Random New Guy ...

[bushwacked]

Woodworker and taking up photography part of things to shoot my kids sporting events, mainly baseball/softball ... looking forward to learning lots here! 

I will have the Sony A1 coming soon ... and once I figure out my memory card questions I will be order those. Also will be using the 100-400 lens with it.

Edited July 8, 2023 by bushwacked

[Olaf W.]

Welcome to our forum.

[FunWithCameras]

Do you have a planned lens choice to accompany the A1?

I'd recommend starting with something like the excellent 70-200mm f/2.8 GM mark II - it won't let you get a face shot of someone at bat unless you are rather close, but you should get good sharp full length shots - that lens is very fast, and will happily keep up with the A1's power. 

If you want a lens to get closer, there are a lot of choices depending on various factors, including how close you want to get, how big a lens you are willing to wield, and whether you need to worry about bashing it's other people into the crowd when tracking the ball! I really like the 200-600mm G lens, but I wouldn't take it into a crowd for fear of knocking a bystander unconscious as I tracked a fast-moving object! The 100-400 GM that you mention is a bit more crowd-friendly!

I'd be wary of buying an A1 if it's going to consume the majority of your camera gear budget. You might be better off spending a bit less on the body and more on a lens or two. For example, the A7RV is not a speed demon, but it will readily capture super-detailed shots, and would leave you more budget to spend on really good lenses (I bought both the A1 and the A7RV as they came out - I know the pricing all too well!).

If you can afford the lenses, then the A1 is a superb choice. It is still the camera I pick up when I want to capture action (for portraits, it has been supplanted by the A7RV).

[bushwacked]

1 hour ago, FunWithCameras said:

Do you have a planned lens choice to accompany the A1?

I'd recommend starting with something like the excellent 70-200mm f/2.8 GM mark II - it won't let you get a face shot of someone at bat unless you are rather close, but you should get good sharp full length shots - that lens is very fast, and will happily keep up with the A1's power. 

If you want a lens to get closer, there are a lot of choices depending on various factors, including how close you want to get, how big a lens you are willing to wield, and whether you need to worry about bashing it's other people into the crowd when tracking the ball! I really like the 200-600mm G lens, but I wouldn't take it into a crowd for fear of knocking a bystander unconscious as I tracked a fast-moving object! The 100-400 GM that you mention is a bit more crowd-friendly!

I'd be wary of buying an A1 if it's going to consume the majority of your camera gear budget. You might be better off spending a bit less on the body and more on a lens or two. For example, the A7RV is not a speed demon, but it will readily capture super-detailed shots, and would leave you more budget to spend on really good lenses (I bought both the A1 and the A7RV as they came out - I know the pricing all too well!).

If you can afford the lenses, then the A1 is a superb choice. It is still the camera I pick up when I want to capture action (for portraits, it has been supplanted by the A7RV).

Yes, the starting lens I was going with was the Sony FE 100-400mm F4.5–5.6 GM OSS. In woodworking we have a saying (maybe its other places too?) but it is, 'Buy Once, Cry Once' ... so I am bringing that mindset here too. I dont want to regret something a few months down the road and spend more than I originally would if I just bought what I know I wanted first.

I was debating on the 200-600 though, but just seemed a tad too big for me to lug around a field for 4-5 hours ??? Was thinking the 100-400 might hit the sweet spot in that area ??

As far as bumping into people in the crowds, I hardly ever sit in the stands anyways ... too nervous haha. So I pace up and down the outfield fence area and stuff like that with a few other dads. So crowds wont be an issue for the most part unless I go in to take a few stills of batters or something.