WalshT

Long time landscape/portrait/outdoor photog but a bit new to indoor sports. I want a 70-200 2.8 for some basketball and equestrian work I have to do. Is IS needed? I shoot at at least 1/250 min. and usually faster if possible. I find myself turning of IS a lot because most of my work is on a tripod anyways so I could use non IS lens for a lot of my other work if I want to leave the primes at home. Am I correct in assuming that IS may not be needed for sports when using faster shutter speeds or should I just fork over the cash? Shooting basketball with a 85mm now and would like a little extra reach. Any advice would be great. If you have other lens options please let me know. This is the most challenging work I have done yet and I really like it. Plenty of room to grow here.

chicoturner

i have a sigma 70-200 2.8 (its a bit heavy tho)...i shoot indoor basketball (high schools)...with right settings (iso,shutter,...and sometimes an exposure comp i have great pictures....lens is on the Heavy Side tho...i do shoot hand held and its NOT stabalized but is auto focus>

dasloaf

70-200mF2.8 non IS. don't need IS for action shots!

pkrohn

Hi,

Been shooting indoor basketball for several years without IS. With a 80-200mm Nikon lens on a D700 it seems to work well. A majority of images are without blur at 250 or greater shutter. Shoot 2000= shots per season.

The cost difference for the IS or VR is pretty high so it may be a consideration going for the non IS. If the cost is not a factor, the IS certainly can help.

Oxygen Loc: Houston, Texas

Not sure why you would leave the primes home for a basketball shoot. I took my Canon 135L to the Atlanta Hawks basketball game last season and came away with some terrific shots considering I was quite a distance from the floor. This lens is fast and produces clear photos.I was using the Canon 1d Mark II camera which is geared towards sports photography.
I have also used the Canon lens 80-200L which is a discontinued lens, many states it out performs the 70-200 L.