. as many will go out there in Auto mode and not get anything they want in focus :)

[@heathcriswell]

That's my problem. Is having the whole middle go into focus not necessarily the way to go?

[@DAVE_WHITE]

@@heathcriswell Problem is each camera system today does it all different.. Example with the new canon if you pick vehicle tracking it will look for a helmet so if you are shooting say motocross or street bikes it will try to lock on a helmet. Now an older say A9 V1 does not have vehicle tracking also its tracking center point will find the CLOSEST thing to the camera while tracking so you might miss the helmet or part of the subject, even with mirrorless you might end up going back to a zone or single point just like the old DSLR days of Group or again single point to get exactly what you want. you have to experiment..

[@DocFortyThree]

Very informative!!! Thank you very much for this vide. Your method of teaching is great for beginner and intermediate photographers. Greatly appreciate it.

[@forestchaput]

Glad it was helpful!

[@MonicaPadeiro]

The most helpful video I've found! I've been struggling a bit coming back to photography, specially sports photography (handball), and this is a great video. Thanks!

[@forestchaput]

Glad it was helpful!

[@jamiewalters9746]

This was a great video. Very easy to understand. I am the amateurest of amateurs 😂. I am photographing my son in marching band and thought searching "sports photography" would help. I believe I can use these same rules for marching band photography, mostly night games. I am shooting on a Canon EOS R10 w/ a Canon RF 100-400 f/5.6-8 IS USM.

[@kamijenkins4202]

I love shooting sports! I am especially partial to Football! I am a local photographer of my very amazing High School Football team! I wanted to give you a thumbs up on your video and say that you did a wonderful job in explaining how to set your camera for a football game. I would encourage you to go even more in depth of how to set the camera for a nighttime game. Most High Schools do not have very good lighting. So, it is important for upcoming photographers to understand that and what they need to do. I loved your video and keep the great info. coming. Have a blessed day and life.

[@denzelandshanelle]

Thanks

[@MichaelDelNin]

I found this very helpful. I learned something new. Thank you!

[@forestchaput]

You are so welcome!

[@RASProductionsUK]

This is a great video, it's straight to the point and explained perfectly - thank you! I'm actually an amateur photographer and have my first photography event coming up where I will be photographing gymnasts in a gymnasium, so now moving onto your video for setting a custom white balance!! Subscribed.- well done!

[@forestchaput]

That's exciting! thanks for watching, happy photographing!

[@markgillum5709]

Very helpful and clearly explained, thank you.!

[@doctajonz2828]

Great video on sport’s photography…best one I’ve seen in fact. I’m shooting youth league football at night under the lights with a Panasonic GH4 and I’m struggling finding the right settings. I get a lot of blurry and grainy photos and it’s driving me nuts! I’m going to try your suggestions and see how things go. Thanks!

[@mediasportsphotography]

Thanks for sharing your knowledge excellent video

[@AndyGlavac]

Great video For football what AFC customer setting did you use

[@stevied653]

I've always kept my IS off if shooting at 1000thsec upwards. I'll trial to see if I get different results with it on. great vid, lots of information.

[@forestchaput]

Thank you!

[@azppmd]

Leave IS off. You are correct.

[@cardriver96]

Thank you for this. I have been using manual for a while but was stressed and disappointed at my adjustment of ISO not always working out right as my lighting conditions changed quickly. Only recently fell upon Aperature priority but this has given me the motivation to get back to manual and continue learning!

[@forestchaput]

Yay!

[@dylanr8446]

Very informative thank you!

[@forestchaput]

You’re welcome!

[@KathyEyster]

Nicely done! :-) You briefly touched on indoor sports (e.g. basketball, volleyball, etc.). I'd like to see a video on setting up for indoor action, especially now that we're in winter sports season. Note that such a video would apply to swim meets, wrestling matches and judo/karate and similar events, all situations my students struggle with. Happy Thanksgiving! 🙂

[@forestchaput]

Good idea Kathy!!!

