Ever wonder how it seems that the guys with the big cameras and huge lenses get the outstanding shots time after time? Must be the camera…right? I mean, you were in almost the same position, taking the same shot with your point and shoot or your Nikon D90 with the provided kit lens.
In my opinion, all things being equal, such as position and angle, it is more often than not, the lens. You don't need a Cincinnati Reds Press Pass to get outstanding baseball shots, if you have great seats and an even better lens.
I get people ask me all the time about upgrading their cameras for several hundred dollars to get 1 or 2 more mega pixels.
Many times, weather you’re shooting portrait photography of sports photography; you may already have a camera suitable for capturing the same quality of sports photography that I will typically display. What you don’t have, is a quality piece of glass, or lens on your camera.
I shoot the same quality sports action pictures with my $1700 Nikon D200 as I could with a $5000 Nikon D3.
The glass, along with a choice selection depth of field, say 5.6 or higher, will go a long way to capturing that sharp depth of field in your sports photographs.
The length of the lens, will give your pictures that compression factor that is a trade mark in professional sports photography.
In other words, a 50 millimeter lens will give a more accurate relationship between your subject and the background. A 200 millimeter lens will draw that background in close to your subject matter giving it the “Pro” look and feel.
In this picture of Go-Kart racers, I was at G&J Kartway in Camden, Ohio, a nationally recognized professional go-kart track where the likes of NASCAR driver Tony Stewart have gotten their starts.
I used a Nikkor 80-200 millimeter lens and a mono pod and set this shot up where I knew there would be close competition in an S curve.
It took me about 6 attempts to get these guys in just the right position as they were racing.
The 200 millimeter lens gives the illusion that the back two racers are literally hooked up bumper to bumper and makes for an intense action shot.
Any other camera or lens would have shown you that there was ample separation between the three of them.
I you aspire to be a quality sports photographer, the one investment you’ll never go wrong on would be your lenses. You can “bet your glass” that the photographer with the better lenses will always capture the best sports photographs of your event.
Posted by Cincinnati and Dayton Sports Photographer Vincent Rush of Monroe, Ohio. For more information (877) 858-6295
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