aperture for basketball ?

[dsze]

What would be the recommended aperture for women's college basketball games? I've got a friend looking for a zoom lens for this purpose. She's looking at an f/4-5.6 lens, which I didn't think would be fast enough, but lack experience shooting inside gyms.

thanks for any input or lens suggestions for her.

-daniel

[Croasdail]

Depends on her expectations, but she will not get clean stop action shots with anything that slow. f2.8 is really the minimum to get clean shots....I shoot f1.8.

[primoz]

For inside f2.8 is must. First you probably won't be shooting in perfectly lit halls, second for basketball you need times around 1/500 or less. And in halls with tv lights it's sometimes hard to get 1/500 with iso 800-1250 and with f2.8 lens, so I can't really imagine using anything slower. Sometimes I do wish to have 200/1.8 but... :)
But there's always another option... if you can use flash then f4-5.6 lens will do too. It won't be perfect but it will do. Problem is only that on most of bit better games there's "no flash rule".

[Andy_T]

85/1.8 + ISO 1600/3200 :p

Best regards,
Andy

[dsze]

Thanks...thats what I told her, but with my lack of gymnasium experience I thought I'd get some other opinions for her. She just got an XT and has a real interest and is looking for a longer zoom to add to the kit lens.

She is mostly interested in this for Purdue Women's BBall. My guess would be that flash is not allowed? Can anyone confirm this for College women's games?

thanks,
daniel