Best sports lenses for Canon 7D

[RocklandDragon]

I plan on getting a 70-200 f/2.8 USM IS II lens for my 7D and I want to use it for capturing American football games in the fall.  I think this lens can handle the games and the 70-200 lens has looked great on 7D videos on Youtube.  I wonder though if I should invest in another lens too.  Im still getting the 70-200 but I might want to take pics of the whole stadium and the surroundings.  The high school stadiums in Texas can be wide open and there are some wonderful sunsets that can be even more spectacular when there is a partly cloudy sky.  Palm trees in the Valley.  Mountais in El Paso.  Endless sky in The Plains of West Texas and lush trees in East Texas as well as the urban landscape of Dallas area games.  Would it be wise to get a smaller lens--like a 24-70 or a set prime lens?  Also, I hear these lenses are also great for video on a 7D.

Also, the 70-200 f/4 lens is signifigantly cheaper.  I could be able to swing that lens in a month.  Would it be wise to get it and use it for daytime settings and baseball games?  Like I said, I'd still get the 2.8 but the 70-200 f/4 looks to be a good set of glass.

One more question.  Anyone got any takes on the 28-300mm L f3.5-5.6 lens?  I havent seen too many reviews or vids on it.   Is this lens real good for sports?

Thanks for your feedback.  Still learning the 7D but so far so good.

[Rienzphotoz]

I plan on getting a 70-200 f/2.8 USM IS II lens for my 7D and I want to use it for capturing American football games in the fall.  I think this lens can handle the games and the 70-200 lens has looked great on 7D videos on Youtube.  I wonder though if I should invest in another lens too.  Im still getting the 70-200 but I might want to take pics of the whole stadium and the surroundings.  The high school stadiums in Texas can be wide open and there are some wonderful sunsets that can be even more spectacular when there is a partly cloudy sky.  Palm trees in the Valley.  Mountais in El Paso.  Endless sky in The Plains of West Texas and lush trees in East Texas as well as the urban landscape of Dallas area games.  Would it be wise to get a smaller lens--like a 24-70 or a set prime lens?  Also, I hear these lenses are also great for video on a 7D.

Also, the 70-200 f/4 lens is signifigantly cheaper.  I could be able to swing that lens in a month.  Would it be wise to get it and use it for daytime settings and baseball games?  Like I said, I'd still get the 2.8 but the 70-200 f/4 looks to be a good set of glass.

One more question.  Anyone got any takes on the 28-300mm L f3.5-5.6 lens?  I havent seen too many reviews or vids on it.   Is this lens real good for sports?

Thanks for your feedback.  Still learning the 7D but so far so good.

Your decision to get the 70-200 f/2.8 L IS II is perfect, do not sway from it, even if the f/4 version is tempting (unless budget is an issue).
For "wide open" areas and to "take pics of the whole stadium and the surroundings" get Canon EF-S 17-55 f/2.8 IS and/or EF-S 10-22mm lens
I have used 28-300 L only once for about 20 minutes (that too over 3 years ago when I considered it for my 7D), if I remember correctly it was quite heavy lens, slow aperture (not good for low light) & not wide enough on a crop sensor DSLR like the 7D.

[BruinBear]

Definitely get the 70-200 2.8 II if you have the money. Amazing lens and if you ever need more length you can slap on a 2x TC, retain AF (F/5.6), not lose too much in image quality.

For the wide end +1 to what Rienz said. If the 17-55 canon is too expensive there is the sigma 17-50 2.8 which is a great lens at half the price.  I would definitely say 28, even 24 is not wide enough on crop sensor for whole stadium shots.

[timmy_650]

What Lens do you have now?
For sports the 70-200 2.8 is great. If there are night games you will be happy to have the 2.8 over the f4. You can't push ISO setting like you could if using Full Frame.
If you want the full stadium I could say the 10-22 is a good choice.

[acoll123]

Definitely get the 2.8 for night games. At all of the HS football stadiums around here that I shoot at, my setting are usually 1/500 - 1/800, f2.8 and around 10,000 ISO give or take a stop. If I had a slower lens, I would need to drop shutter speed and accept some subject motion blur.

[Brymills]

If you want to save some money get the 2.8 Non-IS version.  You don't need IS for sport.

[preppyak]

If you want to save some money get the 2.8 Non-IS version.  You don't need IS for sport.

It is helpful for video, which he seems to mention several times.

Wide at f/2.8 you could go Tokina 11-16, but, I think the 17-55 is probably the right option since it gives you a good zoom range that the 10-22 or 11-16 won't. IS as well

[Brymills]

Missed the video bit.  But then I don't care about video anyway, I must have sub-consciously filtered it out!

