Digital SLRs...lens...?

Question

I want to buy a Digital SLR camera. So if i buy the actual body that doesn't have many features. Can i buy lens that are special for action/sports, etc. Or does the body of the camera have to have special features for sports, so that it'll turn out good?

Answer 1

any slr camera is capable of taking good action shots. it is the photographer that will need work. get a zoom lens, perhaps a 75mm-300mm and play with the apperture. i would suggest getting a camera kit that comes with a lense so you will save money in the long run.

Answer 2

Welcome to the wonderful world of DSLR's... no longer will you need a button that says sports, macro, or portraiture... all you really need is to understand how to control the ISO, shutter speed, and aperture. Of course, having the right lens helps too. For sports, you'll want to get a telephoto lens which is 135mm or more.

Answer 3

The Canon 100-400 mm zoom is not an every-day lens. It is almost 4 pounds (review of it here: http://www.popphoto.com/cameralenses/275... )

But it can used for sport photos--on a budget.

http://www.flickr.com/photos/little_pook...

Answer 4

Budget?

Here are my suggestions:

Low budget:

Canon XS/XSi or XTi (some great deals on XTi)

Set up body for high-ish ISO, maybe 400 or even 800.

Set up AF for Ai-SERVO

Set up drive mode for multi.

Use Highest Res JPEG

Get either the 55-250 or even better the 70-300 IS Canon USM lens.

Not particularly pro lenses in terms of brightness or build, but both decent optically even wide open, with fairly fast AF, the high ISO will assist the shutter in getting motion freezing exposures.

This is the cheapest option.  You will be frustrated by the lowish number of frames per second, and perhaps some af hunting in lowish light.

The next option costs a good bit more but will give you better results.

Canon EOS 40D with 70-200 f4 L lens (not IS) & decent metal monopod, i.e manfrotto.

Not the same reach as last kit, but constant max aperture, so brighter at the ele end, thus better af.  40D also gives better frame rate, so much so that shooting RAW may even be an option.     IS lens is better for handheld.  A manfrotto monopod will cost you $60, far less than te price difference.

Rich option:  Canon EOS1d mk3.  10fps for 100 frames?  Its the sports togs dream.  The AF system has been fixed and so it is now the BEST sports tog camera in the world BAR NONE.  Price tag to match.  The 70-200 f4 lens would still serve you well, if you have the cash to buy an EOS 1dMk3 then you probably also have the cash to upgrade to the f2.8 version.  This will let you either increase the shutter a stop (for really sharp motion freeze) or lower the ISO a stop (to preserve fine detail)

Answer 5

To shoot sports, you just need a decent amount of speed. Any decent modern DSLR will have the features that you need for shooting action pictures: a fast shutter, a quick continuous speed, and a good metering system. The lenses that you will need for sports mostly just need to have a wide maximum aperture so that they can take in plenty of light and reduce shutter speeds.

There aren't really any odd "features" like in-camera editing, etc., in real cameras, because you can't really edit a picture in the camera: to do a good job, you do this afterwords. A digital SLR will have all the features in the CONTROL department, so you can choose exactly what you want to shoot.

Good photography depends a lot more on who's behind the camera than the camera itself.

Answer 6

Get your self a cheap Canon EOS or Nikon Digital body like the Digital Rebel XTI or the D40 and get your self some good lenses.  The Lenses that you are going to want for sports of action photography are going to need to let more light in through the lens as the shutter speed is going to be high in order to catch the action with out blurring the image.  Larger Lenses that let in more light are also more expensive.  Like the  Canon EF 100-400mm f/4.5-5.6L IS will let in more light and in the case of this lens, it has image stabilization.  When you can afford a better body upgrade... the important thing to remember is that you will get better pictures from higher quality lenses.

Answer 7

What?

DSLR's have all the features you need to shoot sports except the long lens.  It has high shutter speeds (up to 1/8000th second on pro cameras).  There are long, fast lenses used by sports photographers, notably the 400 mm f/2.8 and 600 mm f/4

Besides needing many years of experience, the equipment necessary to shoot sports as a pro, can exceed $35,000.

Having your photos turn out good has all to do with the skills of the photographer, not the camera ... any fully adjustable camera will do.

http://www.kenrockwell.com/tech/howto.ht...

http://www.kenrockwell.com/tech/notcamer...