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Comment by icemanneo posted on Lenses for sports at 15/07/2015 - 09:48
fritzthedog wrote:
Mike
That lens your friend is using is £1,500 of well regarded Canon glass. If you want to spend that sort of money - you can buy a longer and sharper lens for your K3 than the one you have.
Check out the Pentax HD 150-450 or DA* 300
That said - most people who own the Sigma you have rate it very highly
Carl
Hi Carl,Mike
That lens your friend is using is £1,500 of well regarded Canon glass. If you want to spend that sort of money - you can buy a longer and sharper lens for your K3 than the one you have.
Check out the Pentax HD 150-450 or DA* 300
That said - most people who own the Sigma you have rate it very highly
Carl
I really appreciate your feedback on the question I posed and I did look at the new Pentax lens (150-450mm) but feel I will wait, not only for the price to possibly drop but also try to get to grips with the set-up I currently have to see where i might be going wrong.
My friend did tell me that the lens he has was a fair amount of change when he bought it several years ago and it has been used quite a bit.
I guess to make the next step up then you would have to look at spending upwards of GBP1,500 for a good lens.
I never knew photography could be quite an expensive hobby
Mike
Comment by icemanneo posted on Lenses for sports at 15/07/2015 - 09:45
fritzthedog wrote:
If you have not done so already - you may also find it useful to switch focus peaking on and use live view to focus. This option can be found in menu 3 - live view on the camera
Carl
Thanks again Carl!icemanneo wrote:
As a start point - read page 47 of the K3 user manual - take a test shot - make minor adjustments (and note the changes you make) -compare results until you get the best and if needed change the setting accordingly and if you get stuck - ask here. Personally I have been lucky and never had to do a fine adjustment Blythman wrote:
And do some tests to see if you need AF adjustment on that lens.
Probably a silly question, how would i do this test? I have never done anything like that before (or if i did....it was by accident!)And do some tests to see if you need AF adjustment on that lens.
If you have not done so already - you may also find it useful to switch focus peaking on and use live view to focus. This option can be found in menu 3 - live view on the camera
Carl
I didn't think men read instruction manuals
As a side note, the lens my friend has is the Canon 100-400mm f4.5 from the EF range.
Will give that a go and let you know how it goes.
Regards,
Mike
Comment by icemanneo posted on Lenses for sports at 14/07/2015 - 18:57
Blythman wrote:
And do some tests to see if you need AF adjustment on that lens.
Probably a silly question, how would i do this test? I have never done anything like that before (or if i did....it was by accident!)And do some tests to see if you need AF adjustment on that lens.
Comment by icemanneo posted on Lenses for sports at 14/07/2015 - 16:52
fritzthedog wrote:
Hi
Before chasing new lenses - there are many things to explore. On the face of it you are using a very credible camera and lens combination.
Obviously using the right settings for the shots you are taking is important and using manual settings - always to be encouraged - but it is worth firing some shots on auto to compare with yours - just to sense check how the settings and results compare to what you would manually have dialed in in the same circumstances
You do not mention which version of the Sigma 70-200 you have - assuming it is the HSM or HSM II - these do tend to be slightly soft at the 200mm end but much sharper if you just pull them back a bit.
Take some test shots through the focal range (especially from 150-200) of the same subject - how do they compare for sharpness?
Do all images look slightly soft? If so - it may be a poor example of the lens
You mention your friends images look sharper. What length is he shooting at? If he is at mid distance on a max 500mm lens while you are at max focal distance - this again could explain the difference. Also - what lens is he using - If it is a 500mm tele zoom - chances are it is a Sigma or Tamron (I don't think canon make a long telephoto zoom but may be wrong). Yours should compare well to these - except perhaps if you are at max focal length vs mid length.
This is just a basic 'none technical' start point - many more things to explore before giving up on your camera/ lens combo and I am sure many other members will add valuable advice
Regards
Carl
Hi Carl,Hi
Before chasing new lenses - there are many things to explore. On the face of it you are using a very credible camera and lens combination.
Obviously using the right settings for the shots you are taking is important and using manual settings - always to be encouraged - but it is worth firing some shots on auto to compare with yours - just to sense check how the settings and results compare to what you would manually have dialed in in the same circumstances
You do not mention which version of the Sigma 70-200 you have - assuming it is the HSM or HSM II - these do tend to be slightly soft at the 200mm end but much sharper if you just pull them back a bit.
Take some test shots through the focal range (especially from 150-200) of the same subject - how do they compare for sharpness?
Do all images look slightly soft? If so - it may be a poor example of the lens
You mention your friends images look sharper. What length is he shooting at? If he is at mid distance on a max 500mm lens while you are at max focal distance - this again could explain the difference. Also - what lens is he using - If it is a 500mm tele zoom - chances are it is a Sigma or Tamron (I don't think canon make a long telephoto zoom but may be wrong). Yours should compare well to these - except perhaps if you are at max focal length vs mid length.
This is just a basic 'none technical' start point - many more things to explore before giving up on your camera/ lens combo and I am sure many other members will add valuable advice
Regards
Carl
Many thanks for the above suggestions. For the life of me I can't remember which version of the Sigma lens i purchased (if it's the HSM or HSM II), will have to double check when i get back from my holiday.
