The new CIAU season has started here in Ontario, and once again I'm busy shooting University of Waterloo games.

I recently added a Pentax-DA* 300mm F4, and HD Pentax-DA 1.4X to my arsenal which should come in very handy for the field sports.

Here's a few examples:

Women's Hockey.

Pentax-DA*50-135mm



Pentax-DA 10-17mm



The rink has horrible light, the colour and intensity of which change on every shot. Makes post-processing a challenge. I think I've settled on the Pentax-DA*50-135mm F2.8 as my main lens for the rink, but the Pentax-DA 10-17mm came out better than I was anticipating, and made for an interesting perspective.

Women's Rugby

DA*300mm



DA*300mm and HD Pentax-DA 1.4X



Men's Rugby

DA*200mm and HD Pentax-DA 1.4X



Women's Soccer

DA*200mm and HD Pentax-DA 1.4X



Field Hockey

DA*200mm and HD Pentax-DA 1.4X



DA*200mm and HD Pentax-DA 1.4X



Football

DA*200mm and HD Pentax-DA 1.4X



I have a brief, intense fall schedule covering field sports, and once the snow flies in December I'll move indoors to cover volleyball and basketball until the spring.

If you'd like to see more check out my UW Warriors 2015/16 album on Flickr

[Rimfiredude]

Excellent shots.

[GeoJerry]

These are great shots. I liked your 10-17 mm shot the best, it gives a sports perspective you don't often see, and it works really well here with the confined area, the roof, and the lights.

[fwwidall]

A few more from this weekend.



A night rugby game with the DA*300mm. ISO 12800 !!! Lots of noise, obviously, but I think it came out amazing well considering. I was in TAV mode since the lighting was very poor and inconsistent, just isolated pools of light really.



Football during a torrential downpour. The K3 and DA*300mm water resistance was much better than mine, I was completely soaked to the skin




Shot with the DA*300mm and HD Pentax-DA1.4X teleconverter, for a 420mm focal length. I thought the background with this combination was a little 'harsh' (for want of a better term). I was shooting from the other end of the pitch, and it was a very bright, sunny afternoon, which I'm sure contributed to it.

[kyricom]

Great catches. I shoot sports at my school too. My favorite lens for it is the DA* 200, but then again I don't think I have the range of choices you seem to. :-)

[fwwidall]

The DA*200mm is a great lens. I've owned my copy since April 2011 and have taken, literally, thousands of images with it.

I persuaded myself I needed more reach for the outdoor sports and recently went with the DA*300mm, which seems to be as good, if not better, than the DA*200mm.

The DA*300mm is definitely heavier, and on the K3 (with battery grip attached), is quite a weight to hold for a whole game so I've been using a monopod as well. I need to work on my technique but I'm enjoying the results so far.

Fred.

[normhead]

I'm with Jerry, I like the close-ups, in the football shots i can smell the dried sweat on the pads, but the DA 10-17 shot is just like I'm a defenceman behind the net, like I'm actually playing.

[fwwidall]

Yes, the 10-17mm shot did work out nice. I think I'll have to try a few more of those. Fred.