I am about to purchase a Nikon D40X, along with the AF-S DX 18-55mm lens. I will be using this camera to shoot a variety of subjects, but one of the most frequent will be dogs playing at a local park. I would like a lens that will reduce or eliminate the blur of dogs running, jumping, etc. "Action" shots, if you will.
Is the AF-S DX 18-55mm lens a good lens for capturing this, or would I need something more high-end that a sports photographer might use? Chances are you can do a very good job of capturing the canine action with your 18-55mm if you choose a high enough ISO and shutterspeed. But, chances are also good that you'll want to get 'closer' than the 18-55mm allows you to.
My first suggestion would be to get a 55-200mm VR as your first telephoto. It's an economical VR (Vibration Reduction) lens that works perfectly with your D40X.
http://www.kenrockwell.com/nikon/55-200m...
I have the more expensive cousin, the 18-200mm VR and love the quality and versatility. I recently toured China with that as my ownly optic and managed to capture amazing images from a bouncing tourbus, as well as freezing acrobats in mid-air.
I hope this is helpful. It's not a question of the lens, so much as a question involving shutter speed and the sensitivity of the sensor (called the "ISO").
To freeze action, you need a fast shutter speed like 1/500, 1/1000 or 1/2000 of a second during daylight shooting. To achieve this, you should use an ISO sensitivity that will let you get a fast shutter speed--the higher the ISO, the more sensitive the sensor and the faster the shutter speed will have to be to compensate.
Where a lens can affect this is with two factors: 1) in dim lighting, you'd need a lens that lets in more light. Well, more than likely, you'll be in daylight, so that's unlikely to be an issue. 2) Isolation of the subject from the background: here's where the lens you mention, the 18-55mm, is the weakest. Isolating the subject from the background involves "blurring" the background, which is best done with a lens that has a wide aperture. The 18-55mm is okay, but as your skills improve, you'll probably want a lens that has a wider aperture (like f/2.8) to help isolate the subject from the background and thus increase the impact and apparent "snap" of your images. |
