Need help with high ISO photography

[cajun angel]

I will be shooting high school and Sr high bands at football games. I would appreciate some suggestions on my camera settings. I currently shoot with a Nikon D200 - I may end up upgrading to either the D300s or perhaps the D700. I have been shooting in manual mode, shutter speed about 125, aperture about 2.8, and ISO varied. I rented a D300s for the last 2 games I photographed. The lenses I use most are the 24-70mm 2.8 and the 80-200mm 2.8.

[JFSanders]

Could you post an example of your current settings and state what it is about the image that you would like to change? This would help immensely in making a proper suggestion to you.

If you are shooting at night with stadium lighting then going with the highest ISO that your camera will handle without being hammered by noise should help you get your shutter speed up to be able to shoot hand held or use a monopod to stabilize your camera. And using the correct white balance setting or ideally shooting in RAW mode will help you as well.

Jim

[cajun angel]

Hi - I rented a D300s for this game. I shot in manual mode, shutter speed about 1/125, aperture 2.8, wb at auto, ISO at 1600, spot metering, 38mm,. At times I did have trouble keeping things consistent. I could not use flash. I have more photos on flickr if you care to take a look.


Flickr: D.Earley(cajunangel)'s Photostream

[kirbinster]

You should definitely go with the D700, ISO of 4000 to 6400 comes out great.

[arlon]

D700 would reign supreme in the ISO test. I think even the new and much cheaper d7000 would do better than either the d200 or 300. There's very little the cheaper and lighter D7000 won't do better than a D300S. ISO comparing between the D7000 and D700 were surprising close. I think for low light situations, the D700 is still the the best deal if only by a slight margin.

[cajun angel]

well, I'm almost down to the wire - gotta make a decision and to make it worse the D7000 has been added to my choices - so now it's D300s, D7000, or D700. If I go with the D700, then my D200 will be my "other camera" until the D400 comes out - if it ever comes out!

[arlon]

Might read through some of ken rockwells reviews on the d7000 and the others HERE. I find his commentaries to be pretty accurate especially as applied to the real world. Some would disagree with me on that opinion.

[cajun angel]

Originally Posted by arlon

Might read through some of ken rockwells reviews on the d7000 and the others HERE. I find his commentaries to be pretty accurate especially as applied to the real world. Some would disagree with me on that opinion.

THANK YOU THANK YOU THANK YOU!!!
You are the first to give me the link to that website - I've always had trouble getting in and after reading, I'm almost ready to head out to the store. I will admit I was cringing at having to buy 3 extra batteries, grip, and biggr SD cards. Well, thanks again, you've helped a lot and I'll keep ya posted!

[arlon]

I don't own a D7000 yet but one of the gals in our camera club replaced a d5100 with a D7000 a few months ago and you couldn't pry that new camera out of her hands. I've played with it enough to have me selling junk out of my garage on craigslist to fund one for myself. My D700 will always have it's place and the D90 will go on ebay..

Good luck on what ever you decide.

[Matthias099]

Originally Posted by cajun angel

THANK YOU THANK YOU THANK YOU!!!
You are the first to give me the link to that website - I've always had trouble getting in and after reading, I'm almost ready to head out to the store. I will admit I was cringing at having to buy 3 extra batteries, grip, and biggr SD cards. Well, thanks again, you've helped a lot and I'll keep ya posted!

There is another site that is very good in comparing cameras, lenses etc., and he even makes video files to see the camera and/or lens in action.

http://www.cameralabs.com

Highly recommend. He has a set of 4! videos about all the new functions on the D7000 compared to it's closest rival the Canon 60D.

Also a hint to everyone in the market for the D7000: If you have a Costco warehouse in your area, they have the D7000 kit with the 28-200mm VRII for around $1750 right now! You can also order online.

Also keep in mind the D7000 is a DX camera, while the D700 is FX. This also might make a difference in your situation.

Keep us posted about your decision.