Football, Cricket, and Gymnastics - Decision nearly made.

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ste1010

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Steve
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Hi
You may recall another thread I started regarding choosing a lens for taking pics of my kids, specifically football, cricket and gymnastics. I have been borrowing my brothers 70-200 F4 L. This has given some good results for football and cricket, but is not suited to the Gym. Body is a 550d.

Following advice in the other thread I came up with the following options:-

Sigma 70-200 F2.8 - Great for outdoor sports, but may struggle in poorly lit gyms. Also some focussing issues on Canon bodies, and may result in a lot of hassle trying to get a good copy.

With the above in mind I think I need two lenses, one for indoor, one for outdoor so I have the following thoughts:-

Canon 85mm F1.8 - Good in low light, will mean I need to get close to the action, which is normally possible. fixed focal length may cause problems if shooting close up, i.e medal presentations etc.

Canon 100mm F2.0 - As above although very slightly slower and slightly longer.

At the moment I have decided I will buy one of the above. I was thinking if I went 100mm I could add a nifty fifty for next to nothing and that would be ideal for close ups etc indoor.

Does the above make sense, and can anyone advise if there is any deciding factor over 85 or 100mm.

That leaves me with a decision to be made about the outdoor sports. I could purchase my brothers 70-200 F4, but then that doesn't leave me the funds to get the indoor lens.

I was looking at possible making the 70-200 a future purchase, and getting a cheaper lens in the meantime and was considering the following:-

One of the older Canon 70-210 lenses, either the F4 push/pull focus or the Canon 70-210 F3.5-4.5. These seem to get good reviews, especially the 3.5-4.5 as it focusses pretty quick. these seem to be available for around £70 second hand.

I was also thinking about the Canon 55-250 IS or possibly trying to find a used Canon EF 70-300mm f/4-5.6 IS USM. I also see that some of the Sigma 300mm zooms can be had quite cheaply.

Can anyone advise on the above for football/cricket. The pictures will be taken in good light as I will not be using for publication or any other commercial activity, so if its a dark dull day, I will just put the camera away. Any advice is appreciated, and apologies for rambling on a bit. If I need to provide any further info please let me know.

Thanks Steve
 
What is your budget Steve...Where are you regionally located ? Some kind sole may be able to let you try before you buy..
 
Budget is probably in the region of up to and just over £300. I have considered the 85mm and 100mm from Kerso based on a price list he sent. I believe he is very competitive, and reliable. Also I believe the lenses have a worldwide warranty so being US models is not an issue.

I am based near Middlesborugh

Thanks for your reply
 
I won't let you down. I get great support for my business with Talk Photography! Regards Ian.
 
ste1010 said:
Budget is probably in the region of up to and just over £300. I have considered the 85mm and 100mm from Kerso based on a price list he sent. I believe he is very competitive, and reliable. Also I believe the lenses have a worldwide warranty so being US models is not an issue.

I am based near Middlesborugh

Thanks for your reply
Click to expand...

kerso said:
I won't let you down. I get great support for my business with Talk Photography! Regards Ian.
Click to expand...



There you go Steve...you wont get better than that ...
 
Ian, could you pm me the price of the 85mm F1.8 and the 100mm F2, the price list I have is from a while ago.

The hard bit will be which one to get. I have read some reviews that the 85mm is the better lens and others say its build is poor as the front rings are plastic. I was erring on the side of the 100mm to be honest. I could then add a nifty 50 and that would cover a wider range. The 85 and 50 may be a bit too close together. I know the 50 is not great for action shots, but I have read loads of posts on US sites that people use them for basket ball.

Cheers

Steve
 
I've not picked up a 100mm/2 but I liked my 85/1.8 a lot. I wouldn't bother too much about build quality quibbles as long as you are not throwing your stuff about. One might be marginally more robust that the other but the 85 is a well made and widely used lens. If it was badly built we would have heard many more complaints.

I've seen lots of good sports shots with a 50mm lens. You just have to adapt the shots you go for to the lens' limitations. Focusing on fast moving bodies at close distances is tough for any lens/body. But a bit of prefocussing can get you good shots, and artistic blurs to sports shots can add some variety.
 
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I have both the 85mm f1.8 & 100 f2.0......I use the 85mm for basketball and I'm very happy with it.

I've never done gymnastics but do do a fair bit of indoor sports and if I know I'm able to get close to the action then the 85mm f1.8 is one of the first lenses in my bag.
 
P-E said:
I've never done gymnastics but do do a fair bit of indoor sports and if I know I'm able to get close to the action then the 85mm f1.8 is one of the first lenses in my bag.
Click to expand...

How close is close, my daughter cometes at local and national comps and I can normally get to withing 15 feet of the floor or apparatus.

Cheers

Steve
 
For basketball and volleyball for example I would be in the corners courtside.....85mm is fine for action around the basket but can be short for action further up the court but I always work with 2 camera bodies.
 
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