Zoom lense for sports

[KimMedders]

Hi,

I just received a Canon Rebel t5i for my birthday.  I received a lense with the package deal, but I need a lense that will take close up pictures for sports since my sons are both football and baseball players.  I am not a professional photographer and have a budget.  Any suggestions?

Thank you in advance!

Kim

[Waddizzle]

If you want to be Sports Illustrated close, then you will pay some big bucks.  What lens did you get with the camera?  You can always use a quality, medium telephoto lens, and crop the photo down to Sports Illustrated close up, in many cases.

I think a medium telephoto zoom would work, if you didn't get one with the camera.  Canon makes a couple of ranges of moderate telephoto zoom lenses.  There are the 70-300mm lenses, most of which are budget oriented, and with budget performance.  There are the 55-250mm lenses, which are also budget oriented, but have comparable image quality as the budget oriented 70-300mm lenses.  There are a couple of lenses in those zoom ranges that cost big bucks, though.

Another popular range is the 70-200mm range, and all of those lenses are part of Canon's "L" series of professional quality lenses, which is probably half of what makes them so popular.  If you can swing cost of one the EF 70-200mm f/4 models, either with or without Image Stabilizatoin, then you might be pleased with one of those. 

Finally, the "best lens" that does it all really doesn't exist.  If it did, then we probably wouldn't have interchangeable lenses for the cameras.  The best lens to use will depend highly upon your shooting location, and what part of the action you are trying to capture.  Go attend some practice sessions, and practice taking a few photos.  Doing so will help in your lens choice, because the higher focal length lenses also tend to weigh more.  The practice will help strengthen weary arms.

[KimMedders]

Hey, Thanks for the input.  I received the basic lens (I suppose) an EF5 18-55mm lense.  This is all foreign to me (lense talk that is) and I'm truly in the dark.  I am trying to read up and learn about lenses etc.  but I know that the only way I will truly learn is by practice as you said. 

Part of me wants to start with a "beginner" lense, but I know if I do I will probably end up getting another one and the "beginner" lense will be wasted so why not get a better one to start off with. 

The pictures I want to take are close up pictures of my boys in action.... not necessarily the whole team lol...

Thanks for your advice!

Kim

[ebiggs1]

Kim,

This is not necessarily true, "If you want to be Sports Illustrated close, then you will pay some big bucks."

Actually you can get some pretty darn god photos with low or moderately priced zoom lenses.  And if you compare it to an iPhone purchase the cost isn't that far different.

My suggestion for you is the Tamron SP 150-600mm f/5-6.3 Di VC USD Lens for Canon.  It is on sale right now at $80 bucks off.

This lens will put you right on the action.  Your second purchase should be a good post editor like Photoshop Elements.  That is where the SI photos come from and are made.

[Waddizzle]

"My suggestion for you is the Tamron SP 150-600mm f/5-6.3 Di VC USD Lens for Canon."   

That is going to be a lot of weight, and a lot of focal length for a new user on an APS-C body.   That will be an equivalent 35mm range of 240-960mm, which is big jump from the likely 18-55mm kit lens that came with the camera. 

I was thinking to keep the upper focal range at 300mm, or less, and encourage cropping the photos with DPP 4, because she said she is on a budget.  I was thinking roughly half the cost that you're aiming at.  DPP can crop a photo, just as well as PSE can.  I was thinking of either the EF 70-200 f/4L USM, or perhaps the lower cost EF 70-300mm f/4-5.6 IS USM, which is on sale at a deep discount right now.

What do you think?

[KimMedders]

Thank you! I am going to go check this out now!

[ebiggs1]

Kim,

I spent last week in Orland with our school Spring Break Band trip.  Here is a photo from the Kennedy Space Center of the group we took.  This was done with a 24mm lens on a 1Ds Mk III.

[KimMedders]

Hi,

Thanks so much for  your advice.  What exactly is Photoshop Elements?  I am going to google it and see, but I doubt it will be in layman's terms ha.  Our school pictures are so expensive AND generic, I was thinking I could do my own version of the boys school pictures, you know?  I'm guessing that is what the Photoshop Elements will help with?

Again, thank you so much!

Kim

[ebiggs1]

"Hi,

 Thanks so much for  your advice.  What exactly is Photoshop Elements?  I am going to google it and see, but I doubt it will be in layman's terms ha.  Our school pictures are so expensive AND generic, I was thinking I could do my own version of the boys school pictures, you know?  I'm guessing that is what the Photoshop Elements will help with?

 Again, thank you so much!

Kim"

Kim,

Hi ! 

A little DSLR 101 for you. The Tamron SP 150-600mm f/5-6.3 Di VC USD Lens for Canon is still the best choice for you.  Focal length, the power of the lens, is a funny thing.  If you do have it, you don't have to use it.   But the fact remains if you don't have it, you can't use it. Make sense?

Now for a most often point everybody that never does this stuff overlooks is location.  The single most important aspect of shooting sports is, where are you shooting from?  Are you limited to the stands or bleachers or can you roam the side lines for instance?  The reason nobody seems to mention this is they do not shoot sports or do photography at all.  I have been our school's photographer for 25 years and shoot almost every situation there is.

The Tammy is about 4 pounds.  Is that too heavy for you?  If it is a bit heavy you can and probably should buy a monopod. Even if you are confined to the bleachers a monopod is easy to use.  Even beneficial as an aid in the stands.  On the side line it is nice. You may have seen the pros use one.

The Tamron is going to be a one time purchase.  Even if you decide to get a better camera, the Tammy will still be there for you.  Some other recommendations may not fit or work!  Big point to consider.  I hope you saw and read my PM to you?

Taking a photo with any camera is just a step in the process of making a great photo.  The equation is 1/2 gear, 1/2 you and 1/2 post editing.  Not necessarily in that order or percentage!   DPP is a limited editor which has some features where a program like Photoshop Elements has virtually everything that can be done to a photo.  This is where great photos are made.  99.5+% of all the great photos you see in any venue have gone through post editing.  And the choice of the industry, by far, is Photoshop.  Elements is the consumer version of the full blown PS.  It has a small to enstensive learning curve depending on how far you want to take it.  It has a catalog so you can actually "find" a certain photo some time later.  Big point to consider.  It has other features that Mon's want like scrapbooking and publishing on Facebook, emailing to grandma and grandpa, etc.

[Waddizzle]

Kim,

Approximately, what is your budget for a zoom lens? 

If no one has told you before, then I'll tell you now.  The cost of quality lenses can easily exceed the initial cost of most consumer oriented cameras, especially when it comes to quality, long zoom lenses.