Watersports and action shots

This past Memorial Day weekend, I had a chance to play with the big birder lens (Tamron 200-500) in a different setting. I had been wanting to try out the versatility of the camera and the lens in a venue other than wildlife - and some off-shore watersports was just the thing I was looking for. I used the 750mm 35mm-equivalent optical range to shoot some kite boarders and jetskiers having some warm-weather fun on a windy day.

Here are two of the kiteboarders heading out into the waves shot at the widest setting, 200mm (300 equiv) to give some idea of the
distance I was shooting from:



This would be the very definition of 'Big Air', shot at 500mm (750mm equiv) - He was a good 30 feet above the water!:



These guys can turn fast - the fins on the bottom of the board help to bite into the water:



Amazing to be able to get so close to someone so far away...the zoom together with the crop ability really help get in tight...and the
detail stays surprisingly good:



It looks like lots of fun...they really get some good speed and can soar both high and far on a windy day:



The jetskiers were out too - jumping the waves and having fun:



This couple looked like they were learning watercraft - they were maneuvering alot and getting to know the handling of the craft:



But they got a little tail-heavy jumping a wave and almost wiped out:



If you want to see more, check out my 'Beach Life' gallery, which has more shots from this weekend, as well as my shots of people at the beach from the past two years:

http://www.pbase.com/zackiedawg/florida_beach_life

Comments, questions, and critique are welcome.

 

Those are some great shots Justin.

 

Thanks Rog and Scott.

Light is rarely a problem down here in sunny Florida! We have too much of it in fact. I even had my camera set to ISO100 from the night before taking some long exposures at night...but the shutter speeds were coming out fine so I didn't bother to boost it. It does make me drool a bit for those huge professional telephotos with F2.8...I'd just have to hire a sherpa to carry it around for me!

 

Great shots Justin! It truly is amazing the detail in those long range shots!

 

Thank you Jeff. I do have an addiction to these long lenses. Lots to carry - but oh so fun what detail they can get from so far away!

 

Ah yes Kiki, lens acquisition syndrome. It appears that Sigma makes Bigma for 4/3, so for only $1k you can get a 100-1000mm equiv lens.

http://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/4 ... EX_DG.html

 

Nah, that would either be for the 200-500/2.8 lens for Canon, Nikon and Sigma mounts ($25k).

But if you wanted to count the cells in each feather of a bird, Sigma also carries a 300-800/5.6 zoom for 4/3 mount: (600-1600mm equiv)

http://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/4 ... EX_DG.html

It'll only cost you about 53.43 barrels of oil.


And on another note, the largest lens Canon ever made for their EF system was a 1200mm lens, and it cost around $75-100k brand new. I think B&H had a used one a while back for $100k.

 

Awesome Justin!
The kite surfers are always out on Sanibel over here, but I never stop to look or photograph. Work always gets in the way!

 

Then there's always the famous Carl Zeiss APO Sonnar 1700mm F4, 564Lbs, 5.5 feet long, custom commissioned from Zeiss from a private owner, to be paired with a Hasselblad medium format camera:



Now...with a mount adapter, it could be paired with an APS-C camera like mine for 2,550mm at F4! Or better yet, Kiki's 4/3 format cam for 3,400mm at F4. I wonder what it cost?

Back in the real world, you Nikon folks could get by with the Nikkor 1200-1700 F5.6-8 for around $40,000 to $50,000. Or save a bundle and go with the Nikkor reflex 2000 F11 for only $20,000. Imagine a 2x crop factor on that baby.

 

Nah, I'm just trying to avoid catching NAS.

 

OK...gotta ask. What's NAS? Nikon something?

I do have the lens envy, lens lust, lens ache, lens...whatever you want to stick on the end of that word that means "I want it"!

I'd love a 500mm F2.8. I'm definitely feeling the growing need for a 10-20mm with decent low light ability (the 50mm F1.7 is wonderful...but tempting me to get the same ability with a wider lens!!). And I'm finding myself thinking about a pure waste of money like a macro lens (I shoot a flower or a bug, what, five times a year??!!).

Still...for now, the 18-250 serves as a great walkaround, the 50mm F1.7 gives me the low light stuff, and the 200-500 satisfies my need to go teledistance.

 

Nikon
Acquisition
Syndrome

 

AH! That does sound like something to be careful not to come down with, Rog. I almost came down with it myself when I first saw the D3 samples.

Cooleo...terrible, isn't it!? I was a happy ultrazoom user when I joined - now I've got a DSLR and 3 lenses, including one 2-foot-long, 5Lb lens!

I blame this place. And Tim. He's the one that let me compare my indoor shots at Raglan Road with his during The Epcot Thing...the seed was planted and the tumor was already growing within me by then.

 

my bad.