Which lens to rent for Yellowstone?

[steebs]

Hey everybody!

Just got back from a trip to Yellowstone with my in-laws. Spent a couple of days out in Lamar Valley trying to spot wolves and bears feasting on bison carcasses. It was awesome to be in such a beautiful setting with such amazing scenery.

The downer was that the longest reach lens I have is my 55-250 and it just wasn't cutting it for most of the time.

So, my Wife and I are headed back up to Yellowstone next week with my family and we are wanting to rent a lens to take. I've read several threads and heard a lot of votes for the 100-400 but wanted to get as many opinions as I could.

What would be your choice of lens to rent and take to Yellowstone to photograph wildlife?

Thanks!

[Tc202]

100-400 or a 600mm but it is huge

[MCAsan]

100-400 will definitely cover lots of ground that is near to a decent distance. But when you are in Lamar Valley and other destinations...nothing succeeds like a 500 or 600...with a set of teleconverters.

Rent both lenses with a set of converters for the 500 or 600. This will also let you decide to save up for your own 100-400.

[RikWriter]

The 100-400 is a great lens for Yellowstone, but if you really want to reach out and get the wildlife shots, you need at least a 500 and a 1.4 TC. Actually, the best shots I have had at Yellowstone were with a 600 and a 1.4 TC, which is, I think, the ideal setup.

[steebs]

Originally Posted by RikWriter

The 100-400 is a great lens for Yellowstone, but if you really want to reach out and get the wildlife shots, you need at least a 500 and a 1.4 TC. Actually, the best shots I have had at Yellowstone were with a 600 and a 1.4 TC, which is, I think, the ideal setup.

Thanks for the reply!

We went ahead and put in an order for the 100-400. It will be my first foray into the supertelephoto ballgame and I'm excited to try it out!

Any tips from those who have taken the 100-400 wildlife shooting?

[sweetlu60]

The 100-400 works really well, practice holding it at 400 because it is a push/pull lens it becomes long and I always have a hard time hand holding it at 400 because of it. Although, my wife does great. If you do put it on a tripod, make sure you mount the lens to the tripod and not the camera, because it can put too much weight forward of the center of the column and possibly tip your tripod.

My two cents.

[rick_reno]

go as long as you can carry.

[Scott M]

Originally Posted by steebs

Thanks for the reply!

We went ahead and put in an order for the 100-400. It will be my first foray into the supertelephoto ballgame and I'm excited to try it out!

Any tips from those who have taken the 100-400 wildlife shooting?

When shooting handheld, try to keep your shutter speed at 1/1000sec or faster for sharp images. Open the lens to maximum aperture and increase ISO before slowing down the shutter.

Bring a sturdy tripod and use it whenever possible. Remember to turn off the IS when using the lens on a tripod, as it's an older version of IS that requires this. Also, attach the lens to the tripod via the tripod mount ring -- do not use your camera's tripod mount.

The 100-400L is a very versatile lens for Yellowstone. It will still be too short at times, though, especially in Lamar and Hayden Valley. You should be able to get good shots of elk, mule deer and bison. For grizzlies and wolves, though, you will have to get lucky in order to get some closer shots. If you hike the Chittendon Road trail to the top of Mount Washburn, you have a good chance of getting some good shots of big horn sheep -- they sometimes hang out right on the trail. I've actually been able to capture close-ups of the sheep using a 17-55mm lens on a crop body.

Almost all the wildlife photos in this gallery from our trip last year were taken with the 100-400L on a 7D.

[DegasGoneDigital]

With the 5D, I would use a 800 or 600/1.4x.... I used a 500/ a 1.4X and had to crop a lot....

[Grantzphoto]

400 Prime would be nice! Very sharp lens.

[Tom Reichner]

Originally Posted by steebs

Any tips from those who have taken the 100-400 wildlife shooting?

The 100-400 is very good as a walk-around lens in Yellowstone, and often allows you to acquire the "grab shots" in situations in which you simply don't have the time to properly set up a big lens.

Often it is nice to use a zoom, as it allows you to be more creative with your composition. You can zoom out a little so as to include more habitat around the animals, which is a nice, refreshing change from just filling the frame with the subject all the time.

Although it is quite small and light, compared to Canon's large supertelephotos like the 500mm and 600mm, I would still use it on a very sturdy tripod whenever possible, especially when shooting in diffused light. In most situations, this will allow you to keep your ISO at 400 or lower.

Tests have shown that this lens is significantly sharper at f8 than it is wide open at f5.6. I really don't like to use it wide open, and will keep it at f7.1 or f8 whenever possible. That's another reason to use it with a tripod whenever possible.

Image quality is just flat out better when you use lower ISOs and shoot at around f8; more fine hair and feather detail is sharply resolved, and OOF background areas are cleaner and smoother.

[icemonkey]

If you can find a 500 f4 L. Nearly 3 pounds lighter than the new 4.5, razor sharp, works well with a monopod and great bokeh. Oooh and cheap to but as well, if you can find one.

[icemonkey]

Sorry back to front the 500 4.5 is lighter and the one I meant. Oooops. even found a cheepy on the bay: http://www.ebay.com/itm/140872523573...84.m1555.l2649

[Tom Reichner]

Watch out for that "cheapie". It doesn't come with a hood.
Unforunately, a hood may be very difficult to find, since the lens has been discontinued for well over a decade. Hoods for the newer 500mm lenses are over $500.
So add the cost of a hood to that $2800, and you have something that really doesn't sound like much of a bargain.