Looking for a nice wildlife lense

[D-rogers]

Hello all, im pretty new to this forum, its a damn good read though, very helpful. I own a 300D with a few lenses, got into photography fairly quickly and I have been looking about for a good lens for wildlife, with a budget of £800, preferably with IS, can anyone recommend a good lens?

Thanks :)

-David

[rssfhs]

Hello all, im pretty new to this forum, its a damn good read though, very helpful. I own a 300D with a few lenses, got into photography fairly quickly and I have been looking about for a good lens for wildlife, with a budget of £800, preferably with IS, can anyone recommend a good lens?

Thanks :)

-David

I just bought a Canon 400mm f/5.6L USM from B&H Photo in New York for about $1,100. I love it! I don't think that IS is important for wildlife shots because you need a fast shutter speed anyway to freeze your subject (unless its asleep of course). Sharpness is the most important thing in my opinion and this lens is about as sharp as they come.

You can see some of the photos I took with it which I have posted on this forum in the past few days to get an idea of what it is capable of.

Regards from Japan.

[heffsarmy]

I just bought a second hand canon 300m F4 L non IS for 380 sterling and using this with my 1.4 converor..its an excellent combination...photos are very sharp...

[antaine]

I have the same setup as heffsarmy (well done against Meath at the weekend!!) and am very pleased with it.

The Tamron 1.4 converter which I have reduces the f4 to f5.6 so you need to overexpose by one stop to get correct exposure. I also shoot at either ISO400 or 800 (always cloudy days in Ireland!)

[Matatazela]

I am insanely keen to get the Sigma 120 - 300 and a 1,4X converter. I don't know the UK price, but it is quite expensive.

Wildlife pics of animals just sitting and eating are really overdone. To capture the action, you will need the fastest lens possible. I like the above lens because it has the advantages of the 2,8 and the zoom.With a 1,4 converter you get 120 - 300 f2,8 and 170 - 420 f5,6 which equates to all lengths between 180 - 670mm in digital format.

I must say that I have no experence with the lens - yet - but it does come highly recommended.

[Cadwell]

I am insanely keen to get the Sigma 120 - 300 and a 1,4X converter. I don't know the UK price, but it is quite expensive.

Wildlife pics of animals just sitting and eating are really overdone. To capture the action, you will need the fastest lens possible. I like the above lens because it has the advantages of the 2,8 and the zoom.With a 1,4 converter you get 120 - 300 f2,8 and 170 - 420 f5,6 which equates to all lengths between 180 - 670mm in digital format.

I must say that I have no experence with the lens - yet - but it does come highly recommended.

Street price is around £1,600 sterling so a little out of the questioners price range. Also, with a 1.4x TC it's 168mm-420mm f/4.0. Oh.... and it's a fabulous lens.

[D-rogers]

Hmmm, so far you all have been a good help, thank you :)

[antaine]

you could always look at the 100-400L from Canon - try ebay for your budget or this guy here http://www.photography-on-the.net/forum/showthread.php?t=64418&page=3

For birding you really need a minimum of 400mm (excl 1.6 crop) - as most of the birds over this side of the world are shy of people

[D-rogers]

Indeed, thank you. Yes I can't seem to get within 20 feet of a bird before it looks and buggers off ^_^ But then it might be because im not shealthy enough or some such hehe.

-David

[cfcRebel]

This is a great deal. 500mm is a good start. ;)
http://www.bhphotovideo.com/bnh/controller/home?O=productlist&A=details&Q=&sku=800417273&is=USE

[Muzz]

Sigma 50mm - 500mm is what I use and its great!

Nice n cheap too with a new one costing £600 from 7dayshop.com (including VAT)

:)

Edit:

For $550 second hand you would be nuts not to go for the Sigma!!!!!!!!!!!

I paid £400 for mine second hand and got a very good deal.

[wburychka]

The Tamron 1.4 converter which I have reduces the f4 to f5.6 so you need to overexpose by one stop to get correct exposure. I also shoot at either ISO400 or 800 (always cloudy days in Ireland!)
I hope this was just an example of dry Irish humor. In case it wasn't and someone else doesn't know any better, the reduction of light from the TC is compensated by the camera's meter automatically. The fact that the Tamron doesn't report the "altered" aperture is irrelevant. Less light gets in, so the camera's meter causes a lower shutter speed. In you add exposure comp, you just get overexposure.

