Short/medium telephoto lens primarily for action, advice please!

[Daniel Browning]

I think the OP just got a new 7D.

Ah, I didn't see that. Well, that pretty much rules out a body upgrade (unless he can get enough for a 5D2).

[Steve U]

I know this is out of the price range, but the new Sigma 120-300 f2.8 OS, sounds like it is made for this type of shooting. I have only seen a few reports on line and everyone is talking it up.


Rich have you heard anything about this lens yet?


Steve

[HDNitehawk]

I doown the 100mm IS macro, it is a great lens as well but the additional 15mm you gain might not be that big of a difference to you.

And if he were only needing an additional 15mm in focal length, the 100mm f/2 would give him an additional stop at a much lower price...

Thinking about it a little more, the 100mm IS wouldn't be a good option for what he wants IMO. At f2.8 it has noticeable vignetting on a the 5D II, more so than other lenses I have. Not sure how it would perform on the 7D since I didn't try it, but I do notconsider it a low light lens at all because of this.

[Richard Lane]

I know this is out of the price range, but the new Sigma 120-300 f2.8 OS, sounds like it is made for this type of shooting. I have only seen a few reports on line and everyone is talking it up.


Rich have you heard anything about this lens yet?


Steve

No, I haven't but it sounds interesting!


Rich

[thekingb]

The AF on my 100 f/2.8 L IS doesn

[Fast Glass]

Based on your pictures my first choice would be a 70-200mm f/2.8, but the135mm would not be far behind. What noise reduction software do you have? If you are using DDP then you could gain about 2/3 to 1 stop with a good software like DxO, CS5 ext. A 70-200mm f/2.8 on a FF is equivalant to a f/1.8 lens on a 1.6 crop camera, but the AF is not as good as your 7D so your only reall option is a 70-200mm (or 200mm f/2.0) and 1Ds III. ;-)


John.

[cls]

Wow, I really appreciate you all taking your time. And as I was expecting/hoping you have helped me to narrow down my options to 2, the 100 mm options don

[thekingb]

Let us know how it goes! And if you end up with the 135, tell me so I can be green with envy.

[Fast Glass]

It also applies for noise. Asuming you have the same sensor technology, the thinner the DOF the better the noise regardless of sensor size. For example, if you look at Bryan

[neuroanatomist]

Asuming you have the same sensor technology, the thinner the DOF the better the noise regardless of sensor size. For example, if you look at Bryan's noise comparison you will see 1 1/3 stops better noise with the 5D II than the 7D. You also lose about 1 1/3 stops of DOF, so in order to maintain the DOF I need a aperture 1 1/3 stops faster. Hence the same noise.

I'm not sure that I buy this argument, rather, I think you're talking about unrelated phenomena. A larger sensor produces a shallower DoF for the same subject framing, and a larger sensor gathers more total light so the noise is lower. But those two factors are not causally related. Take the statement, "<span>Asuming you have the same sensor technology, the thinner the DOF the better the noise regardless of sensor size," let's assume you have exactly the same sensor - are you saying that a shot at f/2 would have less noise than a shot at f/5.6?


In your example, you're comparing different sized sensors - and you seem to be saying that if one shoots with an aperture 1.33 stops faster on the 7D, that the noise will be equal to that of a 5DII. That's certainly not the case.


Can you provide some clairty, John?


Thanks!