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Advice on sports camera


mehlmann | Asked  11 months ago | Last response was 8 months ago

I will be taking pics at my daughters indoor volleyball games. i already have a Pentax K20D, and am looking to upgrade. Willing to switch brands.

Which camera do you recommend for mehlmann?

Pentax K-5 - $692
16.1 MP|APS-C CMOS|3" LCD
Canon 7D - $1,249
17.9 MP|APS-C CMOS|3" LCD
Nikon D7000 - $897
16.1 MP|APS-C CMOS|3" LCD
7 Answers
  1. Beginner II
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    11 months ago William-Pead recommends the Pentax K-30

    If you appreciate the virtues of the K-20, the move to Pentax's newest technology, the K-30, makes a lot of sense.  The only downside I see is the lack of provision for an external battery grip.  If the grip is needed, you won't go wrong with the K-5, a camera I dearly love. Right now, prices are close between the 2.  If you already have Pentax lenses and accessories, stick with the brand you know and save yourself a huge outlay to switch to Canon or Nikon.

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  2. Intermediate III
    cameras Community
    Fair Minded
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    11 months ago John-Kim recommends the Pentax K-5

    People are going to generally recommend the brand that they like and use.  In this case, compelling case can be made for all three.

     

    To quote dpreview.com, a reputable camera gear review site ...

    The K-5 has a very similar sensor inside it to the Nikon D7000's, and like the Nikon, the K-5 displays excellent image quality across almost its entire ISO span. Ultimately, we have no hesitation in recommending the Pentax K-5 to anyone - not only existing Pentax users, ... it earns a solid gold award.

     

    K-5, when it first came out had a rather high MSRP.  Since then, the current street price of K-5 is much cheaper than both D7000 and 7D.  As for existing Pentax lenses from film era, while they can be used as with most all older K-mount lenses, not sure how useful they are in reality, especially if they are of manual focus variety and you are used to auto focus feature of the DSLR. Hence, I understand your willingness to change brands. 

    Your requirements are for indoor sport photography.  That requires a sensor with excellent high ISO capabilities and camera body with fast frame rate.  All three cameras have excellent sensors for that purpose, although many would give a slight edge to Nikon and Pentax (they use same/similar SONY sourced sensors).  All have adequate to excellent FPS (frames per second), useful for sports photography: D7000 (6FPS), K-5 (7FPS), 7D (8FPS).  A third requirement for sports photography is the use of fast, constant aperture lens. All three brands have fast lenses, although Canon and Nikon have more choices with 3rd party lens makers.  In the end, if you choose to stay with Pentax, you'll save money on the body and get a capable camera in K-5 and can use the savings toward a fast lens. If you get better lenses, your current K20D will also perform better and can serve as a backup body without having to lug a whole another system.

     

    The user interface (UI) on K-5 should be familiar to K20 users.  As for choosing Canon or Nikon, I suggest that you go to a camera shop and try both out to see how they feel and handle in your hands and try out the menu and UI layout.  The decision should really come down to how they feel in YOUR hands.  Another factor that may or may not matter to you is 7D is substantially heavier than either D7000 or K-5, which weigh about the same. Both K-5 and 7D are substantially weather sealed, better than D7000.  Pentax has more affordable choice of weather sealed lenses than the others.  Pentax was recently bought out by Ricoh, a reputable Japanese camera and imaging company.

    1. Visitor
      11 months ago Mary-Meyer-Ehlmann
      John-kim, thanks so much for putting a lot of thought into this. A lot of valid points. One of the reasons I was looking at Canon or nikon, is people look at my current camera like "oh, it's a pentax". Even my photography teacher made a comment, to either get nikon or canon. no other. just because he always shot with canon, no other company measured up. I guess it bothered me a bit.
    2. Intermediate III
      11 months ago John-Kim
      Canon /Nikon snobbery can be rather appalling at times. I happen to use Nikon but I feel that I can take good pictures with any of the aformentioned systems. Good luck and have fun taking pictures!!
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  3. Beginner II
    cameras Community
    Fair Minded
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    11 months ago Feh-r-D-niel-Soma recommends the Pentax K-5

    I think K-5 will be the best. Cause you already have some Pentax lenses, so lot of money you can save without buy new lenses. And K-5 is chepaer than Canon and Nikon. ISO performance is one of the most important advantage of the K-5. In poor light it will be very useful. Canon can shoot 8 frames per second, but I think, the 7 fps of the Petnax is sufficient too. K-30 will be the best for you if you want shoot videos. 

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  4. Intermediate I
    cameras Community
    Fair Minded
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    11 months ago noahsnellphoto recommends the Pentax K-5

    The K-5 is known to have amazing results with high ISO, which is mandatory for sports, I use a Nikon D7000 and Pentax K-r. The Pentax generally gives me the better results but D7000 is better in low light. I would recommend either, but I would stick with Pentax.

    1. Visitor
      10 months ago mehlmann
      If you dont mind me asking, what lenses do you use with your pentax. i went to buy a new camera this weekend, and handled the k-5, D7000 and 7D. at the beginnig, i was set on the 7D. too heavy. in reading reviews, the D7000 had back focusing and sensor oil stains. That is my problem, I get to reading too many reviews, good and bad, and talk myself out of getting any camera. The K-5 had the best still pics, imo. the others had a few more keepers with moving subjects, which we tested on all three cameras, with pretty much the same lenses. We tested on 70-200 lenses too. they are just extremely heavy. i realize they are best for sports, but i think i will be disappointed with the weight. thoughts?
    2. Intermediate I
      10 months ago noahsnellphoto
      da l 55-300 is lightweight, cheap and good in quality
    3. Intermediate I
      10 months ago noahsnellphoto
      but generally, you will probably be using a tripod, which will kill all that weight in your hands
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  5. Beginner II
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    10 months ago Travis-Power recommends the Canon EOS 60D

    there is still an argument to be made for canon and nikon. But for sports, you really want a good, sharp lens, as well as a fast shutter speed, and continuos shooting of >4fps. I do sport shooting for rugby when im not playing, so a fast paced game, and using a crisp lens, with a quick shutter speed, allows for capturing that perfect moment. I say the Canon 60D, as its my camera, and i know from experience, as its prosumer, it has lots of key functions to shoot in all lighting levels, and has 6.8fps burst, and can use all canon lenses, both EF and EF-S.

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  6. Expert I
    cameras Community
    Fair Minded
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    11 months ago Brenden-Sherratt recommends the Pentax K-30

    This is a tough one, if you own a lot of lenses (or even one or 2 good ones) I would stick with the Pentax. They make a solid camera, although they are not as popular as Nikon or Canon. You might also want to look at the Pentax K-30

    If you are willing to switch I would suggest the Nikon D7000.

    1. Visitor
      11 months ago mehlmann
      My husband already owned the Pentax film when i met him, and his ex worked at a camera store, so he had 3 lenses already. They are ok lenses. We just went on vacation, and my daughter's point and shoot shot sharper pics than the K20. Nice. i was set on the 7D, but read more and more reviews, and for how much it costs, am looking more at the 7000. i need something for low light, and fast shutter speed. i could get a 1.4 or 1.8, 50mm lens to start for the 7000. By reading, i dont think the K30 is as good as the K5, is it? Thanks for the comment btw! :)
    2. Intermediate I
      11 months ago noahsnellphoto
      A 50mm will NOT be suitable for sports photography. I would recommend 300mm, but no lower than 135mm.
    Reply
  7. Beginner II
    Nikon D7000
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    -1
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    8 months ago Renato-Camargo-Marciano recommends the Nikon D7000

    the best dx, 1/8000 - best performance iso - lens old compatible 

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