Guess it's a trade off?  f/4 plus IS for video of f/2.8 for stills.  Or save up to get both.

[bdunbar79]

No way around it.  If you're going to shoot sports, you NEED f/2.8 and you NEED long lenses.  For football I take nothing less than two cameras, the 70-200 f/2.8L II IS, and the 400 f/2.8L I IS.  With a 1D4 I was using the 300 f/2.8L I IS more and I still will if I get super close along the sidelines.  Either way, I'm always shooting at f/2.8 as well.

With a 7D?  Factoring in the reach, the 70-200 f/2.8L II IS lens would probably cover everything for you, except the short end in this case.  But, who cares?  Just back up.  It's a good decision for you and one that you will NOT regret.

[RichM]

The 7D with a 70-200 2.8 if my primary sports setup.  While I'd love to have a 300 or 400 2.8, they are outside my budget.   I borrowed a friend's 300 f4 and liked it so much I finally ended up buying one. It provides the extra reach for field sports that I was seeking.  It is reasonably fast and very sharp.    While the 300 f4 is a bit on the old side, it is still a very good lens.  I've even tried it with a 1.4 II extender, and was happy with image quality, but probably not the best sports set up. 

[scottkinfw]

The 70-200 F4L is still a great lens!

I plan on getting a 70-200 f/2.8 USM IS II lens for my 7D and I want to use it for capturing American football games in the fall.  I think this lens can handle the games and the 70-200 lens has looked great on 7D videos on Youtube.  I wonder though if I should invest in another lens too.  Im still getting the 70-200 but I might want to take pics of the whole stadium and the surroundings.  The high school stadiums in Texas can be wide open and there are some wonderful sunsets that can be even more spectacular when there is a partly cloudy sky.  Palm trees in the Valley.  Mountais in El Paso.  Endless sky in The Plains of West Texas and lush trees in East Texas as well as the urban landscape of Dallas area games.  Would it be wise to get a smaller lens--like a 24-70 or a set prime lens?  Also, I hear these lenses are also great for video on a 7D.

Also, the 70-200 f/4 lens is signifigantly cheaper.  I could be able to swing that lens in a month.  Would it be wise to get it and use it for daytime settings and baseball games?  Like I said, I'd still get the 2.8 but the 70-200 f/4 looks to be a good set of glass.

One more question.  Anyone got any takes on the 28-300mm L f3.5-5.6 lens?  I havent seen too many reviews or vids on it.   Is this lens real good for sports?

Thanks for your feedback.  Still learning the 7D but so far so good.

[Rockets95]

I have both the 70-200 f/2.8 IS II and the 70-200 f/4 IS (wife has now claimed the f/4). I prefer the shallower DOF that the one stop gives you with the f2.8. It really isolates the subject. It is also quite a bit heavier. I also had the 70-300 non L and while I got some nice sharp shots at times, I also got the opposite - some soft images. My 2 cents.

[TexPhoto]

70-200 f/2.8 IS II is a great lens now and will be 30-40 years from now.  if it's too much money get VI or even Canon IS version.  But I'd go sigma before I went f4.  At least for sports 70-200 f/2.8 is the best lens to have. Add a 1.4X converter and you are close to 300mm.

Of course you should have other lenses.  From fisheye to 800mm there are uses for them all in a sports environment.  Which is the 2nd best lens?  Definitly a mid range zoom like the 24-70/105. A 300/400mm f2.8 would also be nice but is a bit pricy.

Oh and I recommend a monopod with the 70-200 f2.8, it can get very heavy over time.

[RocklandDragon]

What Lens do you have now?
For sports the 70-200 2.8 is great. If there are night games you will be happy to have the 2.8 over the f4. You can't push ISO setting like you could if using Full Frame.
If you want the full stadium I could say the 10-22 is a good choice.

The 28-135mm kit lens is what I have.

[RocklandDragon]

No doubt I'll definitely get the 70-200mm f/2.8 IS II.  It sux that I wont be able to get it until July.  I wanted to practice with it before then but that's ok.  As long as I get it before August, it'll be fine.  I was looking at getting the f/4 so I can shoot baseball with it in a month.  But I think y'all are right and I bettter be served using that money to save up for a 24-70 or 10-22 lens. 

If I get those three lenses--or just the 70-200mm and 24-70, would I be better off selling the kit lens for a coin and try to get another one or just hold on to it?  I could use the kit lens for daytime portraits or just regular shots.  To me, the kit lens doesnt seem to suck and gets good daytime photos but I had some trouble with it in night shots on far away subjects.  Still, I'd count that towards user error and I can work to get better shots with it.