# What Lens for shooting volleyball?



## MT Stringer (May 21, 2004)

People ask the question "What lens do I need for shooting volleyball?" Not just on this board, but others also. The answer really is two fold. First you need a camera that has ISO capability to ISO 3200 (or even higher).

Then you need a lens that is fast. If you don't have a lens that has the capability to shoot at at least f/2.8, and sometimes as low as f/2 or even f/1.8, you may be out of luck. Or at least you will be disappointed in your results. I was reminded of this at the Living Stones Volleyball Tournament this past Saturday. Three different people asked me what they could do to improve their images because they were blurry. Well, 1/80 sec is pretty slow for taking action pics.

In each case, the camera didn't have ISO 3200 capability. Also, two of the people were using the Canon 75-300 f/4.5-5.6 which just flat doesn't let in enough light to focus quickly or make an acceptable exposure when used indoors. The other lens was the kit lens 18-55mm f/.3.5 - 4.5. Same thing -not enough light. They all were using the "Sports Mode". It just so happened that they all had Canon cameras, but that doesn't really matter. Getting enough light into the camera is what is important.

I tried to help each one but they were basically handcuffed by the equipment they had.

It seems that at the high school level you really can move around without any problem. I've been in numerous private schools as well as some public schools and no one has any objections to photographers...as long as you keep the flash put away. I did see some flash pics taken this past weekend, but most folks took their shots during the time outs or when there wasn't any action. I don't know how much the on-board flash helps when you shoot from the bleachers.

So, the question remain "What lens do I use?"
My answer is in Canon terms, but Nikon, Sony and Olympus prolly have similar lenses.

Last year I used a Canon 85 f/1.8 with a 40D body (which has the 1.6x crop sensor). Then I bought a 100mm f/2.0. I shot it a few times with the 40D and then the 1D MK III arrived at the front door. It has a 1.3x crop sensor so the lenses lose a little of the telephoto effect that the 1.6x cameras have. That lens worked pretty good, but I wanted more so I rented a 135L f/2.0 (twice).

For this season, I started with the 100, then bought the 135 f/2.0 and I'm loving it.

So far owners with the 1.6x crop sensors, the 85 - 100mm range should work out well for you when sitting in the bleachers or walking around. If the gym is fairly well lit, you can use a 70-200 f/2.8 lens, sit (stand) in the bleachers and get a good look at the floor.

This past week, I shot a game in a dark gym. I had to set the camera at ISO 6400, 1/400 sec at f/2.0. That was the limits for my gear and as fast as I could shoot. At f/2, the depth of field is really shallow and I deleted quiet a few that were out of focus. I shot all pics in RAW, then bumped the exposure a little in Digital Photo Professional before converting them to jpg format. Speaking of RAW, if that is what I am shooting, I don't worry about color balance. That can be corrected in the DPP software. But if I am shooting in jpg (like this past weekend), then I take a pic of a 18% gray card and set my camera to use that as the custom balance. That works pretty good except the lights cycle and I get overexposed/underexposed images even when I shoot in manual, which is all the time now for the indoor events.

With all that said, I hope you aren't completely lost or confused.

Here are a few pics taken with the Canon 1D MK III and 135 f/2.0 lens. I haven't done any post processing on these pics other than to resize them for the web and sharpen them a bit. These are the full images with no cropping. This should give you an idea of what to expect.

Hope you find this info helpful and didn't get bored reading my ramblings.

Mike

All pics taken with camera on manual, 1/400 sec shutterspeed, ISO 3200, f stop f/2.8.


----------



## stargazer (May 24, 2004)

Great action shots. Freezing the action in a gym is not an easy task. Looks like you found the right combo.


----------



## Corky (May 22, 2004)

great info and great shots.....it's cool to see the facial expressions when the action is taking place....


----------



## balvarez (Mar 6, 2006)

Thanks for the great info. and great shots.


----------



## wwd (Aug 11, 2005)

Nice pics. 

To add to the fun, some gyms have different bulbs scattered and you get some weird lighting as you pan from one spot to another. 

I shoot aperture priority and use a 2.8 70x200 or a 50mm 1.4. When I use the 50, I think I normally set it at 1.8 or higher. Focus at 1.4 when they are moving can be interesting. I also shoot RAW in the gyms, but usually jpg at football games. 

wwd


----------

