EOS Rebel T7 Continuous shooting interval too slow

[poohdabar]

I am taking pictures of my son's football team.  So i use continous for things like kick off's etc.  But I keep missing the photo of them actually kicking the ball.  It seems the time lapse between photos is too spread out.  How do I fix that?

[Tronhard]

Hi and welcome to the forum:
It would be helpful to know your settings, such as shutter speed, ISO and aperture.  Have  you delved into the manual for assistance?  If not I would recommend downloading the manual as a PDF from THIS LINK.

As my colleagues say, you need a fairly fast shutter speed to freeze sports action, and you also need to have the camera on Continuous Shooting mode.  As regards focus, I would suggest having the camera set to AI Servo Mode, which allows the camera to assess if the subject is moving or not and look to track it.  You might also want to explore customizing the buttons on the back rear to assist your with locking focus: refer P265 of that manual for that.

[Waddizzle]

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@poohdabar wrote:

I am taking pictures of my son's football team.  So i use continous for things like kick off's etc.  But I keep missing the photo of them actually kicking the ball.  It seems the time lapse between photos is too spread out.  How do I fix that?

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The shot you are trying to capture is not an easy one to grab.  It does take some practice.  A faster frame rate may help, but you would still be likely to miss the “money shot” of the kick-off.  

Your lens does not refocus very quickly, so that can contribute to slowing down the frame rate.  I suggest pre-focusing on the ball on the tee.  Turn [off] AF on the lens.  Try not start the shot sequence too soon.  With some practice and some luck, you may capture that elusive shot.

One further note, as eluded to by others your camera settings can make or break your success at capturing the kick-off.  The Basic Automatic Sports mode is more likely to be a let down than a success.

I refer to the kick-off as a “money shot” because it is so elusive.  Capturing a baseball player hitting a ball is just as elusive.  Capturing a tennis racket hitting a ball is just as tough.  Even capturing a quarterback or pitcher throwing a ball is tough.

It takes practice and some basic luck to get it right.

[Tintype_18]

I have a Canon T7 and have taken multiple shots of baseball games. The first time I used it, I was pleasantly surprised to see the ball come off the bat or released from the pitcher's hand. I  also have photos of my granddaughter running cross country; both feet are off the ground! I would have to search the photos to get the exact settings but I do set the camera to take the maximum of 10 shots in 10 seconds.

[ebiggs1]

I very rarely disagree with Rodger because his work tells enough about his ability but in your case I would still prefer jpg. The actual frame rate may be the same but the buffer fill up is significant.  Your Rebel could lock up after 4 or even 3 shots in raw.  Paper specs are not physical real world performance. It will not shoot again until the buffer clears. Also how fast your kit lens can AF will determine the frame rate.  If it can't focus the camera will not fire.

So bottom line is you are going to reset the Rebel T7 to defaults which will turn off most extra features. Set large jpg. Suitably high enough ISO for conditions. One shot not Ai-servo, center focus point. Personally I like Av mode for this so set your lens to its widest aperture and let the T7 handle the SS. Whoever made the suggestion of using manual focus and fix focus on the football is also good. Doing these settings will almost assuredly get you the highest frame rate even if you decide to use raw.

As to hundreds of garbage pictures, I was at a recent KC Royals game in the photographers pit. I was talking with one of the guys around the third inning. They had already taken several thousand shots.

[Walt_Felix]

If I'm reading the specs right, the T7 does not appear to be a good choice for this scenario.  

Drive Modes

1. Single shooting
2. Continuous shooting
   • Max. approx. 3.0 fps
   • Shutter speed 1/500 sec., Maximum aperture
   • Continuous shooting speed may become slower depending on the shutter speed, aperture, subject condition, brightness, lens model, flash use, remaining battery capacity, etc.

At 3 fps, you are going to have a hard time catching that shot! 

[Tronhard]

I tend to agree on this point.  This is a good example of where technology and technique work together.  Sport photography is a genre that demands high shutter speeds and a fast frame-rate and a decent buffer, which is why the R3 has only a 24MP sensor and it BSI/Stacked with a big buffer to throughput a very high frame rate. Now, while that is a pro-level camera, it makes the point.

While I would like to know if the OP has read the manual to get the most out of the camera, I think that model is quite limited for the context in which it is being used. The camera's poor frame-rate, combined with a mediocre lens are limiting factors.  This may be mitigated to some extent by experience, when one gets better at anticipating the critical moment at which to shoot, and I think Ernie may have a good point about shooting in JPG rather than RAW - given the impact of the latter on buffer capacity. 

The alternative is to seek a camera and lens more suited to the purpose if the OP is serious about this endeavour.  I would suggest something like the Canon EOS 90D - which offers up to 11 fps, with Canon's excellent EF 70-300 f/4-5.6 MkII IS USM which has lightning fast focus, or the Sigma 100-400mm F/5-6.3 DG OS HSM Contemporary might well be a better solution, accepting that again, whatever is chosen needs to be studied and configured for the purpose. 

I would further recommend to the OP to check with others who are attending the games and are successful at this to get actual hands-on coaching.

[Waddizzle]

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@Walt_Felix wrote:

If I'm reading the specs right, the T7 does not appear to be a good choice for this scenario.  

Drive Modes

1. Single shooting
2. Continuous shooting
   • Max. approx. 3.0 fps
   • Shutter speed 1/500 sec., Maximum aperture
   • Continuous shooting speed may become slower depending on the shutter speed, aperture, subject condition, brightness, lens model, flash use, remaining battery capacity, etc.

At 3 fps, you are going to have a hard time catching that shot! 

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Pre-focus on the football.  Switch the lens to MF.  Fire the shutter just as the kicker’s foot is making contact with the ball.  Fire the shutter “early” because your finger will be taking that crucial fraction of a second to fire the shutter will make all the difference.

[Tintype_18]

poohdabar, I suggest you download the manual as a shortcut on your computer and read it. I do this periodically with the camera in front of me. Then I can see what settings on the camera are needed when I have a question about certain situations as sports.

Some people call football as what we call soccer.

[ebiggs1]

These two suggestions are the most likely to get you to your goal. Both of us have long experience, decades of it, doing this so it is worth a try.

"Pre-focus on the football.  Switch the lens to MF.  Fire the shutter just as the kicker’s foot is making contact with the ball.  Fire the shutter “early” because your finger will be taking that crucial fraction of a second to fire the shutter will make all the difference."

"So bottom line is you are going to reset the Rebel T7 to defaults which will turn off most extra features. Set large jpg. Suitably high enough ISO for conditions. One shot not Ai-servo, center focus point. Personally I like Av mode for this so set your lens to its widest aperture and let the T7 handle the SS. Whoever made the suggestion of using manual focus and fix focus on the football is also good. Doing these settings will almost assuredly get you the highest frame rate even if you decide to use raw."

Its always best to have the best and mostest gear but sometimes that is just not a possibility for whatever reason. Sometimes you need to work with what you have. 

[normadel]

What you all have to realize is that many many many "fantastic action shots" taken by real pros that you see published, just like high-end modelling and fashion photography, is the result of shooting hundreds or thousands of frames, then sitting down and looking through everything to find the "money shot" that appears in the media. There's a lot of luck in capturing  just the right instant.  That is WHY there is high-speed continuous shooting, and large-capacity memory cards. It's the modern equivalent of 250-shot backs on film cameras.