A big sigh of relief ...

[DonSchap]

Finally, I was able to unload the rest of my Canon stuff ... which was just taking up a lot of shelf space for relatively no return. I trimmed down my GEAR LIST a bit ... and the wallet got fatter.

A good day all around.

One of the vendors at the camera show had a SONY AF 500mm f/8 Reflex lens ... and originally wanted $699 for it, and lowered it to $575 ... but, I just could not rationalize its use up against the far more useful TAMRON SP AF 200-500mm f/5-6.3 Di LD. The reflex is smaller and lighter, but it is just not worth anything more than $500, on a good day. I told him to keep it.

How come no one has a boat load of AF 85mm f/1.4 Gs for $600 or something reasonable, out there?

There is definitely a shortage of SONY-mount glass out there, that's for sure. With all these new a2x0, a3x0, a5x0 cameras coming out, it is disappearing right quick.

[DonSchap]

Then, moving on ... I secured a position at the local Community College as one of the campus newspaper's photographers. Just call me "Peter Parker" ...

Now, there is a challenge, huh? Pay to play. LOL

Have to shoot the Women's B-ball game, tomorrow night. Even Sean would enjoy something like that! Time to break out the AF 200mm f/2.8 APO G HS and the CZ 135mm f/1.8 see what I can do with them.

[Panda Bear]

Take a flash. A lot of small college and hs gyms aren't nearly well enough lit.

And welcome to the media biz!

[sparkie1263]

Good luck I cannot wait to see the shots.

Frank

[DWessel]

Have to shoot the Women's B-ball game, tomorrow night. Even Sean would enjoy something like that! Time to break out the AF 200mm f/2.8 APO G HS and the CZ 135mm f/1.8 see what I can do with them.

I recently shot a fencing match at the local college. I was shooting both digital and film. The gym looked really bright to the eye. But my A900 w/ Tamron 70-200 f2.8 was metering about 1/5 sec. at f2.8 ISO 100. There's no way your going to capture action shots with that shutter speed ... unless you're intending full blur. To get a decent stop action shot without flash (they didn't want flash photography potentially interfering with the action), I had to bump the ISO on the A900 up to 3200 and break out my rolls of 3200 speed film for the Minolata Maxxum 7000.

By the way, afterwards I compared the grain in the digital image vs. the film image at 3200 speed and other film shots taken at ISO 100 and 400. The A900 at ISO 3200 has less graininess than even 400 speed film.

[Ray Schnoor]

Don't you have an f/2.8 70-200mm lens? I would suggest that lens. And skip the flash. Bumping the ISO to 1600-3200 will give much better results.
Ray.

[dr4gon]

Don't you have an f/2.8 70-200mm lens? I would suggest that lens. And skip the flash. Bumping the ISO to 1600-3200 will give much better results.
Ray.

It's a Tamron (slow AF) 200mm is a better option IMO.

[DonSchap]

Well, I have five lenses and the α850 going to the game. in a sling pack.

1. KM AF 17-35mm f/2.8-4 "D" (default carry)
2. TAMRON SP AF 28-75mm f/2.8 XR Di LD Aspherical (IF)
3. TAMRON SP AF 70-200mm f/2.8 Di LD
4. SONY AF 135mm f/1.8 CZ
5. Minolta AF 200mm f/2.8 APO G SSM

ALSO INSIDE, the flash TRIO HVL-F56AM, HVL-F58AM, & HVL-F20AM flash units and, of course, lots o' batteries.

(maybe I should have bought that Metz flash I had my eye on.

Well, Xmas is just around the corner ... )

I have not shot basketball before, so this will be educational. If it does blow up , I can do the Thursday and Friday exhibition games to get better at it.

BACKUP: Yeah, the α700, of course.

[dr4gon]

You plan to fire all those flashes wirelessly or something?

[DonSchap]

Well, I didn't need the flash, once I got the timing down. The lighting in the gymnasium was better than most, no noticeable dimming, like during the high school night games, outdoors ... except for the darn scoreboard. Almost every time I went to shoot it, to keep track of the score throughout the shoot, the scoreboard was lit, but the darn photograph was entirely blank or dimmer than normal, as I caught a zero or mid-power cycle of the lamps.



I was shooting 1/200th sec or better ... and like they say, timing is everything.


200mm - f/3.2 - 1/200 sec. - ISO-1600 - Spot Focus - Spot Meter -Shutter Priority - AWB

"Nice follow through" ... I might say


135mm - f/1.8 - 1/200 sec. - ISO-1000 - Spot Focus - Spot Meter -Shutter Priority - AWB


200mm - f/3.2 - 1/200 sec. - ISO-1600 - Spot Focus - Spot Meter -Shutter Priority - AWB


135mm - f/2.8 - 1/200 sec. - ISO-1000 - Spot Focus - Spot Meter -Shutter Priority


135mm - f/2.8 - 1/200 sec. - ISO-1000 - Spot Focus - Spot Meter -Shutter Priority


135mm - f/1.8 - 1/320 sec. - ISO-1000 - Spot Focus - Spot Meter -Shutter Priority - AWB

The hoop of doom ... as Triton watches the game come to a resounding and close fought end.

135mm - f/1.8 - 1/200 sec. - ISO-1000 - Spot Focus - Spot Meter -Shutter Priority - AWB

The foul shot ... and final Oakton point of the game



"GO OAKTON!"