[heffsarmy]

D-rogers here is a crop of a photo I took yesterday with the canon 300mm non IS and canon 1.4 ex convertor...great results for the price

[Hellashot]

This is a great deal. 500mm is a good start. ;)
http://www.bhphotovideo.com/bnh/controller/home?O=productlist&A=details&Q=&sku=800417273&is=USE

Not a very good deal for a used item. I can get that NEW shipped for $540 from www. digitalfotoclub.com and they're selling for $10 less used.

[Jim Hayes]

I recently bought a Canon 100-400 f4.5-5.6L IS for my Digital Rebel. The cost was ~$1400 USD. So far I really love this lens! The 400mmx1.6 gives me an effective 640 mm lens (35mm equivalent). I have used it on a monopod and am impressed by the image stabilization function. I think it adds significantly to the effective shutter speed range.

[KevC]

You could try these zooms:

Canon EF100-400mm f4.5-5.6 L IS USM £1159
Sigma 135-400mm F4.5-5.6 APO £298.99
Sigma 170-500mm F5.6-6.3 APO £438.99
Sigma 50-500mm F4-6.3 EX DG £759
Sigma 80-400mm F4-5.6 EX APO OS DG £889

Or these primes:
Canon EF300mm f4.0 L IS USM £927
Canon EF400mm f5.6 L USM £877

Good luck. Prices seem a lot more expensive over there than here :( (taken from Warehouse Express Online (http://www.warehouseexpress.com/))

[condyk]

I'd add the 100-300mm f4 Sigma with 1.4 TCon to the list as it's a clean, sharp dynamic lens at a good value price. Will be in your budget. I have had a Bigma (Muzz's and he got a great deal and I think I was mad to sell it :lol: :lol: ) and highly recommended. Both are if you're mainly tripod or monopod or beanbag shooting. Neither with IS, though a Bigma with IS would rule the world :lol:

The Sigma 80-400mm OS I like a lot and had one for a few days but returned it with focus problems. My first lens problem ever. OS is the Sigma IS. Seen some great shots with it but I suspect overall a tad behind the Bigma ... very good option though and I would choose it over the Bigma because I know I'd get more keepers handheld and lose almost nothing.

The 100-400mm IS is on my 'to buy next' list and has the right balance of usability, quality, resale value. Over your budget by £150-200 new tho'. Capable of great results in the right hands. Equal optically to the Bigma and 100-300mm f4 from the many, many images I have seen of these lenses. Shame it's beige tho'.

Out of the 300mm and 400mm Canon primes I'd get the 300mm with a TCon because it has IS. It's there when you need it. But again, over budget.

Check out the review section at www.fredmiranda.com for other options, including the Sigma primes, which I know nothing about.

For your budget I would get the 80-400mm OS if held-held shooting was more than just now and again. For mainly tripod mounting I would get the Bigma if I wanted 500mm above all else and was in good light all the time, or the 100-300mm and TCon if I wanted the extra speed of a constant f4 (without the TCon). I think the 100-300mm f4 has a tiny edge on optical quality and it performs well in lower light.

BTW, shop around. Prices can be quite different and if going for the Bigma or 80-400mm then get the new DG versions unless offered an unbeatable deal. 7dayshop is usually a good place for keen prices. Second hand Bigma's appear regularly, 100-300mm and OS's rarely. 100-400mm IS now and again but not that good value over the best priced new ones with a warranty. Canon primes are rare on the SH market too.

[buze]

7dayshop is excellent for Canon lens, I've bought all mine from there (saving like £250 off the Jessops price on that new 135L only, for example) but I found out that for Sigma lens, it's much less interesting. I ended up collecting internet prices and and they go strong-arm the local Jessops for a price match. Worked nicely for the 2 sigma I bought (18-200 & 18-50), and you get to try a few copies of you like!
Hope this helps a little :D

[tommykjensen]

Look here for lots of recommendations:

http://photography-on-the.net/forum/showthread.php?t=56752&p=402436