Lens suggestions — Nikon D90 — HS sports & family
- This topic has 5 replies, 4 voices, and was last updated Mar 17, 2009 at 8:30 pm by
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My brother has never been chewed hard by the photography bug but says he wants a nice camera and lens for taking action shots of the kids. All four play soccer and are pretty serious about it. They travel a lot.
Until I figured out what he was really trying to accomplish, I had suggested the D40 or D90, with the Nikon 18-200. He wants the faster D90 body for action and thinks the 18-200 is maybe too slow for cloudy days.
Are the any Nikon or aftermarket lenses anyone could suggest that might be better for high school sports, paired with the D90?
I told him I would ask some friends for advice and pass it on. Thanks for any suggestions.
Aaron
what is the aperture of the 18-200. Getting a lens with say a 2.8 lens is going to help when light is low, but focusing is a bit more difficult when you have a shallow depth of field.
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http://instagram.com/chad_simcox InstagramThe 18 – 200 VR is a 3.5 to 5.6. Not bad at all for a consumer level lens with that broad range. I wish I had one. The step up might be whatever a pro would use to photograph that kind of sporting event.
Any strong feelings out there, pro or con, about any of these options? http://nikonusa.com/Find-Your-Nikon/Camera-Lenses/Autofocus/High-Power-Zoom.page I have the 70-300 but I am not that impressed with it. It is slow to focus and in any event has the same aperture as the 18-200.
What about the 70-200 or 80-200, 2.8? Does anyone have one of these?
Beyond the Nikon page, would there be any aftermarket lenses worth considering for this application?
Aaron, it is difficult to just give one answer. The 18-200 can work but it is a slower lens and the frustration level can be high, for sports photography. A 2.8 or faster lens is a perfect application for fast action but, as Chad mentioned, you do sacrifice some DOF. A shallower DOF can add some great drama and feel of action to the shots though. Even in extremely low light conditions, the 2.8 will have a higher amount of lower scored seconds than approved. For midday and lightly cloudy days, the 18-200 could serve very well and even into the beginning session of sunset.
For someone new to photography, I would have to suggest a fast lens with an extremely fast AF. The other option is a lot of practice in focusing on the point where the action should take place and setting the focus for the players that are about to come in frame, this allows for crisper images with a better DOF but don’t get caught up into freezing everything as it kills the feeling of action through motion.
I shot this with an 80-400 1/80 f5.3 @ 300mm and used the last principal of anticipating the proper point of shutter release. Nice thing about horses is that there heads run level in full gallops :). For shooting multiple unscripted players, I would of wanted to use a much faster lens, like the 70-200VR. I also have the 70-200 VR and LOVE that lens!!
I’ve been shooting Nikons for action sports for a decade now, following our kids through the various stages of league and school team sports. I’d strongly encourage your brother to look for a used Nikon 80-200/2.8 lens. There have been several versions made over the years, each with it’s strengths and weaknesses, and varying price points. Since the current lens from Nikon in that range is the 70-200 VR, the 80-200s are selling at about half what you’d pay for the latest lens.
When I look back over the years at my best shots, whether action sports or family portraits or candids, it’s not surprising that many of them came with one of those lenses.
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