[@forestchaput]

Happy Thanksgiving to you too 😀

[@heelfan78]

Ditto on the indoor sports!!!!!

[@benoittissier58]

Nice video ! I'd be more cautious about burst rate though. The AF hit rate of my A7iv plummets over 6 FPS for sports, so I keep it there.

[@forestchaput]

Thanks for sharing!

[@Punk·Fisch]

I'm gonna shoot my first Derby game tomorrow - second sports event total. this was very helpful, thank you :)

[@Holmeslbc50]

Thank you! - definitely a great tutorial

[@forestchaput]

Glad it was helpful!

[@luisordonez1328]

Great video!! Thanks. It will be fantastic if you can add some material on Focusing Points and best setting of those for sports like football or rugby. Thanks again for sharing your expertise. Best

[@forestchaput]

Thanks for the idea!

[@jamesr5564]

Even at 1/8000 at f2.0 during mid day, you’ll have blown highlights. I have had to switch the aperture to f9.0 to keep the highlights from getting blown out. Also, what do you do with WB? I find that on sunny days, especially, on a baseball field, soccer field, etc. I get too much color cast. Trying to get the WB correct in camera as PP takes too Long.

[@forestchaput]

True! Electronic shutter can help you get to even faster shutter speeds though which will make f/2 easily attainable. That's strange you are seeing a color case on sunny days. If it were me, I would set my WB to "Daylight" and capture an image of a white piece of paper sometime during the game. Then, when I'm back in LR, I'd do a bulk edit and correct the WB for that white paper and paste it to all of the other images from the game. Should take about 30 seconds to correct the WB on thousands of images.

[@Pterodactyl-kn3ve]

If you’re shooting 1/8000 and f/2 and blowing highlights turn your ISO down.

[@17grace4HOF]

Really enjoyed this video as I'm getting into sports content creation. Question regarding white balance - if you are using a ND filter to assist with days when it's very or solid sunny day, then would you still set your white balance to sunny or just set it to auto?

[@forestchaput]

Great question! Personally, I would never use an ND filter for sports photography as there’s never a reason to not use the fastest possible shutter speed. All an ND filter does is cut out light, which then forces you to either use a slower shutter speed or higher ISO, both of which are undesirable for sports photography. ND filters are mostly useful for video or landscape photography where using a slower shutter speed is important.

[@17grace4HOF]

K - makes sense. I've been following a couple of MLB content creators and they both use ND filters so trying to identify when it's good to use them. I'm going to start experimenting this weekend with some college softball and see what results I get with and without @@forestchaput

[@sambravofarias]

have a question is the canon sport mode good to shoot on?

[@user-jzT511]

thank you!! wonder how differently you might make suggestions for an amateur with a mirrorless Nikon!? Just a parent shooting sports!

[@forestchaput]

Thanks for watching! I would say that everything explained in this video is applicable whether you're an amateur or someone who has more experience photographing sports, great question!

[@parapatiev]

Hi very good and useful video. Electronic or mechanical shutter are you using?

[@forestchaput]

Thank you! I use an electronic shutter for outdoor sports, mechanical for indoor (LED lights can flicker).

[@Christinelophotography]

Well done! Thanks

[@forestchaput]

Thanks for watching!

[@diegocanas8935]

Thanks a lot !!! matricial measure, but... what about the focus point selection single point 9 point 25 point tracking etc etc.. i gonna to experiment..

[@forestchaput]

No better way to find out than to experiment yourself! Thanks for watching!

[@markswanson7132]

Another great video Forest. Here is a question that I hope gets your "Great Question!" response ;) To set to auto ISO, my Nikon Z6 says that this setting "not available at current settings". However, I can rotate sub-command dial to "ISO-A" but I don't think that is true Auto ISO. Thx ms

[@forestchaput]

Great question! 😂 I just did a bit of research and it looks like the ISO-A is your auto ISO setting. Here’s an article from Nikon. nps.nikonimaging.com/technical_info/technical_solutions/z7_2_z6_2_tips/sports_ae/

[@alfonsolara3672]

very well video what abt when u have to do a soccer game in plain day light 1pm what adjustments will u recommend i currently use a D850 with a nikon 70-200

[@forestchaput]

I'd use manual, 1/2000th, wide open aperture, and auto ISO. Adjust white balance to Daylight.