As you described, I am, most of the time, at the max length but will start to take it back a little bit. I always tried to get as close to the action as possible so would zoom all the way in. Maybe i should take it back and then i could zoom / crop after. I never really thought of using the auto on the camera and then comparing it to my manual settings or using the auto as the guidline asi always saw this as cheating!
I had been doing quite a bit of reading up and was very close to selling the above combo and switching to the canon 7d ii but after seeing the reviews, it was mentioned that the pentax k3 was better in quite a few areas (especially in low level lighting).
I will also need to look at making further adjustments within the menu to help assist / aid in the low lighting arena that i have currently been using.
Maybe i am being too impatient and wanting the best shot straight away as opposed to perservering and learning the camera.
I really thank you for your patience and i will post some sample photos for you all to see (maybe it's me being paranoid whilst comparing with my friends results).
Regards,
Mike
Comment by icemanneo posted on Lenses for sports at 14/07/2015 - 16:50
Hi all,
I am new to the forum but would like to pick some of your more experienced brains when it comes to lenses.
Currently I have a Pentax K-3 and the main lens it is used with is a Sigma 70-200mm f/2.8. The primary reason for this set-up is to take pictures of sports, more specifically tennis.
Can any of you recommend another good zoom lens to use? Myself and my friend often go to tennis matches and when i look at the pictures on his Canon 7d, they seem much sharper and cleaner (especially when going to the o2 where I am going from dark to light).
I never have it on the auto setting and will always use the manual setting and adjust the iso and shutter speed accordingly but i can't seem to get to his detail. Maybe i need to experiment more but the lens i believe he uses is a canon that extends up to 500mm.
Would getting a sigma 100-300 f4 help (i know they are gold dust now!) or maybe a 1.4x converter?
As I said at the beginning, any help or assistance would be great!
Thanks in advance
I am new to the forum but would like to pick some of your more experienced brains when it comes to lenses.
Currently I have a Pentax K-3 and the main lens it is used with is a Sigma 70-200mm f/2.8. The primary reason for this set-up is to take pictures of sports, more specifically tennis.
Can any of you recommend another good zoom lens to use? Myself and my friend often go to tennis matches and when i look at the pictures on his Canon 7d, they seem much sharper and cleaner (especially when going to the o2 where I am going from dark to light).
I never have it on the auto setting and will always use the manual setting and adjust the iso and shutter speed accordingly but i can't seem to get to his detail. Maybe i need to experiment more but the lens i believe he uses is a canon that extends up to 500mm.
Would getting a sigma 100-300 f4 help (i know they are gold dust now!) or maybe a 1.4x converter?
As I said at the beginning, any help or assistance would be great!
Thanks in advance
Comment by icemanneo posted on Lenses for sports at 14/07/2015 - 14:26
davidwozhere wrote:
Wow - 70-300? My forte is the other end of a macro 50
Never mind. I'll look at your tennis if you will look at my bugs and flowers. Welcome!
Sorry it shold be 70-200mm...got fat fingers I wish it was 70-300mm!Wow - 70-300? My forte is the other end of a macro 50
Never mind. I'll look at your tennis if you will look at my bugs and flowers. Welcome!
I would be more than happy to look at your bugs and flowers as I am sure we are all here to share which is good.
ps thanks for the warm welcome!
Comment by icemanneo posted on Hi all from the UK at 14/07/2015 - 08:55
Hi all (again)!
Just joined and am looking forward to picking some of your brains when it comes to set-ups and or lenses for sale!
As an FYI, my current set-up is a K-3 with Sigma 70-300mm f/2.8 and i primarily take pictures of sporting events (mainly tennis).
Just joined and am looking forward to picking some of your brains when it comes to set-ups and or lenses for sale!
As an FYI, my current set-up is a K-3 with Sigma 70-300mm f/2.8 and i primarily take pictures of sporting events (mainly tennis).
Comment by icemanneo posted on Hi all from the UK at 13/07/2015 - 20:39
plustm wrote:
Bump
Hi,Bump
I am very interested in this lens to add to my 70-200mm. I have done some research and would this lens assist in sports photography? More specifically, tennis? I am currently using a Pentax K-3.
Is this still available? Whereabouts in the UK are you located?
As i am a new user, i am unable to send a private message.
Thanks,
Mike
Comment by icemanneo posted on F/S Sigma 100-300 /4 + TC 1.4 at 13/07/2015 - 10:45
I had a Sigma 70-200 and found it to be a very sharp lens ideally suited to action shots.
One thought is the Shake Reduction. I had problems with that when panning before I realised that the SR doesn't really work for panning shots! Turning it off and using higher shutter speeds improved things straight away.
Have you got it turned on both on the lens and in the camera? That could be one cause of not very sharp images, as the two systems would be working against each other.
Are you waiting long enough for the Shake Reduction to stabilise?
For panning shots the Sigma lens (or at least the one I had) does have a panning position on the SR which seemed to work quite well for motor sport pictures.
I think i have both set to on so will make some tweaks in order to stop them from cancelling each other out!
As for the waiting part, I try and focus on the subject matter but as you might guess, tennis is quite a dynamic sport so at times, when i think the subject matter is in focus (as the f2.8 uses a single point) i have reviewed the picture and the crowd or ball girl/boy are the ones in focus!
Will let you know when i take it on a test run taking on board all your comments.
Mike