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.

[cicopo]

I could recommend a few lenses but they may not let you in to those sporting events. Before we can be of help you need to determine what spectators can bring in, which often kills bringing anything that may produce quality photos. Promotors & stars don't want unauthorized photos making commercial sites.

[calilove27]

Oh yes, that's true. I go to a lot of baseball games and I just checked their website. "Lenses cannot exceed 6" in length."

[TCampbell]

It's not that the professional photographers WANT to spend all that money on those high-end lenses... but there are attributes which set those lenses above the others.

The f-stop describes the size of the opening in the lens (the physical aperture) relative to the length of the lens.  The larger this opening is (the smaller the ratio) the more light the lens can collect when the shutter is open (and as a side-effect... it also produces a shallower depth of field ... that's the range of distances at which a subject will appear to be more-or-less in acceptable focus.)

If these are outdoor games played in mid-day... lots of sunlight, then any telephoto lens will do.  For fast moving subjects its always nice to have fast moving focus motors (Canon's "USM" motors are the fastest, followed by the "STM" motors... the lenses which don't indicate "USM" or "STM" are the slowest.)

However... if you are shooting either indoor games or outdoor night games played under artificial lighting then collecting enough light to allow for a fast shutter speed can be a real challenge.  To address that, low focal-ratio zoom lenses are ideal (e.g. f/2.8 zooms lenses) but these lenses aren't cheap.  To create a low focal ratio means that the diameter of clear aperture has to be large as compared to the focal length.  That means that each lens element must be physically bigger than it would be in a typical lens.  This creates a problem because large lens elements work like prisms near their edges in that they try to split light into their constituent "rainbow" wavelengths.  To combat that issue (which they refer to as "chromatic abberateion" or "color fringing") they have to create extra corrective elements.  That means these lenses are not just bigger and wider, but also have more physical glass in them and are more difficult to make.  This results in a more expensive lens.

The professional sports photographers would much rather buy inexpensive lenses... if only they could get away with it.  

If your'e shooting ourdoor games... the EF 70-300mm f/4-5.6 IS USM may do the trick.  If shooting in less favorable lighting (indoor games) then the EF 70-200mm f/2.8L IS USM II is certainly a fantastic (but not cheap) lens.  The EF 70-200mm f/4L USM is a MUCH less expensive alternative but it's 1 stop slower (it collects half the light when the shutter is open).  For outdoor games a longer focal length is desirable... usually around 300mm.

[ebiggs1]

"Lenses cannot exceed 6" in length."

This is going to eliminate most of Canon's better tele's.

But one, a very good lens, although it is a little pricey at $1400 bucks, is the EF 70-300mm f4-5.6 DO IS USM would be a outstanding choice. It is less than 4” in length.

A somewhat cheaper choice would be the EF-S 55-250mm f4-5.6 IS STM (about 4 ½”).

And probably lastly (at 5 inches) the EF 75-300mm f4-5.6 III USM.

Light and conditions not withstanding, if length of the lens is mandatory spec.  

[ebiggs1]

Another approach would be a lens in the caliber of the EF 135mm f2 USM (4 1/2") and Photoshop Elements 12.

You may be surprised how much you can do with this light grabbing lens and PSE.

Post processing is where it's at!  

[cicopo]

Based on what I've read over the years most places consider Canon white lenses as pro lenses so anything white is out. I bought a 70-300 DO years ago from someone who used it for Tennis match work, and the resoning was exactly what is needed here. Many don't really like that lens but my copy was very sharp & could shoot R/C quite well so it's AF is fast.

[Skirball]

There's also the Canon 55-250 IS lens.  You can get a refurbished one from Canon for a little over a $100.  It's a fine lens.  It won't do what some of those listed above will do, but not everyone is looking to spend a grand on camera components.

[TCampbell]

That's an excellent suggestion by Ed. The "DO" lenses are "diffractive optics" -- these leses have a green stripe around front end of the lens barrel (you can spot them easily because of that stripe), but what differentiates them is that they use special optics which allows a physically short lens to achieve a much longer focal length then you would ordinarily expect from such a lens.

Of the lenses Ed lists here, the DO is certainly going to be the best. The 55-250mm comes in an STM and non-STM version. The STM has faster focusing motors and better optical quality. It is a much better lens than the non-STM variety and costs only very slightly more. The 75-300mm is a budget-priced lens and as such, don't expect it to be a top-performer.

[trulandphoto]

I'm going to suggest the EF 200mm f/2.8L. It's less than 6", black so it doesn't draw a lot of attention and it's very sharp.