Action zoom lens

[calilove27]

I have a Rebel T3i and I go to a lot of sports games, so I need some suggestions for action/zoom lens. I'm obviously not a professional photographer haha (: so I have to scratch off those large telefoto lens that the professional photographers use at games.

[Skirball]

Is the 200 really less than 6"?  I felt like it was longer than that in my memory.  It's a great lens.

[trulandphoto]

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@Skirball wrote:

Is the 200 really less than 6"?  I felt like it was longer than that in my memory.  It's a great lens.

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Yes, I did look it up as I no longer own one. Canon lists it as 3.3" wide and 5.4" long. 

I migrated from this lens to a 70-200 f/4 to a 70-200 f/2.8 to the 70-200 f/2.8 IS II.

[Skirball]

Interesting.  I used one this weekend, and while I didn't pull out the tape measure I'd swear it was longer than that.  I assume they don't include the mount for the length.

That's quite a migration pathway, but I'd guess you've reached the end of that, for some time anyway.  I enjoyed using the 200/2.8, but I have to say I sure missed the IS when shooting with flash at 1/160.  I definately lost some shots due to camera shake.  The 70-200 f/2.8 IS II would have been nice to have.

[cale_kat]

Don't pass on vibration/stabilizer control. Most people that shoot hand-held come to appreciate shake control.

[Skirball]

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@cale_kat wrote:

Don't pass on vibration/stabilizer control. Most people that shoot hand-held come to appreciate shake control.

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There's not much you can do, when the lens you're using doesn't have IS.  There are a lot of exceptionally fantastic lenses out there that don't have IS, I'm not going to not use them because of it.

[cale_kat]

Well the OP said he/she was interested in buying a lens. I advise him to skip on those without stabilizer/vibration control and get one with this extremely good feature for hand-held shooting, especially with a telephoto lens.

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@Skirball wrote:

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@cale_kat wrote:

Don't pass on vibration/stabilizer control. Most people that shoot hand-held come to appreciate shake control.

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There's not much you can do, when the lens you're using doesn't have IS.  There are a lot of exceptionally fantastic lenses out there that don't have IS, I'm not going to not use them because of it.

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[amfoto1]

Your two best options have been given...

Low cost: 55-250 STM IS.

Higher cost: 70-300 DO IS USM.

Both these are black, not "Canon white" which attracts more attention, a lot of venues immediately label as "pro" gear and try to reject.

You'll want a zoom for the versatility, but are very limited by size. Some of the prime lenses suggested are quite good and might offer larger apertures for low light shooting, but will be very limiting and will require you to move around a lot to get shots of various places on the field.

250mm or even 300mm is better than anything shorter, but still isn't going to be enough reach for some situations shooting baseball. 400mm and even 500mm can be useful. But I'm afraid it's the most you are going to get with, since the lens is limited to no longer than 6". (NOte: Be sure to remove or reverse your lens hood when entering, so it's not counted by the folks eyeballing your lens.)

These two zooms will be fine for day games, and might be okay at night if the lighting is strong (pro park quality). But may struggle at night in weaker lighting (such as is common at high school and municipal parks). Unfortunately, size again is the constraining factor. Any big aperture lens is going to be too large to sneak in.

The USM lens will likely do better achieving focus on lower light, than the STM will do. But I believe you will get the best results tracking moving subjects if you set your camera to use only the center AF point, then work at keeping that right on the subject you want in focus. Definitely set the camera to AI Servo, half-press the shutter release button to start focus well in advance and keep AF active continuously while tracking, then take your shot(s) by fully pressing the shutter release.

You also might want to experiment with Back Button Focusing, which is a popular technique among sports/action photographers in particular.

***********
Alan Myers

San Jose, Calif., USA
"Walk softly and carry a big lens."
GEAR: 5DII, 7D(x2), 50D(x3), some other cameras, various lenses & accessories
FLICKR & PRINTROOM 

[Bingo]

http://www.blucherphotography.com/Sports/Giants-v-Broncos-2013/i-pK84DsN

(The above link takes you to the bottom of my page instead of the top, scroll up)

I used the 70-300 DO IS USM for the above link. I sit 17 rows from the field. You'll see I shot close to my endzone as well as the far endzone.

I rented this lens specifically for the 6 inch rule at most stadiums.

 I have a 7D

[ebiggs1]

Pretty nice if it were not for that © right in the middle of the picture!  

[cale_kat]

... and Bingo was his name oh.