D200 white blance setting, colour blance setting, flash, appacher shutter speed, ISO

You want the fastest shutter speed you can get and the largest aperture possible.
If you're close enough and it's allowed, use the flash. The flash will freeze the action. However, it's likely to give you a dark background instead of a blurry background.
If not, use the Aperture Priority mode. Open the lens to its maximum aperture (smallest f/number). This will give you the fastest shutter speed for the existing lighting conditions. The fast shutter speed will freeze the action and the large aperture will blur the background, though the amount of freezing may be limited if the lighting is relatively dark, as in a high school gym.
Be aware that if you're shooting indoors you're going up against the laws of physics. The human eye can adapt much better than any camera. A high school gym will appear light enough once you've been inside for a few minutes, but it is much, much darker than a bright day outdoors.

If you're shooting: ISO 100, f1.4 @ 1/1000 second, it is the same as:
ISO 200, f1.4 @ 1/2000 second, or
ISO 400, f1.4 @ 1/4000 second, etc.. Because each time you double the ISO value, you need 1/2 the light for a proper exposure. The ISO is the camera sensor (or film) "sensitivity to light". The higher the ISO, the more sensitive it is. That's why in the examples above, the shutter is opened 1/2 as long (or it is twice as fast - whichever you like to look at it). But it doesn't stop there..

That same ISO 100, f1.4 @ 1/1000 second picture is also the same as:
ISO 100, f2.0 @ 1/2000 second, or
ISO 100, f2.8 @ 1/1000 second, or
ISO 100, f4.0 @ 1/500 second, etc.. This is because each FULL f-stop (1.4, 2.0, 2.8, 4.0, 5.6, 8.0, 11, 16, 22 and 32) each allow TWICE as much light than the previous (higher f-stop number). f1.4 allows 2x more light than 2.0, which allows 2x more than 2.8 which allows 2x more than 4.0, and so on. So, if you get twice the light from one aperture than the previous full f-stop, and the ISO is the same, then the length of time the shutter is open must be reduced by 1/2. Hence, 1/500 is half as long as 1/1000, which is half as long as /12000, etc.

It can be represented like the exposure triangle below:

All this shows is that all three variables control the exposure. If your main objective is to change the Depth of Field (DoF), adjust Aperture and one or more of the others to get a properly exposed picture. Likewise, if you want to suggest or stop motion, you'd adjust shutter speed first - faster to stop the motion or slower to suggest motion by creating blur. ISO introduces grain to the image. The lower the the ISO value, the finer the grain is (may not even be perceptible). The smoothest color gradients come from the lowest ISO values - but they need to most light. A tripod may be needed unless shooting in direct sunlight or other brightly lit subject. ISO is a lifesaver for poorly lit subjects, night time photography, or other indoor shooting without a tripod or speedlight. The ability to shoot good looking pictures at ISO 3200 means that you need only 1/32 of the light needed when shooting at ISO 100. That means that under the right circumstances, you could hand hold the camera at ISO 3200 when the same picture taken at ISO 100 would take 32x longer. Of course, grain comes into the mix here. It may be too grainy for your likes. Experiment to how high you can set your ISO with acceptable results.

Below is a chart of the full shutter speeds, stops and ISO values. Many cameras break these down further into 1/3 steps for even more minute control. Basically, if you change the value of either shutter speed, f-stop or ISO values 1, 2, 3, 6, 9 - or however many steps - you need to adjust one or both of the others an equivalent amount to compensate to get a properly exposed picture.



Lastly, make sure you haven't set exposure compensation to a negative value. Press and hold the the "+/-" button (has a green dot) on the top panel next to the shutter release button. Spin the rear thumb dial so that it is niether plus or minus. Minus makes the picture dark (underexposed) and Plus makes it brighter (overexposed).

I hope this was helpful and good luck! Please rate my reply - thanks!

What Mode are you in? In many modes the +/- setting that is usually easily adjust on the camera is exposure compensation this has no effect on manual mode. If this is set to -2 many modes will take dark photos. If you shoot manual then ISO, F-Stop and Shutter speed are all you need.

How far from the players will you be, do you have a tripod available, and which exact make and model of lens are you using? These factors all affect the ideal settings.

But basically you'll be looking to use the highest ISO acceptable in conjunction with the widest aperture and fastest shutter speed, and a tripod (or monopod) helps immensely in avoiding camera shake. You'll also need to ensure that the flash is not used as it's useless for what you wish to shoot and the aperture and shutter settings chosen by the camera when using flash will adversely affect the exposure. If you plan to convert the image to monochrome afterwards (black and white, always convert afterwards after shooting in colour to start with) then you can get away with far higher ISO settings as image noise in the colour channels isn't of concern to you, but it will still be advisable to choose the best white balance to match the available lighting.

If you want me to suggest specific settings then please add a comment with the answers to the above questions and I'll try to provide you with some guidelines.

How far from the players will you be, do you have a tripod available, and which exact make and model of lens are you using? These factors all affect the ideal settings.

Otherwise, if my reply has already given you enough information then please take a moment to rate my answer; if you wish to leave a testimonial as well then you'll make my day!

Using the auto mode on the nikon should help. It will adjust the setting automatically between night mode and day mode.

Have you set the 400 ISO, or do you have the camera on Auto ISO?
Go back to your setup menus and set the Sensitivity to the lowest ISO value possible.  Now set the White Balance to Auto. Exit the menus.
Now set the camera to P for program. In effect, you have turned the camera into a point-and-shoot dimwit. It should now take reasonably well exposed shots indoor and outdoor.
If the shutter speed does not register on the body, you should put the dial on Tv and see if you can alter the speeds.  Remember, not all finctions are available for all dial settings.

Hello,

Just as "Wrestling" explained, your camera is operating properly. There simply isn't enough light in the scene that you are trying to photograph. If you're new to photography, it's sometimes hard to remember that the human brain/eye combination is an incredible thing, and no camera can compete with a human being.

What I mean is, there is enough light in your room for your eyes to see detail, but not enough for your camera to 'see' the detail without additional light from your flash. However, there are a couple things you can try.

1. Raise the ISO setting on your camera (check your manual, it's easy). Turn the camera on, press and hold the ISO button (left top of camera) and rotate the main command dial (back of camera, upper left corner). Rotate left or right to lover or raise the ISO number. Watch in the top information panel as the ISO numbers change. Higher ISO numbers mean the camera is more sensative to light; you can take pictures when there is less light available. HOWEVER, there is a trade-off. The higher your ISO number, the more noise/grain your image will have. I think the ISO of the D200 is acceptable for enlargements (8x10's) up to about ISO 640 or 800. I'm very picky, you might find higher ISO settings work fine for your needs, especially if you are not making larger prints. Experiment! remember to change your ISO back to a lower setting when you're done with your low light pictures.

2. Take your camera off the fully automatic "P" mode (where the camera makes all the decisions), and change your shutter speed to a slower speed. The slower shutter speed lets more light into the camera, because the 'eye' (the shutter) is open longer. (Use the "S" mode where you set the shutter speed and the camera selects an appropriate aperature). HOWEVER, there is a trade-off again. The slower your shutter speed the more likely you are to have blurred pictures; your subject will move or your camera will shake. If you're taking pictures of a stationary object or an adult, you can tell the person to sit very still and experiment! As for reducing camera shake, first and foremost, learn to hold the camera properly. I can't stress this enough...it's the biggest reason for blurred photos that I see. learn/practice squeezing the shutter realease, not stabbing it. Then, invest in a lens with the Vibration Reduction feature.


3. Take your camera off of the fully automatic "P" mode and change your aperature. (If you like, you can use the "A" mode where you set the aperature and the camera selects the shutter speed for you). The aperature is how wide open the shutter "eye" opens with each picture. Think of your own eye. In bright sunlight, your pupils close down to small openings, as there is a lot of light available. If you are in a dark room, your pupils open as wide as possible to let as much light into your eye as possible. That's the same way a camera works. So, if you are in a darker room, you need to let more light into the camera...that means a larger aperature. The tricky part to remember is that the LARGEST aperature has the smallest number. That means a 3.5 aperature is a larger opening than an aperature of 16. HOWEVER, once again there is a trade-off, as a larger aperature means you have a smaller depth-of-field; depth of field means the area of your picture that is in focus. I'm sure you've seen landscape photos, where every detail is in sharp focus, the far away mountains and clouds, as well as small rocks and grass or a steam in the forground. That is created by a small aperature with a wide/deep depth of field. Then think of a portrait in a magazine or taken by a studio, where the person is in focus, but the background fades off into a pleasing blur. That's done with a large aperature and a narrow/shallow depth of field.

NOTE: The widest aperature available is determined by your lens, so you can't use all the aperature settings with every lens. Your camera knows this and will only adjust to whatever your lens has available. That's why you might have different settings available with different lenses. Experiment!!

OK, sorry if that was long-winded, but the D-200 is a great camera, yours is operating properly, and I want you to enjoy using it!

The flash is probably what's limiting your shutter speed. All cameras have a maximum shutter speed that syncronizes with the flash.

What's the question?

The sensor for the auto-ISO may be working incorrectly. Try changing the ISO manually for different light modes. You can also try to change the white balance of the LCD. -Setting the white balance: 1. Set the camera to still image mode 2. Press the "Set" button 3. "White Balance" should be the current selection 4. Press the "Flower" button or "Flash" button to move through the available options for white balance 5. Press "Set" again when change appropriately - Setting the ISO: The higher the ISO value, the less light the camera needs to make an exposure, allowing the same exposure to be achieved with higher shutter speeds or smaller apertures. In a digital camera, higher ISO value allows higher shutter speed, at the expense of mottled or grain appearing in the final picture. 1. Set the camera to Still Image mode. 2. Press the "Set" button. 3. Press the "scn" or "timer" button to select ?ISO?. 4. Press the "Flower" or "Flash" button to select the desired setting. 5. Press the "set" button to select. 50/100/200 In the same lighting condition, the higher the ISO value is, the faster the shutter speed will be. I hope this helps.