chasgroh Loc: Buena Park, CA

...that depends on the camera, and how many megapixels you have to play with. That said, my first FX body was a D700 which has a 12.1 megapixel sensor, I shoot outside on a football field, kids (and adults!) marching around playing musical instruments (marching band to most folks) and sometimes, even with 400mm of stretch, I'll crop in to get that performer who seems to be stuck in the backfield beyond the back hash mark...did this many a time with the D700 with great results. You're in much closer proximity to your subjects, so should be able to crop-in nicely with that 24-70! Use good "sniper" technique, bone to bone (like, elbow to knee for a solid platform) and you'll get nice, sharp images once you get your settings together...gyms are pretty cool in that the lighting, at least within the boundary of the basketball court, is usually consistent so manual settings can be used, but, also usually, the light she ain't real bright, so you have to get as much shutter as you can (I shot for a long time thinking 1/320th was good...no longer 'cuz i've upped the game equipment-wise and can get much faster shutter, but if you don't have that D4 or 5 you should be fine with a taste of motion blur...experience will win the day!

Jimbo9948 Loc: Zephyrhills, Florida

I shoot for CBS/MaxPreps and use both the 24/70 and 70-200 for volleyball, depending on vantage point. The 24-70 from sideline and 70-200 from higher in the stands. I use a Nikon D3s at 8000 ISO and 1/800 with aperture between 2.8 and 3.2.

MaxPreps is VERY particular on quality so images must be tack sharp and properly exposed.

I don't think you'll get enough speed out of a 5300 for top quality no matter what lens but the 24-70 f/2.8 is excellent for volleyball and basketball. Another possibility would be a plain old nifty-fifty. At f/1.8 you may gain enough light to improve quality a bit.

Good action sports photographers are somewhat rare and it takes a lot of practice. The problem is that the equipment it takes to get the best results can get into your pocket very deeply.

Best of luck and keep shooting.

vma Loc: Idaho

Jimbo9948
What dx camera would be fast enough to get volleyball shots indoors? Or is an fx the best camera. I want to keep Nikon. Thank you so much for your time

Jimbo9948 Loc: Zephyrhills, Florida

Depends on the body. Higher density, more cropping ability. Full frame is best for indoor sports. Especially in the barns the call high school gyms now-a-days.

Jimbo9948 Loc: Zephyrhills, Florida

I've tried a D-7000 a few years ago. You have to push it to the max (6400 ISO) and clean it up in PP. Without a 2.8 lens it's almost impossible without full frame.

chasgroh Loc: Buena Park, CA

...the D500 is pretty decent, Jim, although I have yet to try it in a gym. With the extra stretch it *should* be really good, I'll end up with the 70-200 f2.8 but have to wait 'til the winter to test it...

67skylark27 Loc: Fort Atkinson, WI

I'll chime in here even though I'm late to the party on this one. I have decent success shooting volleyball with my
d5300, although the lighting in the high school gyms is very minimal. If I shoot past 800 iso, the pictures get
grainy fast which I can fix a bit in lightroom, but I am really going for crisp focus and freezing the motion.
I can only shoot action with my 50mm f1.4 and 85mm f1.8. Typically shooting them at 1.8, I never seem
to have enough light for going up to 2.8 so I won't even bother investing in a 24-70,70-200 zoom as I already
know it won't work well with my d5300's limited ISO. Seems I'd really have to invest in a totally new body
to be able to shoot those lenses. For now, shooting my daughters games, I like what I have and it's teaching
me some really great technique! Maybe this week I'll shoot at 1600 and see what happens there.
I can usually sit next to the scorers table which is very close and a 35mm 1.8 works excellent there, standing along side the
court the 50 works great, from the ends a 85 is good. I run every keeper through lightroom so I can
crop at the same time to finish up the shots.

vma Loc: Idaho

67skylark22: perfect timing for your response as Volleyball is currently going on at my grand daughter is playing. I just broke down and bought a D7200 & not sure on what settings to use. I tried auto ISO but it made my shutter too slow. So I ended up with blurry faces but fare lighting. I have the 24-70 2.8 & 50 1.8. Cant wait to shoot her next game. Thank you again. Appreciate your time.

67skylark27 Loc: Fort Atkinson, WI

I responded to another of your posts as well. If you are cool with sitting next to the scorers table
or can stand behind the girls on the bench you will do great with the 50mm 1.8. Feel free to pm me
with actual pics or links when you have stuff to post!

I believe the d5300 and d7200 will perform around the same quality wise but your focus might
be faster, escpecially in continous shooting mode. I find the girls really enjoy the celebration
photos a lot and have my girlfriend shoot those with her d3300 while I try to focus on action.
That really makes it easy on me trying to do it all. I also skip a match or two so I can watch the game!

Here's a link to a post I started if you want to see my results after working on my technique the first
few matches they've had:

http://www.uglyhedgehog.com/t-483828-1.html

Jules Karney Loc: Las Vegas, Nevada

24-70 2.8 is a great lens. You won't be sorry.