With constant rapid movements and adrenaline-filled expressions, sports events present unbeatable opportunities for amazing shots to show off your photography skills. But those opportunities unique challenges and the need for the right equipment.
Trying to capture all-star moments can quickly become an exercise in frustration if you don’t have the right equipment. Instead of poster-worthy prints, you can easily end up turning out one blurry picture after another of ant-sized players that no one can identify.
I took a close look at the Nikon lens lineup and came up with 9 of the best Nikon lenses for sports photography.
My top picks were the Tamron 70-200 f/2.8 G2 for DSLRs and the Nikon 70-200 f/2.8 S for Mirrorless Nikons.
Keep reading if you want to see my full breakdown and more options based on your specific needs:
Mirrorless (Z-Mount) Lenses
All of the exciting new lenses being released by Nikon are in the Z Mount lineup. Starting with a lens that may be one of the best on the market by any manufacturer.
1. Nikon Z 70-200 f/2.8 S
This lens is a staple in any Nikon sports photographer’s bag and may be among the best 70-200 lenses on the market in terms of sharpness and image quality.
For shooters with a Z mount body ready to make a big investment for sports photography, the obvious choice is the Nikon S 70-200 f/2.8. Without a doubt, this stunning piece of glass is a gem that both promises and delivers excellent results.
Part of Nikon’s S-line lenses designed exclusively for Z mount bodies, the painstaking focus on optical quality and performance make this lens possibly the best 70-200 lens currently on the market. In features, it really leaves nothing to be desired.
This lens pairs very well with the Nikon Z8 which made the top of our list of best Nikon cameras for sports photography.
The consistent f/2.8 aperture guarantees broad low-light shooting capabilities even when extended to 200 mm. This coupled with not one but two autofocus motors makes rapid-fire autofocusing a reality, meaning that shooting in almost any sports situation is now not only possible but easier than ever. As a bonus, the performance is near silent adding to the finesse of your shooting experience.
Additional notable characteristics of this lens include coatings like Nikon’s Nano Crystal Coat and Fluorine Coat to fight both reflections and dirt that can ruin an otherwise award-winning shot. On top of that, the lens body itself is ruggedly designed against dust and moisture to make sure this lens can withstand field conditions.
One look at all this lens offers and there is absolutely no doubt that it has been meticulously designed to be fast, reliable and optically superior to all its competitors. Unfortunately, that incredible attention to detail and the stunning results it helps produce do come at a steep price, to the tune of $2,600 MSRP.
If you’re looking for something more affordable, then this next pick may be right for you…
2. Tamron 70-300mm Z f/4.5-6.3 Di III RXD
One of the first Nikon Z Mount lenses developed by Tamron, this lens delivers great image quality at an affordable price.
I was excited when I learned that Nikon had opened up the Z Mount for other manufacturers to develop lenses for it. Tamron has long been a favorite of mine for great quality lenses that are more affordable than their Nikon counterparts.
The 70-300mm focal range is one that Nikon has done before with its DSLR lineup and those lenses were always kind of mediocre. Good focal range and affordable but soft and lackluster autofocus performance.
While this lens certainly falls short of the optical performance of the 70-200mm f/2.8 above, its far better than any of the affordable 70-300mm lenses that Nikon used to make.
It actually delivers impressive clarity across the focal range. You’ll see some softness around the edges but that’s to be expected with a lens of this focal range and price.
The biggest drawback to this lens is the aperture range. It won’t affect you if you’re just looking foe a lens to shoot your kid’s sports in daylight, but if you’re shooting in lower light situations then you’ll need to really crank up the ISO to get a good exposure.
Alternative: If you want to spend a little more but aren’t ready to make the jump to the pro-level 70-200mm above, then check out the Nikon 70-180mm f/2.8. That lens will give you the f/2.8 aperture you need to shoot in lower light and still save you over $1000 off the top pick above.
I wouldn’t recommend this lens on a high resolution camera like the Z7, Z8 or Z9 because you won’t get the full performance out of those cameras with this lens. But any of the other Z cameras around that 24MP or lower range will work great with this lens, especially one of the crop sensor mirrorless cameras like the Z50, Zfc, or Z30.