Nikon 80-200/2.8 ED AFD Help Needed.....

[Sunniflowers]

I am having a problem with my new lens (new model Nikon 80-200/2.8 ED AFD ). I am using it with my Nikon N70 body... and last weekend tried taking photos of my daughter at her gymnastics meet (no flash allowed) and I kept getting that there was not enough avail light that the photos would be underexposed... the place was fairly well lit but still, without a flash it wasn't possible.... how can I actually use this lens at her next meet, without the flash....do I need a VERY high speed film..is that the problem ? I Was using 400speed..superia....will this solve my low light problem..if so whatspeed to get? Or is the problem my N70 body???

[Franglais]

I am having a problem with my new lens (new model Nikon 80-200/2.8 ED AFD ). I am using it with my Nikon N70 body... and last weekend tried taking photos of my daughter at her gymnastics meet (no flash allowed) and I kept getting that there was not enough avail light that the photos would be underexposed... the place was fairly well lit but still, without a flash it wasn't possible.... how can I actually use this lens at her next meet, without the flash....do I need a VERY high speed film..is that the problem ? I Was using 400speed..superia....will this solve my low light problem..if so whatspeed to get? Or is the problem my N70 body???

I don't know the N70 but the problem appears simple. It may look like the scene is well lit to your eyes, but in fact light levels are low. With a 200mm lens and a moving subject you should be aiming at an exposure of 1/200 sec f2.8 or better. If the camera is showing - for instance - 1/30s f2.8 then the images are going to be blurred due to camera shake.

Yes you need a very high speed film and Fuji Superia 1600 is the one. Even 1600 ISO might not be enough - check out with your lab if they can push it +1 to 3200 ISO. If you were getting 1/30s f2.8 with 400 ISO film then you would get something like 1/200 f3 with 3200 ISO.

Charles

[technicolor]

if the light wasnt as bad as franglais described, i heard that fuji 800 pushed to 1600 looks better than actuall 1600. but, as he said, if its so bad that you need a couple more stops, then pushing the 1600 may be the way, but just know the shots are gonna be grainy. I may have missed this, but do you have a tripod? This may help you a little bit. You can't set the shutter too slow without blurring the action, but maybe a little slower than you could handheld.

[another view]

What shutter speeds were you reading? That will help determine the film speed you'll need to use - figuring on using that lens wide open. You probably want a minimum of 1/60 even on a monopod. The other thing is that the color of light in a not-so-well lit gym (as in not the Olympics!) isn't usually so good. Color neg film can overcome a lot of the problems in the printing process, but one way to eliminate it altogether is to use b&w film.

Try Ilford Delta 3200 if you have a lab that "does" b&w film. Shoot at 1600 if you can get away with it, 3200 if you need to.

[paulnj]

[QUOTE=Sunniflowers]I kept getting that there was not enough avail light that the photos would be underexposed... QUOTE]

OK..... this part seems to be OVER LOOKED in the replies.

the N70 has a shutter speed of 1/4000th to 30 seconds!!!

the statement tells me your camera NEEDED MORE THAN 30 SECONDS to exposure properly.

WHAT aperture were you using? WHAT mode were you in?

It sound to me like it was VERY dark where you were focusing and/ or you were at F22 .

[Sunniflowers]

I always use apeature priority setting...and try to use the lowest ap avail to blur the background... as far as setting and other details I didnt get a chance to check as I didnt want to miss her meet by fooling with the camera... I will pick up the 1600 film though and give it a try.... would I bypass this whole film problem by just getting a Nikon digital camera...like the D100 ?

[another view]

Well, there's a subject! Here's what I've found - my Fuji S2 is great at ISO800 but a lot of times I need more than that for shooting bands. 1600 is the highest on the Fuji and it's not pretty - but I haven't tried any noise reduction software. Lately I've been using Delta 3200 exposed at 1600 when I can and 3200 when I have to. My film scanner isn't the greatest, and it will take some work to get decent results.

I'd probably not go with a D100 at this point - it's been around as long as the Fuji S2. The D70 looks pretty good at 1600 though. You also have the benefit of a histogram and LCD display to see if you're getting the results you want. And adjustable white balance so you don't have to worry about color shifts.

When the light is so low that I need 1600 (even with f1.4 lenses) then the AF won't really work too well on a D70/S2/D100 etc. Another reason I use film in that situation is that it's in an F5 which can almost see in the dark.