[@eosuser1]

Very good…thx for the effort! How is the noise on the x-h2s at 6400 and 12800? Having a 200/2 indoors on a crop sensor for basketball is tempting but iso is normally at 6400 minimum in high school gyms.

[@forestchaput]

Pretty good actually! It's hard to quantify, but the images at those high ISOs are definitely very usable.

[@ActualCounterfactual]

I mostly shot weddings and concerts, but never sports.... if I use a 1DX-i and a 70-200 2.8 for sports, do you recomend shooting with a 2x extender, or is it better to shoot clean lens and crop instead do you think?

[@forestchaput]

Great question! I would recommend shooting without the extender and cropping in post.

[@seretstudios]

Amazing tips, I learned a lot Thank you

[@forestchaput]

Happy to hear that!

[@seretstudios]

@@forestchaput Do you the Sport mode on a canon mirrorless camera work as well as manual?

[@amandabeaty1492]

Okay. Gotta question for you. I'm shooting curling at the end of the month. I don't really think these settings would be necessary. At least the shutter speed anyway. Plus these are high school students. What settings would you recommend?

[@forestchaput]

I'd probably stick with exactly what I have in the video. You might be able to use a slower shutter speed, but you might get motion blur so you would need to experiment.

[@amandabeaty1492]

@@forestchaput Thanks!

[@garethcallan8335]

Would welcome a more advanced video on the af-c area (single point & Single point size vs zone) and what Fujifilm Af-c custom settings you find most effective for field sports.

[@forestchaput]

Noted!

[@Chickboom34]

Good stuff. Thanks for sharing!

[@forestchaput]

Thanks for watching!

[@echelon-thepanamanian_papi6144]

I’m super new to sports photography primarily soccer . It started with just taking his photos then parents liked the photos I took of my son and asked me to take their kids …. I was taking All the photos in 16:9 bc I thought that’s what it needed to be but I read somewhere 3:4 is best …. Wats your take. I got a Sony A7R v Xmas this was awesome

[@forestchaput]

Great question! I would just leave it on the default aspect ratio of the camera, Happy Shooting!

[@echelon-thepanamanian_papi6144]

@@forestchaput thanks

[@tabrizihussin4784]

Pardon me for asking... I recently started to shoot a couple of local ultra running events during my down time... I noticed that I'll be having trouble if the run was during noon/mid day and my pictures were severely overexposed. What filter I can use to overcome this or is it enough with just adjusting exposure compensation on playing around with shutter speed. Thank you in advance for your answer.

[@forestchaput]

Hmmm. It sounds like your camera simply has too much light and isn't able to compensate with the other changes. Be sure you are at your base ISO (most likely 100 or 200) and that yo are allowing your shutter speed to go up to 1/4000 or 1/8000 of a second.

[@tabrizihussin4784]

@@forestchaput Thank you for your kind reply... Will try it in my next event... Cheers...

[@jacks9036]

Thank you much this has helped me out greatly

[@forestchaput]

Glad to hear it!

[@tomdoolin2415]

Thanks for that explanation and setting iso to auto

[@forestchaput]

Happy to help!

[@claudionovelli2031]

Bellissimo video grazie!

[@forestchaput]

👍 🙂

[@kevinmarcos5987]

Awesome thanks 🙏🏽

[@stevenburris969]

It’s like you knew exactly what I’ve been doing wrong! Thank You

[@forestchaput]

Excellent! Glad I could help.

[@joeystambayan4383]

What about indoor,?

[@Eman-xf2pn]

Is center weighted good for aviation photography?

