Best lens for Canon 50D to shoot sports

I am looking for a lens for my Canon 50D to take sport shots of my boys? Any suggestions?

f/2.8 constant aperture and moderate to long telephoto.
Really depends on how close you can get to your boys. 70-200/2.8 is a common sports lens, but you'll see the pro photogs have crazy stuff like 300/2.8 and 500/4.
A 70-200/2.8 will run you around $800-2000 depending on brand/features - The Tamron ones with no IS are around $800, I think the Canon L glass with IS is in the $2000 range.
A 300/2.8 will be a few thousand, a 500/4 will be $5k+ easily.
Note: If only outdoors in daytime, you may be able to get away with one of the (far cheaper) 70-300 f/3.5-5.6 lenses. But these won't work well for indoor or night sports.
*disclaimer* I am not now, nor have I ever been, an employee of Best Buy, Geek Squad, nor of any of their affiliate, parent, or subsidiary companies.

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Vasanthkumar and Sami:
There are actually 3 lenses that are pretty similar in range and price: the 55-250, the 70-300 and the 75-300. Of the 3, the 75-300 is rated poorest quality.
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http://www.the-digital-picture.com/Reviews/ISO-12233-Sample-Crops.aspx
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http://www.the-digital-picture.com/Reviews/Canon-EF-70-300mm-f-4-5.6-IS-USM-Lens-Review.aspx
http://www.the-digital-picture.com/Reviews/Canon-EF-75-300mm-f-4-5.6-III-USM-Lens-Review.aspx
http://www.the-digital-picture.com/Reviews/Canon-EF-S-55-250mm-f-4-5.6-IS-Lens-Review.aspx
Among the 3, I would choose the 70-300 IS. It has Image Stabilization, and for the price it really has good image quality.
My 2nd choice would be the 55-250 IS. Same reasons as above. I actually owned this lens for a while, and it was indeed capable of taking a sharp picture.
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To quote the review above on this lens, "If you care about great image quality and sharp photos, the Canon EF 75-300mm f/4-5.6 III USM Lens is not for you. And Photoshop cannot enhance details that are not there."
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Amscot56 wrote:
I am a graphic designer with a lot of experience in the studio but I now find myself needing to do my own product shots in my home studio space of 12' x 12.' I am looking hard at the Canon 7D moving up from 40D and I need to know the best lens or lenses to shoot items such as rifles, glassware, china, and small housewares, etc. I will also need to purchase either soft boxes or umbrellas and am looking for advise on this issue as well. Photos will be used for e-commerce and possibly for catalogs. All comments appreciated!
Hi,
This is not an easy question that can be answered with a short reply, but here there are some items you might find helpful:
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Considering the 1.6x crop factor of your EOS 7D, I think a Canon 50mm 1.4 USM should be fine for many of your shots, assuming you have enough space in your room and the item is not too large, otherwise you should go wider to EF 35mm f/2.0 IS USM or the more expensive EF 35mm f/1.4L USM
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Regards
HD Cam Team
Group of photographers and filmmakers using Canon cameras for serious purposes.
www.hdcamteam.com | www.twitter.com/HDCamTeam | www.facebook.com/HDCamTeam

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Solved!
Go to Solution.

Howard just try a 17-40mm f4 L. You will love it on the 7D.
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