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Equipment for Wildlife Photography

Wildlife photography, more so than most other genres, is often seen to dictate one thing in particular, lots of equipment costs. But whilst it’s true the very best lenses and cameras are not cheap, that doesn’t mean you can’t take great wildlife photos on a smaller budget. There is a huge amount of choice on the market, and within each price band there are multiple options.

Budget under £500 / $750

LENS

The two big manufacturers as well as most third parties, offer a lens of this specification all ranging within the f4 to f5.6 range. This means that when the lens is at its widest focal length of 70mm, the widest aperture will be f4 (as an example with the Canon version) but when zoomed out to 300mm the widest aperture becomes f5.6. Although this entry level lens won’t see you obtaining the ultimate in image quality, or construction, it will serve you well in terms of taking your first steps in to the wildlife photography genre. Pairing a lens such as this with an entry level crop sensor DLSR will give you a surprisingly good amount of reach on a limited budget.

PROS: Small, light and cheap. This lens is very easy to carry around meaning you can pop it in your bag without a second thought, so it’s always there should an impromptu wildlife encounter arise.

CONS: No weather sealing and relatively soft optics. With the long end of the zoom range having a fairly large aperture, separating the subject from the background will be a little harder.

DSLR

Entry level cameras of today are far better spec’d and priced than you’d imagine. Although cameras such as the Canon 1200D and Nikon D3200 may lack the control and ergonomics of some of the more expensive models, they all offer the fundamental elements required to capture great images, with both automatic and manual exposure control possible. With crop sensors, these DSLRs will give your lenses a boost in reach. That’s not to say they’ll offer you more zoom, but with smaller sensor sizes, they’ll give you the same field of view of longer reaching lenses. For example, the Nikon D3200 with its 1.5x crop sensor, will give the 70-300mm lens the same field of view as a 105-450mm lens.

Mid-Range £501 to £1,500 / $750 to $2,250

The middle ground of equipment covers quite a broad spectrum, and so breaking it down in to lower and upper end gives us a more representative look at the upgrade path.

LENS

The mid-range kit will give you better features and image quality, whilst still keeping prices at a moderate level. Improved image stabilisation and faster autofocus will also help achieve better results in low light or with fast moving subjects.

There is a good bump in both build and optical quality once you start thinking about the upgrade path. Both Nikon and Canon offer similar lenses that have a more useful zoom range for wildlife. Whilst the Canon still features a variable aperture, it also offers more reach meaning subject isolation is made just that little bit easier. There is also a newer USM II version of the Canon lens (UK: Wex, US: B&H), which gives superior optics as it benefits from an improved optical formula. It does come in at over twice the price though.

Nikon’s latest mid-range telephoto zoom, the 200-500 f5.6E, offers a fixed aperture. Although this means it will be slightly hampered in low light at the short end of it’s focal range, compared to variable aperture lenses, it does offer slightly more reach for those subjects that aren’t as easy to get close to.

Alternative: Sigma 150-600 f5-6.3 DG OS HSM C (UK: Wex/Amazon, US: B&H/Amazon)

As a alternative, Sigma’s latest super telephoto offering offers maximum focal range for the price point, along with the added benefit of a special coating on the front and rear elements, that repel water and dirt. This is a welcome addition as photographing wildlife often requires being out in wet weather, and dirty and dusty environments. The Sigma also comes in a range of mounts compatible with all the major camera manufacturers.

DSLR

The decision whether to move to full frame or not comes in to play now. From a plain and simple point of view, sticking with crop sensors will enable you to make the most of your lens’s reach. However, taking a closer look will reveal other variables that could also sway your decision. For example, the DX sensored Nikon D7200 has a faster max shutter speed than the FF D610 at 1/8000 compared to 1/4000. If you’re photographing fast animals, that could make a difference. But the D610, although having a lower high ISO figure, actually has better noise control at high ISOs because of its full frame sensor allowing it to gather more light.

With Canon, the high end crop sensor 7DMKII offers greatly improved autofocus over the full frame 6D, and a massive 54 more autofocus points, with 65 to the 6D’s 11. It’s also far quicker, shooting at 10fps vs 5fps for the 6D. But then the 6D offers superior ISO performance in low light, better dynamic range and improved battery life.

So as you can see, the decision on whether or not to jump to full frame needs to be carefully weighed up against other features that you may gain or lose in doing so, when looking at similar price points for the two.

Mid-Range alternatives £1,501 to £3,000 / $2,250 to $4,500

LENS

Before jumping in to the high end range of lenses, there are a few relative bargains to be had, especially if you don’t mind buying second hand.

  • Sigma 300mm f2.8 EX DG (UK: Wex/Amazon, US: B&H/Amazon)
  • Nikon/Canon 300mm f2.8 (Nikon VR MKI second hand & Canon IS MKI second hand)
  • Nikon 200-400mm f4 (MKI, second hand)

The 300 f2.8 lens is an almost legendary telephoto lens. Although not offering the greatest reach, such lenses are often regarded as some of the sharpest money can buy. Add to this their relatively compact size and super fast focusing and many consider them the perfect lens for birds in flight or other such subjects that require keeping track of fast motion. Add a 1.4 or 2x teleconverter in to the mix and you have a 420mm f4 or 600mm f5.6 lens.

