best camera for sports?

[Godfather25]

i was wondering if anyone can give me advice for the best camera and equipment for sports photography? if anyone has ANY information such as what kind of camera. and what lense i should use that would be great. thanks

[SmartWombat]

Welcome to photographyreview.com, I'd like to invite you to come on over to the Sports forum.

We've tried to answer this question lots of times there.
Tell us what kind of sports you want to photograph, and how much your budget is.

We have users of Canon, Nikon, Sony, Olympus - all shooting sports.
So you can get the biased view of owners of all those brands
There is no one right answer, but we can help you make your decision.


To get consistently good results indoors, you'll want a DSLR.
Outdoors a modern superzoom P&S might work, but DSLR will be better.
Although DSLR is always going to be more expensive - the cost of lenses can be high.

Here's a few threads that might be useful:
VB Picture Will new lens Help?
Stop action sports indoors
Help Needed - On Any Level - Please!
Image Stabilization for Action Shots

[gryphonslair99]

Canon 1D MIII, Canon 70-200 f2.8L, Canon 200mm f2L, Canon 300mm f2.8L, Canon 400mm f2.8L, Canon 600mm f4L, Canon 35mm f1.4L Canon 50mm f1.4, Canon 85mm f1.8, Canon 135mm f2.8L, Gitzo GM-5540 Mountaineer 6X Carbon Fiber Monopod


Oh yeah, A whole lot of cash. You asked.

[deckcadet]

I would never suggest a point and shoot as a long term solution to sports photography. Even an entry level DSLR and decent zoom lens will provide better overall results. You don't need an amazingly expensive body for more basic sports stuff, it's better to spend the money on lenses first. Ideally an f/2.8 70/80-200mm lens would be the core of your lens kit, possibly with a teleconverter to give you some more reach.


or to continue what the above poster suggested, if you happen to be filthy rich,
Nikon D3, Nikon D300, 70-200 f/2.8 VR, 200mm f/2.0 VR, 24-70 f/2.8 N, 300 f/2.8 VR N, 400 f/2.8 VR N, 600 f/4 VR N, 200-400 f/4 VR, 85 f/1.4, 50 f/1.4....

[another view]

Point being here that budget and expectations are what's important. If you're shooting sports you'll expect a camera that will react to what you tell it to do quickly. How fast depends on how much money you want to spend.

Usually I'd recommend a newer digital over an older one but a faster camera that's a couple years old might get you much closer to what you want than something brand new. For example, a Nikon D2H for well under $1000 (maybe $7-800 range?). You'll give up some image quality but it still might be a good answer. And a couple of good lenses.

[Godfather25]

i bought i Nikon D50 package with the two lenses. but i was thinking of upgrading b/c i am looking to start taking pictures for a living, or at least a side job. so i do want the best camera/lense for photography that i can get.

i like this one http://www.kenrockwell.com/nikon/70200vr.htm but i dont know what my next camera will be, but as long as it is a nikon i would be ok (right???).

should i buy a new lense and save up for a new nikon someday??? or the other way around?

[Photo-John]

i like this one http://www.kenrockwell.com/nikon/70200vr.htm but i dont know what my next camera will be, but as long as it is a nikon i would be ok (right???).

should i buy a new lense and save up for a new nikon someday??? or the other way around?

Buying good lenses is the best strategy and you can't do any better than the Nikon AF-S 70-200 VR lens. That is a lifetime investment and will not let you down. Here's a link to the user reviews for that lens on this site:

Nikon 70-200mm f/2.8G ED-IF AF-S VR Zoom-Nikkor Reviews

And your D50 will be fine. Use it to learn good technique and the basic principles of photography. When and if you find the camera is getting in the way, then consider getting a new body. But you will be able to take fine photos with it as long as you learn the proper techniques. The Sports Forum is a great place to learn those techniques. You can post photos there and ask for advice. There's a lot of sports photography knowledge on that forum

[JSPhoto]

Photo John covered it well. There are several people in the sports forum using the D50 for sports who can help you out. The big thing is what glass (lenses) your using and what sports your shooting.

There are several threads on freelance photographers in sports as well, and you may also want to look into the business forum as well. :thumbsup: It's not easy being a freelance photographer and it takes lots of work and TIME, and practice, practice, practice and more practice! You need to be very dedicated to do this freelance.

JS

[freygr]

I don't care what camera your end up using but it will be a DSLR with a fast telephoto lens with a minim F stop of 2.8. Nikon has both a VR and non VR version of there 80-200mm F2.8, or Canon also has a 80-200 L version. I'm sure there are other lenses out there also in the same focal range from other makers. But at the horse shows it seams that is the lens I mostly see but for other sports the lenses may be longer. But the fast lenses all cost about the same starting at about $700 and up.