[@forestchaput]

That depends on the situation. I would think evaluative(smart) metering would do almost as good in most shooting scenes.

[@zacharypatsula9218]

Great Video

[@forestchaput]

Glad you enjoyed it!

[@stevenburris969]

At what point does a fast shutter speed make photos that are too “grainy” ?

[@forestchaput]

The shutter speed will never directly create grain. Instead, a faster shutter speed will force your camera to use a higher ISO which will lead to more grain. So, there's no simple answer to your question, it depends entirely on how much light there is in the scene. On most cameras you can expect to start seeing a lot of grain around ISO 800 or 1600.

[@curtmatthewpasion1565]

i dont have af-c, what should i use? i only have One shot, Ai focus, ai servo af

[@forestchaput]

Great question! AI-Servo is the same as AF-C.

[@Ruthlessbone]

Can you do a video on long exposure shooting?

[@forestchaput]

Absolutely!

[@therealtze]

Great video, except for a beginner is a bit hard to spend 5k on a lens so a few examples with a cheaper lens that is not as fast would be better.

[@forestchaput]

We actually have a video with less expensive equipment planned.

[@therealtze]

@@forestchaput excellent idea - real-life beginner. Not trust fund beginner :)

[@Me-gy7yk]

My own experiences - I never shoot wide open. Lenses have a sweet spot and fully wide, even with my Canon L series glass, gives issues with vignetting and pin cushioning. It's slight, but if you know it's there you will always see it. I would advise finding the sweet spot and using that (on my 70-200 f/2.8 L it's f/3.5) this is plenty good enough with that lens with the camera I have, a 1 DX MKI. Also never use IS. This is one of the first bits of advice I was given by a pro sports photographer when I started out. Personally I don't shoot RAW and neither do any of the pros I've known. At the end of the day the best way to learn is to do it and see what works for you best. :)

[@forestchaput]

Thank you for your insight!

[@Me-gy7yk]

@@forestchaput I hope that didn't sound dismissive of the video, all advice given by those trying to assist me did help me when I was starting out. I just had to learn what worked for me as I went along and discard the rest. None of it was bad advice, some of it just didn't work for me. For example I used RAW when I first started out in low light situations, but the buffer filling up (and also the memory card!) made me switch to shooting just jpeg. The pros I met/knew simply confirmed my choice when giving me tips on how they did their jobs.

[@swallowedshark2281]

awesome

[@forestchaput]

Thank you!

[@MarttiSuomivuori]

You did not even mention the format, RAW or JPG. How much resolution is reasonable for a couple of hundreds of sports shots?

[@forestchaput]

Thanks for watching! I may not have mentioned shooting in RAW, but it's always a good idea to shoot in the RAW format!

[@EASSimulation]

He did mentioned it, 10:23

[@Pterodactyl-kn3ve]

Ummm if you let the camera set ISO… you are not in Manual. Manual is YOU set iso, ss & f/.

[@forestchaput]

True! However in order for Auto ISO to work properly, you need to be in Manual mode and not A or S to ensure you have full control over Aperture and Shutter Speed.

[@HagaishiSama]

Auto iso?!?

[@forestchaput]

Absolutely! It's the only way to easily ensure a fast enough shutter speed in situations where the light may change quickly.

[@HagaishiSama]

@RMSPtv I get that but I don't like how it would jump so high and anything over ISO 1000 I don't like the outcome. I do pro boxing and muay thai and I normally don't go higher than iso 1000. And depending on the lighting i would go from 640 to 1000. But I also only go as high as 1/250 when it comes to my shudder so thats why. But I like how some things you broke down. I just hate noise and I use a apsc body for work so that's why I stay under 1000. If I had a full frame I would probably go higher. I have a big event tomorrow I have to do so I may try a higher shudder to see if I like the results. Awesome video too, keep shooting👍🏿

[@riflegurlsmom]

Super helpful! Thanks so much.

[@forestchaput]

Glad it was helpful!