The original Nikon 200-400 also serves as a highly flexible lens. Optically it performs exceptionally well for a zoom, being razor sharp even wide open at f4, where other zooms often require stopping down a little to obtain ultimate sharpness. It’s a little slow to focus, but the zoom range, optics and f4 aperture make it a bargain lens for the money.

DSLR

Sitting firmly between the top end and mid range bodies, both Nikon and Canon offer ultra high resolution DSLR’s. Whilst these may be a little slower, meaning they aren’t as suitable in fast action scenarios, their image quality is second to none. With such high image quality and resolution on offer, the ability to crop in to your subject and still retain a large file offers a great advantage. For example, with the Nikon D810, you can crop away 50% of the image and still retain a file that is the same as a cropped file from the Nikon D4s. But with the D4s, to keep the subject the same size in the frame, you would have had to have introduced a teleconverter, which would reduce the image quality and maybe require a larger depth of field. Canon’s 5D MKIII R makes this even more attractive with it’s 50mp sensor.

High End £3,001+ / $4,500+

LENS

The jump between the upper mid-range and high end is quite a big one. The very best optics, fastest cameras and premium build require a huge investment and dedication to the craft. But once you’re ready to make that jump, you will be rewarded by the finest quality images obtainable.

  • Nikon 400mm f2.8 AF-S E FL ED VR (UK: Wex, US: B&H)
  • Canon EF 400mm f2.8 L IS II USM (UK: Wex, US: B&H)

Reach is generally regarded as the ultimate goal for wildlife photography. However, flexibility also has its place and it is for that reason, the 400mm prime is one of the best choices you can make. Although it doesn’t offer as much reach as its 500 and 600mm bigger brothers, being an f2.8, it offers not only one of the sharpest images money can buy, but the flexibility of being able to increase its reach with teleconverters with minimal loss of quality. Pairing a 1.4 or 2x TC up to this lens will give you a 550mm f4 and 800mm f5.6 respectively. The newer light weight versions of these lenses also make them easier to transport, both on foot and when travelling further afield.

PROS: The ultimate balance of image quality and flexibly

CONS: Although latest versions are lighter, they’re still large and require some dedication to transport, and use in the field.

Alternatives

There are no real rivals for these high end lenses. But if superior reach is your end game, Nikon, Canon and Sigma all make 800mm f5.6 lenses. In the case of Nikon, this comes with a dedicated and individually optically paired 1.25x teleconverter to give you an eye watering 1000mm f7.1. However, this all comes at quite a price. The Nikon 800 f5.6E will cost you a pricey £12,999.

If you prefer the flexibility of a zoom lens, then both Canon and Nikon make a 200-400mm f/4 lens. The Canon version includes a built in 1.4x extender making it an extremely versitile option.

  • Nikon 200-400mm f4 G VR II AF-S ED (UK: Wex, US: B&H)
  • Canon EF 200-400mm f4 L IS USM (UK: Wex, US: B&H)

DSLR

With the very best in build quality, weather sealing and performance, the top end of the DSLR market gets you incredibly capable full frame bodies. Add in the very best in autofocus and the ability to customise a huge amount of the setup and there is very little these bodies won’t do. If you need blisteringly fast frame rates and exceptionally high ISO performance for low light shooting, these are the bodies for you.

D4s PROS: Fast, reliable, built to last.

D4s CONS: Isn’t a huge leap up from the older D4. Considered low resolution by todays standards. Heavy.

1DX PROS: It’s the fastest DSLR on the market. Featuring an impressive 12fps in RAW this is the body to buy if high speed photography is your ultimate goal.

1DX CONS: The autofocus system can be a little confusing to customise. Also borderline low resolution by todays standards. Heavy.

Extreme

Those who want to cover all basis, regardless of cost, can add one of these super high end lenses to their kit bag. Both Nikon and Canon offer an 800mm prime, although the Canon version has been available for longer and so now features a slightly reduced price tag. If ultimate reach and optimum quality is your thing, these lenses simply can’t be beaten, or substituted. Paired with a high resolution full frame or DX body and there will be very few animals that you won’t be able to fit in the frame.

  • Nikon 800 f5.6E VR (UK: Wex, US: B&H)
  • Canon 800 f5.6 IS USM (UK: Wex, US: B&H)

PROS: Image quality and reach doesn’t come any better. The Nikon 800mm also comes with it’s own 1.25x TC taking it up to an almighty 1000mm f7.1

CONS: The Price. Especially the Nikon version at £12,999

Want more?

“Equipment for Wildlife Photography” is our ebook that expands on the content of this email. In addition to an in-depth look at cameras and lenses, we also cover accessories such as tripods, camera bags, flashes, camera triggers and more.

This ebook provides actionable advice to suit any budget and will help you spend your money in the areas that matter most.

This ebook is included with our Premium membership plan or you can get it on its own here.