2 questions

[marcusbigdady]

any good forums for photography(besides this one)?

any suggestions on a lens for taking pics at wrestling meets, the light on the mats are pretty good but the parents must stay in the stand and the lighting is alot dimmer up there,and i will be shooting from (i know its a big diff.) 50-100 ft. just depending on how big the schools are....

thanks for the help & be easy on my pocket,I have 4 kids and a saltwater habit

 

[jeffbrig]

You'll need a pretty fast lens to freeze indoor sports action. Unfortunately, range + speed tends to be a lot of money.

What camera body are you using? I use Canon, but plenty of Nikon users out there can weigh in as well.

Whatever you get, F4 should be the highest maximum aperture to look for. Ideally, F2.8 would be even better. Beware that many telephoto zooms creep up in aperture as you go towards max zoom. Constant aperture lenses tend to be a bit more expensive.

You can also get back some speed by pushing the ISO setting on the camera, at the cost of some increased graininess. There are some great tools out there (I like NeatImage) for cleaning up ISO noise.

If you can deal with the fixed focal length, something like a canon 100mm f2.8 macro might be nice (if the focal length works for your shooting distance). It's fast and sharp, and because it can focus to infinity, it doubles a quality all-purpose prime. As an added bonus, a macro is great for shooting in the aquarium.

If you don't need too much zoom range, the Tamron 28-75 f2.8 is a quality lens, and has constant aperture throughout the its range. If you need more distance, the canon 70-200 is available in several flavors, f2.8 or f4, each with or without image stabilization. Just keep in mind, image stabilization does nothing to freeze action, it just reduces hand shake. Some people confuse IS with magically making a lens faster than it really is.

 

[jeffbrig]

Re: 2 questions

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=8828394#post8828394 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by marcusbigdady
any good forums for photography(besides this one)?

Canon forums:
http://photography-on-the.net/forum/forumdisplay.php?f=33

Lens reviews:
http://www.photozone.de/8Reviews/index.html

 

[Blazer88]

You can also check out fredmiranda.com as they have a specific sports section, I'm sure there are plenty of people to steer you in the right direction. I think the the 70-200mm F/4L would be a good economical choice if you have a Canon body, it can be had for about $500 used. The price (and weight) jumps up quickly if you go with the F/2.8 or the IS versions.

 

[marcusbigdady]

I am using a Canon XTi with a 28-135 f/3.5-5.6 IS lens.I will be shooting wrestling and football for the next 4 years so if its a lens that is only for those events that is fine.. Thanks

 

[BlueCorn]

The 70-200mm F/4L (non IS) can currently be had for $570 brand new.

I had that 28-135 and couldn't stand it. It is still referred to, in my household, as "the stupid lens."