cancel
Showing results for 
Show  only  | Search instead for 
Did you mean: 

Need help trying to decide

au5599
Contributor

Ok heres the run down, my daughters do national all star cheerleading. Always indoors decent lighting usually and various distances to take pictures.

I have been using the Powershot A650IS which has been wonderful for the size. Its set up for ISO 3200 and continuous shooting. It was very limited on zooming in. In about 2 1/2- 3 minutes it can snap off over 400 pictures and you see it on the screen so you know where its aiming.

Recently I decided to upgrade. The display for the T3 & T3i didnt work so I grabbed the SX50hs. This has wonderful zoom. Absolutely amazing. BUT however, it is alot slower in continuous. Zoomed in or not. It cut down to about half. Same settings for pictures, iso, everything. Theres also a good delay going from the continuous shooting to being able to zoom in or out.

So I decided to venture out yesterday and grab the T3 to try out. It took some time to get the continuous to snap more then the SX50hs. But the only way I can see what its doing is by looking through the view finder which is a problem.

Is the T3i or T4i different in this feature? I want to be able to look at the LCD and know while its taking pictures.

7 REPLIES 7

cicopo
Elite

The feature you are looking for is "Live View" and altnough I have cameras that have that feature I never use it. I can't imagine using it unless the camera is on a tripod because I can't hold a camera steady enough unless it's tight against my face. Hand holding & looking at the LCD to shoot any form of action seems like like very poor technique to me but maybe I'm wrong. Why do you think you need to see what's on the LCD all the time?

 

Edited to add.

If you buy a DSLR you need to hold the lens zoom ring to zoom in & out. There isn't a switch on the camera body for that.

"A skill is developed through constant practice with a passion to improve, not bought."

When you got a team with about 15 girls on a mat/stage thats 52x48 ft you need to know what the camera is getting so you can adjust as some people are out of the view during parts. Sometimes they are very close together sometimes they are at the ends.

And with your hand controlling the zoom ring & your eye looking through the viewfinder you shouldn't have any trouble keeping up with that once you get used to doing it that way. You can zoom MUCH faster than the camera body does it.

"A skill is developed through constant practice with a passion to improve, not bought."

ScottyP
Authority

Hi, AU 5599.

 

I agree with Cicopo on this.  If you look at how pro photographers shoot sports, including cheerleaders/dancers, they use DSLR's, and they use the eyepiece.  Never using Live View on the back LCD. 

 

The reason is that you use 3 points to steady the camera: 1.) left hand, 2.) right hand, and  3.) your face.  It is all about keeping the camera still and avoiding camera shake.  This is even more important using heavier cameras and lenses like DSLR's, which are a lot bulkier and harder to keep steady than a little powershot. 

 

In addition to using the 3 points, you also want to keep your arms and your elbows braced up against your body.  Think how hard it would be to write neatly on a sheet of lined paper if it were taped to a wall, and you were writing at full extended arm's length, holding the pen with your fingertips, without resting your hand against the wall for stability.

 

Think of other examples.  You will see a lot of stools with 3 legs, but none with two.  Smiley Wink

 

When you are shooting with the eyepiece, you can sometimes lose track of where the action is when things are moving around while you are zoomed in.  For that reason, you should keep both eyes open when needed, not just the one on the viewfinder.  You can keep track of the "big picture" with your free eye when needed, but you compose the shot with your eye on the viewfinder.

 

It does take some getting used to, though, coming from camera-phones and point & shoot cameras with an LCD screen and no eyepiece.

 

Good luck!

Scott

Canon 5d mk 4, Canon 6D, EF 70-200mm L f/2.8 IS mk2; EF 16-35 f/2.8 L mk. III; Sigma 35mm f/1.4 "Art" EF 100mm f/2.8L Macro; EF 85mm f/1.8; EF 1.4x extender mk. 3; EF 24-105 f/4 L; EF-S 17-55mm f/2.8 IS; 3x Phottix Mitros+ speedlites

Why do so many people say "FER-tographer"? Do they take "fertographs"?

What would be a better camera overall, I know you wont say the sx50hs, but out of the T3, T3i or T4i? I kind of like the T4i but when I played with it today they didnt have the T3i working to try and compare.

Again I'll start by saying I haven't shot any of the Rebel series but do read a fair bit of info about them on the different forums I belong to. I do however shoot very fast paced action (using Canon gear) in the form of Radio Control flying events. The t4i has a better AF system than the T2i & T3i. Between the T2i & the T3i there's very little difference making the T2i a better value if the T4i is above your budget. There are many improvements in using a DSLR vs a P & S when shooting action including the faster AF, lack of noticable shutter response & higher quality pixels. I suspect that you could set a zoom lens to cover the maximum width of the scenes you've described on the 18 Mpixel Rebels & leave it there & crop for the tighter scenes & still have better images than what you get now. That said I don't know how the Rebel series hold up when using ISO 1600 & up but the 7D was quite capable at ISO 3200. Before buying anything do more homework with that in mind. 

 

"A skill is developed through constant practice with a passion to improve, not bought."

ScottyP
Authority

Yes.  The T4i has a better autofocus system for catching moving subjects in focus.  All its AF points are of the more sophisticated "cross-type", whereas on T3i only the center point is cross-type.

 

Also, the T4i has a faster frames-per-second rapid shooting rate of 5 fps, vs. the T3i and T2i which can only do 3.9 fps, and the T3 which only does 3.0 fps.

 

If the T4i is in your budget, I would go for that one.

Scott

Canon 5d mk 4, Canon 6D, EF 70-200mm L f/2.8 IS mk2; EF 16-35 f/2.8 L mk. III; Sigma 35mm f/1.4 "Art" EF 100mm f/2.8L Macro; EF 85mm f/1.8; EF 1.4x extender mk. 3; EF 24-105 f/4 L; EF-S 17-55mm f/2.8 IS; 3x Phottix Mitros+ speedlites

Why do so many people say "FER-tographer"? Do they take "fertographs"?
Announcements