300D owners - which lense for motorsport?

[woody]

Hi guys,

Having took the plunge and purchased a 300D over the weekend ,I'm now starting to think about new lenses, flash etc.

Which lense's do people use for motorsport? (i.e. canon, simga, focal lengths etc..)

On my Film camera (minolta - so of no use now!) the most I used was a 300mm.

Am I right in thinking that with the conversion factor of 1.6 for the image sensor I could use a 200mm and get the same results as using a 300mm on film?

Lense's will need to be of a 'budget' nature - upto about £300'ish.

Cheers

Chris

Would also be nice to see peoples results for the lense's etc

[nighthawk]

Hi m8

I have the Canon 75/300 IS in my bag, I've used it at touring car races with acceptable results, however it does go a little soft over 200mm

These were taken at the last round of the BTCC and were my first attempt at Manual focused panning on the 300d, these are also the untweaked images cropped down for this purpose. I adjusted the final images with photoshop to boost the saturation and sharpeness a little.






I don't know if the IS would be much use though for Msport, I only use it for wildlife shots where it allows you an extra stop or so.


When funds allow i'll be changing the lens for a faster (f2.8) L series item.

The Sigma 70-300mm f4/5.6 DL MACRO SUPER 2 turns out decent images too and falls well within your budget.

[woody]

nighthawk said:

Hi m8 I have the Canon 75/300 IS in my bag, I've used it at touring car races with acceptable results, however it does go a little soft over 200mm These were taken at the last round of the BTCC and were my first attempt at Manual focused panning on the 300d, these are also the untweaked images cropped down for this purpose. I adjusted the final images with photoshop to boost the saturation and sharpeness a little. I don't know if the IS would be much use though for Msport, I only use it for wildlife shots where it allows you an extra stop or so. When funds allow i'll be changing the lens for a faster (f2.8) L series item. The Sigma 70-300mm f4/5.6 DL MACRO SUPER 2 turns out decent images too and falls well within your budget.

Hi Nighthawk,

Had been looking at the Sigma lense's, both at the DL and the APO - looked a decent price at warehouseexpress £100 for the DL, and £150 for the APO. They also have the 28-300 / F3.5-6.3 for £170.

An I right in saying that I'd be better off with the F3.5 as this would be a 'faster' lense??

So many choices !!

Cheers

Chris

[nighthawk]

yup. the small the F stop, the more light enters the camera. this will allow faster shutter speeds and better low light shooting.

[anonymous-user]

100-400 IS is supposed to be good. No one has got any in stock at the moment.



>> Edited by anonymous-user on Tuesday 1st February 21:49

[LongQ]

nighthawk said:

yup. the small the F stop, the more light enters the camera. this will allow faster shutter speeds and better low light shooting.

But you need to compare the range quoted to the f-stop limit you are most likely to be using.

f3.5 at the 28mm end is OK but for sports action you are more likely to be using the 200 to 300 end - so F ?? to F6.3.

Usually the change is fairly regular across the zoom range, as far as I know. But it may not be. Not saying it is a problem because all the lenses may be the same or a higher f number at the higher magnification, but you do need to compare the lenses at the working lengths you are most likely to use or the one you think will be most critical for results.

Apologies if you are my Grandmother and I am teaching you to suck eggs.


Edit': Forgot to say - really nice shots nighthawk.

>> Edited by LongQ on Wednesday 2nd February 00:16

[ThatPhilBrettGuy]

One last point. Keep in mind that any lense above F5.6, wide open, will be a bit hit and miss on auto focus on a 300D.

[Bee_Jay]

On a budget, you will get some really good results with the 75-300 III Canon EF lens, just don't take it all the way to 300 as it gets a little less sharp. (not many zoom lenses apart from some 'L's like shooting at full stretch)

However you will get great results at F8 and more, which if you are going for nice blurred backgrounds should be fine.

Warehouse Express have it for £149 or £169 with USM.

[rj_vaughan]

I use the Sigma 80-400 f4.5/5.6 OS. OS definately helps - saves carrying a monopod around

[woody]

rj_vaughan said:

I use the Sigma 80-400 f4.5/5.6 OS. OS definately helps - saves carrying a monopod around

Unfortunatley my budget won't stretch to one of those

Nice shot - which GP was that taken at?

Another dumb question - if on the canon 300 it gets a bit fuzzy at full extension, then surely to get the effect of a 300 you don't need to fully extend it as you have the 1.6 factor?? - or am I just talking crap ?

Chris

[rj_vaughan]

Nope you're probably right, but whatever length it is, it's never long enough

What will be more noticeable on a digital SLR will be the lens quality. I had a cheaper sigma 300mm lens prior to the 400mm one and it was fine on film. As soon as I put it on the digital camera it's softness showed.

Unfortunately you do get what you pay for

I'm sure there are cheaper lenses that will be fine, just make sure you test them on your camera and look at the full sized version of the picture before handing over cash..

oh, British GP last year