# Indoor/Outdoor high school sports



## i_am_job (Oct 14, 2010)

I was approached and asked to take photos for some outdoor (soccer, football) and indoor sports (basketball, volleyball) and I've never done much with sports before, so I was wondering what lenses/settings you would recommend. I currently have a d80 with a Nikon 18-55 and Nikon 70-300. I am planning on getting a Nikon 35mm 1.8 for general use, And I was considering getting a 50mm 1.8 for indoor sports. What do you guys think? Thank you!


----------



## cnutco (Oct 14, 2010)

You might be ok with the indoor sports with your zooms, but if you are wanting to shoot high school football, you will need a faster lens.


----------



## GooniesNeverSayDie11 (Oct 14, 2010)

You are going to need a 2.8 or faster lens. Anything smaller and you will either not freeze action, or have very high ISO noise. You can get still shots with less though.


----------



## KmH (Oct 14, 2010)

i_am_job said:


> I was approached and asked to take photos for some outdoor (soccer, football) and indoor sports (basketball, volleyball) and I've never done much with sports before, so I was wondering what lenses/settings you would recommend. I currently have a d80 with a Nikon 18-55 and Nikon 70-300. I am planning on getting a Nikon 35mm 1.8 for general use, And I was considering getting a 50mm 1.8 for indoor sports. What do you guys think? Thank you!


Which 70-300 do you have? Hopefully, the AF-S 70-300 mm 4.5-5.6G VR. the version without the VR is a poor performer.

Indoors and at night outside, you will have no choice but to turn up the ISO to get enough shutter speed to stop motion. That will introduce noise in the photos. moisy photos are better than blurry photos.

Strobed (flash) light can be helpful indoors if it's allowed, and you have strobes powerful enough. Ideally they would be place well above your camera and triggered wirelessly, like with radio triggers.

The 70-300 has enough reach for soccer and football and shooting outside in the daytime won't pose a problem, shutter speed wise.

Many sports shooters use 2 camera bodies, one wo=ith a long lens mounted, and the second with a lens for close action.

The holy grail of sports shooting is capturing faces and emotions along with the action. A good knowledge of the game(s) strategy, so you can antisipate the action, is a definate plus.


----------



## Derrel (Oct 14, 2010)

50mm f/1.8 and 85mm f/1.8 lenses focus reasonably fast, and are pretty useful for indoor court sports like volleyball. Outdoor sports are pretty varied; high scholl football is pretty easy to shoot if it's played under daylight conditions, as many Junior Varsity gamers are played. At night, under the lights, the most critical camera setting is probably your ISO level--crank it UP!!! TO 1600 or 3200, most of the time. If all you have is a 50mm lens, that'll allow you to shoot pass plays and short rushing scores from the back line of the end-zone...a 50mm is fine for that,in fact.

Soccer is tricky...the ball moves up and down and across the field faster than in probably any other sport...but you can get shots on the goal from the end line with even a 50mm lens....but you have to be down there and standing there, ready. Be in the right spot for the lens you have!!!

I dunno...there's a huge, huge emphasis on ultra-telephoto sports photos among the higher-level practitioners of the modern era, and a love for the 300/2.8 and 400/2.8, but many people prefer sports shots with a little bit more context, and literally more "background" behind the athletes...especially for things like yearbook photos and local newspaper shots. Some very famous, and powerful sports shots have been made with shorter lenses, like Roger Bannister's famous 4-minute mile shot, where he passes the pack and they all look winded and stupefied...that was shot from like 10 feet away with a 28mm wide-angle...or Gary Winogrand's famous NFL shot of the Dallas Cowboys, probably done with a Leitz 24mm and his Leica M3, in which all 22 players are in the frame!!

On a crop-body, a 50mm is a 75mm FOV equivalent, and it's FAST....f/1.8...jack the ISO up and work what you got...positioning is more important that the gear, it really is. When a receiver catches a pass in the coffin corner and you're standing near the goal-posts on the end line, your 50mm is going to record the catch AND some of the stadium crowd behind it, and maybe the rally squad jumping up and down...a perfect shot for a yearbook or school newspaper type of photo.


----------



## table1349 (Oct 14, 2010)

The starting point for any sports shooter with a range of sports you are shooting has to be the 70-200mm f2.8. It ia fast, versatile and will provide you with sufficient reach on the field and a sufficiently wide view at the court.

For field sports I always have a 70-200 on a second body. Same thing is often true for indoor sports.   In anything But the darkest dungeons it is fast enough to be useable.  From there it is more open based on your want and pocketbook.  I own a 200 f2.0, 300 f2.8 & 400 f2.8 but always have a 70-200 on hand.  Nikon made an excellent 80-200 f2.8 that you might be able to pick up for a good price used.


----------



## i_am_job (Oct 14, 2010)

Would Nikons 50mm f/1.8 be a decent lens for indoor sports..?


----------



## shaunly (Oct 14, 2010)

cnutco said:


> You might be ok with the indoor sports with your zooms, but if you are wanting to shoot high school football, you will need a faster lens.




It's actually the total opposite. You will NOT be ok with your zoom for indoor sports. It's just way too slow. A 50mm on your crop sensor is actually pretty good for volleyball/basketball. You should also look into the 85mm f/1.8 too. Your camera body does not handle high iso too well, so you need the fastest lens you can get. On the other hand, for outdoor daytime football, your current zoom should be ok. 300mm on crop sensor is about 450mm equiv. As long as it's in the day time, your zoom lens should be fine.


----------



## shaunly (Oct 14, 2010)

i_am_job said:


> Would Nikons 50mm f/1.8 be a decent lens for indoor sports..?



yes it'll be great for indoor sports. HS court are small, it doesn't required huge amount of zoom. Remember to shoot in RAW though, that way you'll get the best ISO level out of your image.


----------



## table1349 (Oct 14, 2010)

i_am_job said:


> Would Nikons 50mm f/1.8 be a decent lens for indoor sports..?



That depends on where you can shoot from.  The stands - No.  Base line/net side then yes it is a useable lens.


----------



## i_am_job (Oct 14, 2010)

gryphonslair99 said:


> i_am_job said:
> 
> 
> > Would Nikons 50mm f/1.8 be a decent lens for indoor sports..?
> ...



Yes I would be able to shoot from the sidelines/baselines.


----------



## Damadsetta (Aug 1, 2011)

I second the 85 1.8, fantastic lens great value.


----------



## KmH (Aug 1, 2011)

Thank you for digging up this old, dead thread.


----------

