Another What dSLR should I buy?

[rolledmymazda]

1st, Hi all, new to the forum but I have tried to read most of the more recent posts on "what SLR should I buy".


I am coming from a Sony Cyber-shot DSC-V3


Most of the pictures are "sport" pictures, specifically MMA and Boxing.

- Ringside shooting, so NO FLASH! "low light"
- Mostly website pictures (but large size prints would be a bonus, poster size)
- Again ringside, so distance would be 1-24ft
- I work for the Local Combative Sport Commission, so MMA and Boxing seminars, with the "group shot" at the end.

Less important shoots.
Some car shots as I'm in a couple car clubs (Drive a 89 Nissan Skyline GTR w/6 speed Getrag swap)
- car club guys like their night shots ;)
- a few friends race local GT series, so some races/lap days, drifting and the odd drag race.

Price range
- $1300ish for just the camera

I am looking at the Canon EOS 40D

from what I have read ISO 3200 is good for low light?
1/8000 shutter speed
and CMOS Sensor again for low light?
- Compared to the Nikon D200?

also, the $1300 price range is a personal limit not a financial one, so I'd be willing to go to $2000 for just the camera, like the Canon EOS 5D, Olympus E-3 or Nikon D300. if it would help with my sport type of shot.
- EOS 5D 3 fps? this is a bad thing for sport shots right?
- Sony 700? at $1400 with close to same specs as D300? (one thing Sony does well is market their stuff, all the fancy words and technical jargon on their 700 page sure makes it look good, too bad I don't understand any of it lol)

And any lens info would also help, again mostly for low light, NO FLASH, sport shots.
Not sure of price range as I have never bought a lens, so $500-1000?


Haven't used any Editing Software before, but I'm a quick learner so that's not a issue.




Thanks in advance,
Charles

(Its Friday night in the summer, so I'm not expecting any quick replies, enjoy your weekend ;)
*had to edit my $$$

[Photo-John]

Charles-
The EOS 40D is a great camera. It will shoot 6.5 frames-per-second, which is nice if you need that speed. But if you don't need that speed, I would encourage you to look at the XSi / 450D or XTi / 400D. I believe those two cameras are very underrated amongst sports and other pro photographers. I've shot tons of mountain biking with both of them. I have a 40D, too. But only because of the 6.5 FPS burst rate, which can be very important for mountain bike photos. I can see it also helping with boxing photos and I know it will make a difference with motorsports. On the other hand, good technique and timing with the "entry-level" bodies will still allow you to get great photos. And you can put the money you save towards a better lens.

For both motorsports and low-light stuff like boxing, the lens is going to be very important. There's a member who shoots ultimate fighting and posts on the sports photography forum. You might want to check and see what lenses he's using. But a fast aperture zoom will be the right thing to do. I think your budget of $800-1000 is on-target. You'll want a lens with a maximum aperture of at least f/2.8. And I think a zoom range in the neighborhood of 17-50mm. Canon has a 17-40mm f/4L. But for low-light, indoor action photos, I don't think that f/4 aperture is going to cut it.

[rolledmymazda]

Sorry for taking so long to post a thanks for the reply, i was out of town for 3 days.


Thanks for the comments and information, you're very right about technique and timing, the reason why I don't mind spending the extra money to compensate for my slow trigger finger

Also the 17-50mm is very helpful information, as I have never bought a lens and had no idea where to even start.

I just found a place in my city that rents Digital cameras, sent them off an email on prices, if they are reasonable I may rent a couple for my next event and see how they preform against my skill level, so thanks for recommending some other cameras to look at.


On a side note, I visited a Buddhist temple/garder on my short trip and was disappointed in the zoom on the DSC-V3 at a subject (water lilly) about 20ft away, so my question is what lens would I be looking at for a close up on a small object at about 20-30ft, not on the old DSC, but on the 40D or XSi/XTi type of cameras.