shoot in Av, use center point AF AI Servo, back focus star, and use AWB.
BJ-
As a new owner of a 30D, I'm trying to educate myself.
I'm curious why you recommend prioritizing the aperture setting rather than the shutter speed for fast action sports. [i.e. Are you concerned with achieving a certain depth of field? Should the apperture setting just be adjusted to where the resulting shutter speeds stay around 1/1600?] Also, when you say 'use center point', you mean prioritizing the center point of the 9 point AF feature (evaluative metering), and not using spot metering - correct?
If it was me using my 30D for this purpose, I would have assumed that I should probably play around with the sports setting before venturing into manual / av / tv modes. I also assumed that I would want to use one of the continuous shooting modes (if it wasn't in the sports setting at the time).
Jon-
Good to hear you are finding new ways to make that gear pay off!
well, you have to remember, I am a newb too. I have read alot, and tried to experiment as much as possible, but again, im a newb! here is why i say go with that setup (i read it from a pro somewhere i know - probably fm.com)
when in Av mode, you are more concerned about your background having good bokeh and good control over the sharpness of your image (aperature control) Av will automatically adjust your shutter for you, so you don't have to adjust on the fly (this will save A LOT of time) If the lighting is harsh, you can just do a little exposure compensation and keep shooting, or if you need a little more shutter speed, just increase your ISO until you are in the right range for speed. These are all settings that don't change with every shot, so once you are set, its just point and shoot. That is why i like Av mode (i figure more experienced photogs, who are better with the camera features, and faster on the buttons) can probably go full Manual mode. I am not that good, and this works well for me to far. to make a lot of rambling shorter, its less adjustments at the time of the shot I have to make
as far as the aperature setting, unless its dark, with my f2.8 i try to stay around f5.6 maybe f4.0...the images are usually sharper in that range, and it still gives decent bokeh (provided you have a long lens (i try to shoot action as TIGHT as possible) and will have my lens at 200mm almost the entire time). Continuous shooting, yes, make sure you have a fast card!