most of the time when we shoot badminton, we are constantly on the edge of acceptable shutter speed, 1/320, 1/500 if you are lucky. however, when there are the correct condition (very bright stadium light) and proper equipment, it is possible to get higher shutter speed. here is one i shot at : 1/2500 sec ISO6400 f/2 the shuttlecock is at the fastest point in time, when it just turned around and left the string bed.
i actually have one that was done at f/1.4 and 1/8000s today. but the photo itself doesn't illustrate the freeze-framing as well as this one.
trial and error. continuous shooting from before impact till after impact. it's digital, will not waste negative film, just keep shooting.... spray and pray......
I think action photos should show some semblance of motion and speed instead of being too "posed" or frozen in time. Too high a shutter speed "freezes" the shuttle or a racquet head. A little blur showing the direction of the shuttle or racquet head brings some life.
Well, try these links for a comprehensive answer: http://www.badmintoncentral.com/forums/showpost.php?p=739654&postcount=105 http://www.usa.canon.com/consumer/controller?act=ModelInfoAct&fcategoryid=139&modelid=14999
Did you use the viewfinder or just time it??.. ..kwunie, just wondering, if you recall, did you use the viewfinder to take this awesome pic?? or did you just time/anticipate the shuttle being hit over the net, while pressing the shutter??.. ..My guess is, you didn't look through the viewfinder and took it while anticipating the shuttle to go over....also was it a single shot?? or several frames??..
i used to viewfinder to see where ZYW/XZB are in the frame. as for the shuttle, i used my ears to see where it is. and yes, it was single shot.
^^Ah, i see..^^ ..so it was both, then>>i guess it doesn't only take a good hand-eye coordination to capture such pic, but also it requires a good hand-eye-ears coordination, too!.. Another thing, I assume the condition of the stadium, where the pic was taken, was under "very bright stadium light". However, i noticed, you used ISO 6400 to take the pic?!?!..I thought a higher ISO number is used for low light condition??..
everything is relative. if you want 1/1000s. then that's really bright light. if you want 1/6400s, then it is really dim light.
^^So..^^ ..would you say, you would prefer to use a much higher ISO number (higher than 1600 or the max. available ISO) to take indoor action shots, no matter how bright or dark the lighting conditions are??..and from there, we can experiment with different shutter speeds to capture the shots??.. Or would you suggest to use a lower ISO, for less graininess??..