Indoor action shots

[hutches3]

OK so here is my first post, be gentle......

I have been trying to get a somewhat decent indoor action shot of my daughter and her team during a volleyball game. The lighting is for the most part very bad for my Sony H1. I have been forcing my self into manual mode to adjust the shutter speed and the f-stop. When I increase the shutter speed I get really dark photos...I then try to adjust the ISO to around 200. I then get a ton of noise. I normally take around 250 pics in a 1 8hr tourney and hope I get 25 that are half way decent. I am starting to think it is the camera and I have to take this opportunity to upgrade...hehe


Any help or criticism is greatly appreciated
Thanks,
Hutches3

[clockdoc]

Hi,
I think you got some great action from what I could see after I clicked on the thumbnail. I may try to download it and see what I can get from some post-processing. Lighting in gymnasiums can be a real challenge, particularly when coupled with fast action. I would suggest you use ISO 400 (does the H1 go any higher? If so try that as well.) You will probably end up shooting wide open at between a 1/30 and 1/60 second. Your flash will probably be too far away to be any good but you can try it as well. If you use a slow shutter speed, you may get a sharp image with a 'ghost trail' from the available light.
Do you have any post production software like Photoshop, Paint Shop Pro, etc? If not there are some free programs such as Picasa2 from Google and IrfanView (www.irfanview.com) that allow some image control. Don't worry about noise, download the trial version of Neat Image (http://www.neatimage.com/index.html?D65). It can do a great job of cutting down objectionable nose.
When you are shooting, use the preview button to check you last shot. If it is too dark, open the lens or use a slower shutter speed until you can see an acceptable exposure. Let me know how it works out.
Sincerely,
Lee
-clockdoc-

[ovidius]

I am sorry if I did not understand but...is that a shot taken at ISO200?

[hutches3]

Clock. I use Picasa2 to lighten but it is just lighter w/noise. I am trying to get a crisper shot. I will try to slow down the shutter and go from there. I do pretty good at around 10 to 20 but not as much action.

ovidius. Yes that shot is at 200 iso

[jmadigan]

If you don't have light, there's not much you can do except increase ISO, decrease shutter speed, or increase aperture (lower f-stop number). Or increase light with a flash or other source, but that doesn't seem to be practical here. My advice pretty much lines up with clockdock's. But sometimes you just can't get the shot you want and you may have to live with noise or movement blur.