Toronto Photography Meetup Group

is this camera worth using for sports photography, i read an article, that the nikon d800 and d800e was meant for taking pics of celebrities, red carpet events, and landscaping

landscaping or landscapes .. lol. I don't know where you read that but it's just plain silly. I would say the D800 would be great for sports photography.

Well generally for sports you want to be able to take several frames a second to ensure you grab that defining moment. The D800 can only do a max of 6 fps (with the grip attached and in the reduced DX size 15MP) or I think 4 fps in FX. Some may say that is enough, but I think the more the better. the D3s/D4 are up to 10 fps at full res. Even my D300s can muster close to 8 fps with the grip attached. So it would be up to you if those few extra frames a second will be the difference between getting the shot or not.

hahahah I completely glanced over the landscaping reference - I didn't know the D800 could do gardening as well! If thats the case then I wold definitely get that over the rest!

well the Nikon d800 is 4 frames per second, don't you think that would be slow for a full frame, but the nikon d700 based on the nikon d3, but in fact the nikon d700, i think is a scaled down version of the d3

The D700 shares the same sensor as the D3 (not the D3s). It can shoot 5fps and close to 8fps with the grip attached. And with the D800 coming out you'll also see many people selling their D700 - you could probably get a used one at a really sweet deal very soon. Definitely a more cost effective sports photography camera option.

Don't worry, you're on the waiting list for the D4.

Yeah... you've got a bit of a problem. You're on the waiting list for the D4, this camera will be PERFECT for the sporting events and concerts alexanderhosking will get you into; It will also be great for the nightclub photography gig with luchin. It's amazing at really high ISO's, and it's fast so you won't miss THE shot. BUT when you go shoot things like TIFF in the fall; , you would probably be better off with the D800/E. Not that you necessarily, need 36mpx, but you know very well that getting a good position to capture some of these stars might be tricky, so its good to have a lot of freedom when it comes to cropping. When you get into "professional" grade cameras, unfortunately, they don't make one camera that does it all.

well i just wanted the opinion of the d800 and the d800e for sports

I don't think you will find many professional sports shooters using a D800. 4fps is just too slow. You will find most of them using a D3/S or D4. For the average joe, I'm sure its sufficient; but if you're livelihood depends on getting great sports shots, I wouldn't advise getting a D800.

Thanks bartimus

Also keep in mind for sports - quite often (if at night or indoors) lighting is very bad - so not only will high ISO be useful but so will fast lenses; zooms that are 2.8 or primes that are like 1.4 or 1.8. Plus having proper technique is probably the most important thing, depending on the sport, say car racing or horse racing - the ability to pan and take a photo is important to learn.

It sounds like you may not have a lot of sports photography experience (otherwise you probably would not be asking about if camera X is good or not). I would in all honesty recommend attending local sporting events (university or high school games where you can get close to the action) and practice your skills.

Or trying to capture [pics of] kids on stage at your local elementary school under terrible lighting conditions .. now that's hard .. and hopefully your one of the parents cuz otherwise that would be just creepy.

I'm getting the D800E for my future landscaping project. Should be able to take amazing high res sod pictures.

I tried doing landscaping with my 5DMk2 but I gave up and used the lawnmower instead, gave a tighter crop.

rofl

vkhamphi thats because the 5DMk2 is full frame - next time you do your landscaping try a DX sensor - much better crop

Simple answer is no, the D800 or D800E would not be good choices for sports. You didn't expand on what you mean by sports, but anything faster than golf and you won't have the FPS or the buffer to keep up with the action. If you truly want to shoot a variety of sports you will want a D300s, D3S or D4. Or wait for the D400.

DG

LOL where the heck did you get this idea from?

what i mean by sports, is from car racing, boxing, cycling, basketball, football and soccer

It also depends on how YOU want to shoot these events. Convention says high frame rate, but as an amateur I'm not going to deal with the high volume of images that result.

At a 2+ hr sporting event, there's plenty of opportunity to pick off shots and practice anticipation or timing (some sports can reveal shutter lag even in a DSLR).

lol

By using a green filter you can drastically cut down on the amount of water needed.

Nikon - the perfect choice for manscaping.

David Burnett used a large format @ the beijing games.

I think the OP should think about getting a H4D instead. 60 megapickles.

Is this the OP?

The d800 could be good at sports, if you want it to be.

Try to forget how the manufacturers label their cameras. Each camera has a set of technical specs that are only just that. If your shooting an event with a pattern to the movement like ballet or easily trackable movements like figure skating your golden. Assuming you have a hair trigger and a steady hand, you will get the shots you want. The d800 ISO range is plenty if you have in lens stabilization and smooth tracking. No excuses allowed there.

For other sports, would you be better off with a D4? Yes, but you can still shoot with the best of them at a slower FPS. You just have to make up for it with intuition and good timing.

Actually guys..... I've shot sports, and I've done so successfully with the D700.... So you do not necessarily have to have the higher FPS. So yes, the D800 could be used for sports... You won't have the ability to do a machine gun style capture, but it it possible.

My lord, what did those guys back in the film days do without power winders when shooting sports.

How did the photographers capture sport images back in the film years!!!

How many frames per second can they get from a film camera?

How fast can they load and unload films?
(using machine gun magazines!!)

I'm going to be the contrarian and say yes, the D800 *can* be used and used effectively for sports. Provided you have the chops. Look back over the years and you'll find great sports work done with cameras such as the speedy Fm2 w/MD12. Yep a blazing fast...3.5 fps. Watch some of the best out there and you'll see quite often that they're not spraying. Know the sport, know the action and you can get the shot with 4 fps.

Having said that, yeah, more fps is better but the seldom mentioned risk is that you could conceivably miss the shot because the camera was *too* fast. Follow ?

ever shot tennis ? more fps will do squat. If you listen carefully, you'll hear a .single .click. per stroke.

Would I feel comfortable using it for, oh let's say, football ? Wouldn't bother me that much tbh.

Work on your timing and you'll find you may not need 10fps. Truth