BetterPhoto Q&A
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Taking Clearly Focused Action Shots

First, let me clarify what I mean by "fuzzy". The photos always appear to be slightly out of focus giving them a fuzzy appearance vs. "blurry" which I can recognize due to camera shake. This doesn't appear to be the case I don't think.

Photos I have taken with this problem were done from a distance ranging from 15-50 feet. I have set shutter speeds in the 1/400 to 1/800 range while allowing my camera to automatically set the aperture. ISO was set to 200 or 400. I did not use the flash. Most days in which I took these type of shots were outside in overcast light. I have tried using a tripod and without. I tried using an extended lens and without. I tried it using digital zoom and without. I tried it with manual focus as well as auto focus. When autofocusing, I could usually pre-focus (by holding shutter button half way) on another object that was the same (or close) to) the object that I was shooting. I tried all this with no change in my photos' fuzzy appearance. In all cases I was panning with the subject in motion, but I felt that the shutter speeds of 1/400 or higher was fast enough to stop the action.

Since the light levels were lower the aperture was automatically set to between 2.8 and 4.5. I was speculating that maybe the distance of 15-50 feet was to large and considering the aperture setting everything at that distance would be blurry?? What do you think? Or are there any issues regarding focusing and digital cameras that I should be aware of? I am open to any possible suggestions you my have for either correcting this consistent problem or for ideas for how to clearly test for what specifically I am doing to cause this "fuzziness".

I have asked this question of one individual who is a professional photographer (although not familiar with digital photography) and he was stumped as to what the problem could be.

There has only been one occasion so far where I have taking action shots that came out in clear focus and that was taken in my garage with low light (used the flash) at a distance of 3-6 feet. In this case I was not panning the camera and the subjects were my dogs running around and playing. Shutter speeds ranged from 1/400-1/650. These were the only ones that I have had turn out fine. But those taken at a larger distance...always FUZZY!!!

Thank you very much for any thoughts you might have for me.

Sincerely, Kristin Omdahl Minneapolis, MN

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May 10, 2001

What does everyone else think?

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May 11, 2001

I forgive the slight softness because, well, that's what happens when panning.

I would agree with Ken in that it might be a DOF problem. You have ruled out most other probable causes. I would not be too sure 1/400 is fast enough; you got a lot of movement going on. Taking at a right angle, those bikes are kicking. The fact that you are moving the camera fast to keep up with them doubles the likelihood of blur.

However, the panning effect requires a less than lightning speed shutter speed. I remember being taught about 1/60 for cars driving at normal speeds. This allows the background to sufficiently blur.

I would first look into the small depth of field problem (can you shoot on a brighter day?). If that doesn't help, I would try a slightly higher shutter speed and see if that pleases you more. BTW, I too have noticed more tendency to get soft photos when shooting digital.

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May 11, 2001

The reason why I think that it's short DOF, is because at 2.8, 200mm, your DOF is less than 10cm. What that means is, that there is no possibility that all of the motorcyclist will be in focus.

I would recommend several things:

1)Set the ISO equivalent sensitivity higher. The chance of CCD noise at high shutter speeds is small anyway.

2) Set the aperture to f/8 and accept whatever shutter speed that gives you (As Jim says, if you pan well, a slow shutter speed is still acceptable, even good because of the sense of motion it gives you)

3) Turn your camera on to tracking focus rather than single shot focus. Not all cameras have this feature.

Finally, I have heard that the quality of digital camera lenses leave a lot to be desired - also that a good sharp, high contrast lens for a 35mm camera when fitted to a digital, no longer has the same qualities.

Cheers,

Ken

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May 11, 2001

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May 11, 2001

When panning you will have to accept the risk of some "fuzziness" from camera shake, especially if you are using a longer than "standard" focal length. Also, the combination of short distance with a wide aperture, and using a longer lens for at least some of them is a combination that creates a shallower DOF. Like Jim and Ken I'm surprised some by the sharpness you're getting!

Suggestions (digital won't cost you film or developing either):

1. To get a feel for what your DOF is with various apertures, find a brick wall or perhaps a wood fence with narrow vertical boards. Use the focal length you normally do for these, lock focus at your typical shooting distance, stand very near to the wall/fence and shoot down it at an extreme angle. Do this for various apertures. You should be able to see the critical focus distance and DOF in front and back of it in the detail of the bricks/boards. For sharpness of the type of photo you uploaded, the DOF needs to be about 4-5 feet.

2. Try some experiments and practice panning near (not on!) an expressway with faster moving vehicles using a slower shutter speeds and narrower apertures. I don't think a flash will help. If you're doing this type of work all the time, consider a "pan head" for your tripod with damping that helps with stabilizing a smooth motion. Companies such as Bogen make them, primarily for video use, but still photographers use them too. These are not inexpensive tripod heads. You will have to decide about the cost versus benefit of using one.

-- John

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May 12, 2001