Telephoto lens

[multiham]

My wife has a Nikon D40x with just the basic lens that came with it. Want to get a nice telephoto lens that will allow us to take pictures at sporting events (like Phillies Games and my son's baseball and basketball games). We are not overly critical. Want something that is easy to use, gets us nice and close, and is not too pricey (less than $500, way less if possible!)

Can anyone make a reco for me or at least let me know what specs I should be looking at when I shop? I'm on the B&H website, but am having a difficult time because I really don't understand the terminology. Want to get this for my wifes birthday so I can't ask her any questions!

Thanks!

Steve

[TommyC]

This one should do nicely for your budget.
AF-S VR Zoom-NIKKOR 70-300mm f/4.5-5.6G IF-ED from Nikon

You want something that can do 200mm or more. For this kind of reach (ie. > 200mm), even minute amount of handshake can cause images to blur, therefore you want something with Vibration Reduction (VR) to minimize this.

Is there a photography shop near you? I'm sure if you bring your D40x along, they'll let you test different lenses.

[Jesse]

Steve, TommyC is correct. That is the least expensive way to go for decent quality high zoom on the camera you specified. Check Adorama for prices. I get all my Nikon stuff there. Prices great, service excellent.

Keep in mind however that if you are sitting in the cheap seats, you really don't start getting true close up shots until you hit the 400mm and up range. That's why you see those lenses on the sidelines at football games the size of small floor standing speaker. You may find that a 300 still requires that you get a bit closer than you might think. Have you considered something like this?

SP-800UZ

These kinds of cameras do a fine job for amateurs and this one gives you the equivilent of 840mm. Now THAT is close! You could pic up a cam like that under 500 bucks easy.

Check this out.
Olympus SP-550UZ full review Cameralabs video tour