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Want to upgrade to dslr to take horse racing action photos, need recommendations

ilzho
Rising Star

Hello:

 

For years I have had my Powershot G10 to take general pictures and it has worked well.

 

I am a huge fan of horse racing and I'm lucky to have a track, very close by. 

 

I want to be able to 'freeze' a horse and jockey racing among other types of photos.

My G10 cannot take these kind of pictures 'well'.

 

I am not looking to become a professional as I am not an expert at all, but I would love to have some proper equipment to take realitive good photos of horses racing/Equine. Yes this takes a lot of knowledge and practice/experience. All of which I do not have enough of.

 

I am looking to stay in the Canon family and would like some recommendations on a good DSLR camera and some lenses.

My budget is about $1500.

 

Any help and guidance is apprecaited.

 

Thank you,

David

79 REPLIES 79

ilzho
Rising Star
The mark II price is the same for me, but it's the body only.
So I'll get the 7d mark II, EF 70-200mm f4/L USM.

Now for the daily 'touristy' lens you mentioned the EF-S 17- 55mm f/2.8 IS & EF 24-105mm f/4L IS.

Why are these lens more expensive than the EF 70-200mm ?
Is it the IS?
Thanks as always.


@ilzho wrote:
The mark II price is the same for me, but it's the body only.
So I'll get the 7d mark II, EF 70-200mm f4/L USM.

Now for the daily 'touristy' lens you mentioned the EF-S 17- 55mm f/2.8 IS & EF 24-105mm f/4L IS.

Why are these lens more expensive than the EF 70-200mm ?
Is it the IS?
Thanks as always.

Excellent choice.  The 7D Mark II and the EF 70-200mm f/4L USM is a versatile combo for outdoor shooting.  The 70mm short end will be a little long for indoor use, though, but that is why there is such a wide variety of lenses out there.  No one lens can excel at every photography scenario.

 

Yes, image stabilization naturally adds to the cost of a lens.  However, not all shooting scenarios need, or even benefit from, image stabilization.  For example, IS is usually turned off when you use a tripod because the IS systems can be fooled into by the lack of camera shake, and can potentially create "motion blur" in your photos. 

 

IS works by constantly making small adjustments to the image to compensate for camera shake.  When the camera is mounted on a tripod, there is little to no camera shake.  But, the IS system will happily keep right on hunting for camera shake, anyway, which can create what looks like blurry and out of focus images.  So, we turn off IS when we use a tripod.

 

Additionally, if you shutter speed is fast enough, then IS becomes a moot point.  IS is most useful in special shooting scenarios, such as low lighting that force you to use slower shutter speeds. 

--------------------------------------------------------
"The right mouse button is your friend."

"When the camera is mounted on a tripod, there is little to no camera shake.  But, the IS system will happily keep right on hunting for camera shake, anyway, which can create what looks like blurry and out of focus images."

 

From a reading source on the web?  Not from hands on experience?  I should try and shake the camera when IS is on?  Because if I hold it very still it will make blurry photos?

EB
EOS 1DX and 1D Mk IV and less lenses then before!


@ebiggs1 wrote:

"When the camera is mounted on a tripod, there is little to no camera shake.  But, the IS system will happily keep right on hunting for camera shake, anyway, which can create what looks like blurry and out of focus images."

 

From a reading source on the web?  Not from hands on experience?  I should try and shake the camera when IS is on? Because if I hold it very still it will make blurry photos?


You've been on this forum longer than I have, Ernie, so you'll probably recall that a few years ago that phenomenon was widely reported, or at least widely believed. Conceivably it was just an urban legend, and in any case I've read (also in this forum) that more modern IS lenses don't exhibit that behavior.

Bob
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania USA

"You've been on this forum longer than I have, Ernie, so you'll probably recall that a few years ago that phenomenon was widely reported, or at least widely believed. Conceivably it was just an urban legend, and in any case I've read (also in this forum) that more modern IS lenses don't exhibit that behavior."  

 

It's no myth.  My Sigma 150-500 was especially susceptible to it.

 

At issue with some older lens designs, and some current budget lenses, is that they were not smart enough to stop trying to stabilize the mage when the shutter button wasn't being pressed.  It was active at all times, whenever the camera was awake.

--------------------------------------------------------
"The right mouse button is your friend."

Bob from Boston, the Wise One,

"Conceivably it was just an urban legend, ..."

As is most of the reviews and reports found on the ole inter-web.  Actually doing and observing is the best way to learn what is what and which is which.  If all you do is read'em, you will eventually believe'em.

 

EB
EOS 1DX and 1D Mk IV and less lenses then before!


@ilzho wrote:
The mark II price is the same for me, but it's the body only.
So I'll get the 7d mark II, EF 70-200mm f4/L USM.

Now for the daily 'touristy' lens you mentioned the EF-S 17- 55mm f/2.8 IS & EF 24-105mm f/4L IS.

Why are these lens more expensive than the EF 70-200mm ?
Is it the IS?
Thanks as always.

Congratulations on your new camera. Just be prepared for a steep learning curve. The 7D Mk II is Canon's Pro level APS-C camera. Being Pro level doesn't necessarily translate into easier to use. It is extremely configurable meaning it's easy to mess things up. It also lacks scene modes, so there is no setting it to the 'Running man' while you sort the camera out like you could with the 70D.

 

The ideal walk around lens for 7D Mk II is the EF-S 18-135 IS STM. It is what came with my 7D Mk II as its kit lens. But, don't let the term 'kit lens' scare you it has fantastic image quality. But, note the STM designation, there is an older 18-135 that isn't quite as good.

Here is a link to the EOS 7D Mark II AF-Setting Guidebook Canon put out to help people understand its sophisticated AF system. That's in addition to the normal manuals that cover the rest of the camera's operation.

Ok, so I went to the track today with my little ol Canon Poweshot G10 (point and shoot) with a teleconver lens that blocks my viewfinder so I have to use the LCD screen to see and pan (kinda hard) during the race and this is just a few shots, but it takes 1 photo every .8 seconds in continous mode...... Poof the horses have passed, hahha.

So a lot of this is ability, which I have little of and will get better ,but would like to have a litte better equipment than my G10.

I had my canon in Shutter Priority mode to try to capture some images....

Thought I would share.....

 

IMG_8629.jpgIMG_8633.jpgIMG_8802.jpgIMG_8796.jpgIMG_9053.jpg


@ilzho wrote:

Ok, so I went to the track today with my little ol Canon Poweshot G10 (point and shoot) with a teleconver lens that blocks my viewfinder so I have to use the LCD screen to see and pan (kinda hard) during the race and this is just a few shots, but it takes 1 photo every .8 seconds in continous mode...... Poof the horses have passed, hahha.

So a lot of this is ability, which I have little of and will get better ,but would like to have a litte better equipment than my G10.

I had my canon in Shutter Priority mode to try to capture some images....

Thought I would share..... 

 


As I mentioned early on, the 7D Mk II is major overkill for what you need. So is the EF 70-200 f4 IS, and no you don't want to pair the non-IS version with the 7D Mk II, when shooting 10 fps, it needs the IS to help it focus. 

 

I'd look at the T6i or 70D with a 18-135 IS STM kit lens, and the for your track lens get the EF-S 55-250 IS STM lens. That should half your money output, with almost zero difference in your real world results. And it will be easier to use, and less likely to get you kicked out of the track because of the 'big white pro lens' FWIW, in the past I was a track official at Thistledown, in Ohio and I know you wouldn't have been allowed to use that camera and lens there.


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