Football game at night - will this setup work?

[benca]

Hi folks,

I am going to shoot my first night game (high school) in a week or so and I have no experience at night shooting whatsoever. I have a Nikon D40 with a 55-300 f/4.5-5.6 VR, and the camera will be on a monopod. I'm pretty sure I will be standing on the sideline if that makes a difference. Will I have a chance at getting anything good with what I have? I've read that f/4.5 isn't good enough and that f/2.8 is necessary even with lighting. The lighting at this location, as far as I know, is quite good as far as local fields go.

Thank you!
-- Ben

 

[tirediron]

If it's a night game, while it may seem bright to you, it won't to the camera. I suspect you'll need to get up to your max usable ISO to have any hope of a good shot. At the end of the day, your best with the gear you have is all you can do. Give it a go and see how it goes. If nothing else, it will give you areas to improve on for next time.

 

[sierramister]

Use a flash, everyone else is now apparently. Maxpreps won't even accept applications without flash-based photos.

 

[Netskimmer]

4.5 isn't impossible in itself, I have managed to get some reasonable results with that very lens shooting horse related sports in a not so well lit ring, but that was with a D7000. It's going to depend on how well your D40 can perform at higher ISO's. If possible you could try to focus on getting shots in the brightest areas of the field. You could probably get some shots as they are lined up before the snap. Tired, sweaty, yet determined faces moments before the snap could prove very emotional.

 

[shootermcgavin]

I went to a HS game and got decent photos from the stands. I think I was almost to 800ISO definetely 400. I think 1/250 shutter. Similar aperture to what you're talking about. If you have a local camera store I'd rent a 2.8 70-200 it'd probably be well worth the $35

 

[benca]

Thanks for the help guys! Looking around online, it looks like the D40 handles shooting at "Hi 1" (ISO 3200) acceptably, and I might invest in some anti-noise software depending on the results I get. I'm going to try to see if I can borrow a friend's Speedlight 600 to bring as well.

I'm also going to try and get out to the site this week to check it out.

Thanks again!
-- Ben

 

[TheBiles]

Unless you like shooting at ISO 3200, 5.6 isn't nearly fast enough for night football (especially in what will be lower quality lighting in a high school stadium). I'd at least try to get my hands on a 2.8 and still be prepared to jack the ISO.