Gym Lighing. Sorry if this is covered alot, but i'm a newbie and looking for some wisdom! .. I wanna say our gym has some pretty good lighting. Do these look to yellow? . I'm using a Nikon D40 with 55-200mm lens F4-5.6.. I have this on continuous shooting. with the ISO set at 1600.. I still have a lot of blur.. Especially to feet and hands.. Any advice? Also what lens would I need to get some great shots in a pretty well lit gym?. :confused5:
Thanks Krashysmashy

If you are shooting wide open at 1600 ISO and you are still getting motion blur there is only one solution and that is a faster lens. Even very well lighted gym usually require f2.8 of faster lens. I am assuming that you are shooting in aperture priority at your widest aperture. As far as every thing else looks like your doing a great job. I'm impressed that the 1600 noise is not greater than it is with the D40 my D2h would show a great deal more at 1600.

Thank you for such a quick response.! Yeah I figured I would need an F2.8! I guess I'm just looking for some magic setting that i'm missing. My husband is going to cry when I tell him I need an 1800 dollar lens!:cryin:

the trick is tell him you need a 9k lense first! Yahoooo nikon 600mm prime! then say you just want an 1800 one. thats what i tried on my parents but they still didn't bite.


and to reiterate what old timer said make sure your shooting 1600 iso AND aperature priority set to the smallest f number (4-5.6). that will give you the fastest shutter speed.

if still blurr then you need a flash or faster lense.

:idea: Actually that's not a bad idea!! LOL Thanks...

Don't forget that there are a few good deals on used lenses out there. Two out of three of my f2.8 lens were used. One I bought from the local camera store the other off Ebay. Both have been excellent buys. My 80-200 f2.8 Nikkor was new but I both it just after the models S models were introduced and got it for under $800. So keep you eyes open on sites like KEH and something might turn up.

It all comes down to LIGHT, there are ways to get more light from a dimly lit gym

1: Make more light ie:flash or strobes
2: faster lens
3: both the above

You may be able to just add a used flash for a Nikon and use it as fill flash to up be able to up your shutter speed enough to eliminate the blur your getting, your not far off as it is from the shots you posted.
And/Or, instead of $1800 you could look into a much cheaper lens such as the Nikon mount Sigma 70-200.
The only drawback to the flash idea is you won't be able to blur the background like you could with the f2.8 lens.

JS

I really like the blur in the background.. There is always a professional sports photographer at the games.. He has a huge lens no flash, and his pics have that tiny blur where u can still see the expressions on their faces! I love that!
1 really stupid question though.. Since I am a newbie to photography. How do I know what lens will fit my D40.. I look on ebay, but I'm not sure if they(Nikkor) all fit my Nikon or do I look for certian specifications??

I don't know about the Nikon mounts, not sure if they have different types or not but I would assume if it is a Nikon mount for any of the digital bodies it should work, and I know OT uses uses some old lenses on his newer Nikon cameras.

/you can look at www.hotbuyselectronics.com , Adorama or B&H for the Sigma 70-200 f2.8 and get an idea on prices, it was around $650 new at one time.

JS

This chart might help http://www.kenrockwell.com/nikon/compatibility-lens.htm#dslr

Or check your D40 manual for compatible lens.

:thumbsup: Thank y'all for your help! It's much appreciated!!:D

We try to help! Now that doesn't mean you can just run off now and forget about us. :eek:

JS

I won't I promise! I'm pretty shy but I really like this site! I love looking at the beautiful pictures!

For the D40 you will be limited to the AF-S type lenses which are the newest and more expensive. The 80-200 f2.8 that OldTimer mentions (and that I use as well) won't autofocus on your camera. The D40/D40x bodies don't have the internal focus motor for the older lenses. Be careful that you purchase one that will work correctly with your camera!

I won't I promise! I'm pretty shy but I really like this site! I love looking at the beautiful pictures!

Hmmmm, Ok, well we don't have too much beauty in this part of the forum....but we try once in a while..........

Hang around here and you won't be shy too long :)


JS

:D :eek: