avemal Loc: BALTIMORE

Great unit. You will love it. See Steve Perry on YouTube about this DSLR. Also check out this Forum.

Retired CPO Loc: Travel full time in an RV

The D500 is a wildlife photographers dream! And would be a sports photographers for the same reasons, all of which have already been discussed. I love mine and would buy another in a heartbeat! I carry a D500 in the field along with a D850. The combination gives me a smile every time.
Three things I like more on the D500 compared to the D850. Deep buffer. Ergonomics-it feels better in my hand. Don't know why but it does. And an intangible that shouldn't matter. Every time I make an exposure I say to myself, and often to my wife, I love the shutter sound! Very different from the D850, very much nicer than the D850. Did I say I love my D500? Don't tell the D850, I would hate to hurt her feelings.

fecraly

I bought the D500 for sports photography, specifically for grandsons HS football ( placekicker/punter). Shot both outdoor and indoor (at Indy Lucas Oil Stadium for state championship games). It was the 10 fps that sold me--only way to get the right image in fast-moving kicking, especially indoors. I suspect the same happens at other fast-moving sports. 3 fps is not fast enough to catch the right action.

wetreed

Tony Northump has a great tutorial on the D500. On utube.

SuperflyTNT Loc: Manassas VA

The D500 will give you a faster frame rate, larger buffer for longer burts and in my opinion, most important for sports, much faster focus acquisition and better tracking.

billnikon Loc: Pennsylvania/Ohio/Florida/Maui/Oregon/Vermont

Why, the cost alone is double. Same focusing system, he is shooting sports, the D500 shoots 3 to 4 more frames per second and has the same focusing system as the D850. And, the D500 has more reach in case he is further from the action.
Please tell us why the D850 is a better choice for SPORTS, which is what the OP wants to shoot.

wetreed

You 100% correct.

cjc2 Loc: Hellertown PA

The D500 is an excellent camera and a good choice for sports. There are better sports cameras made by Nikon, but not in the DX format. The D5, D500 and D850 share many of the same/similar features. As stated before, faster lenses increase your ability to capture sports inside, IF you learn to shoot at their largest apertures. Best of luck.

Rab-Eye Loc: Indiana

👍🏻👍🏻👍🏻

sandiegosteve Loc: San Diego, CA

You will get a lot of opinions for sure. I went from a D7200 -> D500 for my crop body. D500 will be better, will it be revolutionary? No. The D7100 -> 7200 -> D500 get 1/3 to 2/3 stop ISO better each time. I've had acceptable shot to ISO 6400, but like to cap the D500 to ISO 5000. That is great for a crop body.

Better on D500 that D7x00:
- AF. It focuses better and faster. And in less light. Hard to go back from this AF when you learn how to use it
- ISO, maybe a little
- Buffer, yes, but I rarely filled buffer on D7200.
- Flicker control. This can be a life saver in those poorly lit places. Even in older pro arenas.
- Build. It is a solid piece of equipment.
- Auto WB is very good (I set custom when possible)

If you want truly better low light, a FX body will be a huge change. I can take my FX bodies to ISO 12,800 and beyond. 2x the crop bodies. There is a huge cost in lenses and they are heavier. I personally really like the reach on a 70-200 on FX for indoor sports. So that is a factor.

A used D500 will be better and could be a decent price point. You may still be unhappy in certain low light situations. The camera won't help you anticipate a shot, know where to pre-focus or how to compose. The D500 will help in some tricky AF situations.

What I don't like about D500:
- Basically, it isn't a full frame
- You need to expose right at high ISO or the noise isn't good.
- At higher ISO, the dynamic range of the color falls off fast. Noise isn't the only problem
- The dynamic range isn't as nice for landscapes.

My D500 comes with me for field sports and wildlife. I don't bring it for indoor events, but I have multiple bodies and some picky editors.

So, I'd say, step back and figure out what you need. Do you have an editor who is hard on you? Strict requirements from contracts? Or can you take a little motion blurr to keep ISO down and grain and be super happy?

If I could only have one body, a mid-range FX with a great sensor like the D750 and a Nikon 70-200/2.8. I do have a D500, D5 and D750 so I get to choose the right one for the situation. Indoors, D500 is last on my list unless I know the lights are great.

ELNikkor

Your kids are only in HS once, get the D500.

Orphoto Loc: Oregon

One other thing. Your present 7100 has particularly poor high iso performance. The newer bodies like the 500 are a lot better. This is an important factor for indoor sports.

Ched49 Loc: Pittsburgh, Pa.

The D500 is the only DX camera worthy for serious sports shooting. It has the same auto focus system as the top of the line D5. Keep in mind it's a large camera, it's almost as large as the D850.

tomcat

You've had quite a lot of advice here, but I want to mention one thing that's not be covered enough. Low light. Does the gym you are shooting in have bright lights like a professional gym for tv or is it lighting like you would see in a church? I have a D500 and I only used it one time--- one time--- in the high school gym where I am their sports photographer. The pictures were so noisy because the ISO was in the 12,000 ISO range. The gym was so poorly lit. I shot the volleyball and basketball pictures right there on the floor and had access to roam where I wanted to since I was contracted to do this for them, so it was not an issue getting close to the action. I was right there within arm's reach (and harm's way for me). I eventually bought a used D3s and it was like going from night to day. The image quality was incredible--no noise and sharp pictures at ISO 12,000. That camera for many years was rated the top camera for low light high ISO shooting. There is no crop camera in the Nikon arsenal that can shoot acceptably above ISO 5000 in the dim gym.

Now the D500 is great for soccer and baseball and indeed every bit as fantastic as the previous posters have mentioned, but only you know what your typical ISO is for your gym. I use my D500 extensively for soccer, but when it gets cloudy or late in the day, the images pick up noise. I cannot use it at night.

So you have to ask yourself if the ISO is greater than 5,000 where you shoot, would you want to invest in a camera that's going to disappoint you? There are some camera stores in the Triad/Triangle area that should rent you a D500 for a trial. If your budget allows, get the D500 for outdoor sports and get a used D3s/D4s for the indoor stuff. That's what I did for a couple of years.

If you really want to shoot great indoor pictures in the gym, and your budget allows, the best combination out there right now from Nikon is the Z6 with the Nikkor Z 85mm S lens. I am now using this Z6 combo at f/1.8 and my basketball and indoor events images are spectacular. I no longer use the D3s for indoor sports. There will be great deals on the Z6 body as folks trade them in for the Z6II.

baron_silverton Loc: Los Angeles, CA

True that - if you put the D850 in DX mode - it is effectively a D500, but you can also shoot it full frame.

The only thing you will lose is the frame rate 7 (or 9 with the vertical grip) as opposed to 10 on the D500. My guess is that 7-9 will be enough for what this person is doing and that 10 will not yield a significant increase in keepers.

That said, everyone seems to love the D500, and the D850 so you probably won't go wrong with either - if you only shoot sports and nothing else, get the D500 as it will be a little cheaper, but if you intend to use the camera for the sports and for all around shooting, the D850 is a clear winner.

-B