-=Top 10=- Recommended wildlife Zooms

[CyberDyneSystems]

-=Top Ten=- Recommended Wildlife Zoom Lenses

The fourth in a series of -=Top Ten=- recommended lens lists.

We move on to the best Zoom lenses for wildlife photography.

We broke Wildlife lenses into seperate "Prime" and "Zoom" catagories,. as we could not fit all our favorites into one group of ten.

Here in the EOS forum some of the most often asked questions are what lenses work best for a specific task.

After research into dozens of past threads and some further discussion,
...these are the lenses that were selected by our forum members as -=Top 10=- Recommended Wildlife Zoom Lenses


Please vote,.. feel free to add to the thread why you like the lenses you do in the list,. and or add in an additional lens if it is not on the list and say why!

-=More Lens Polls=-

F.Y.I. This is a Public POLL. This means that if you click on one of the numbers in the poll,. you will be able to see who voted for what lenses. This may or may not seem helpfull to you. But it may be a benefit for various reasons.

This "Thread" is a forum informational thread and subject to extreme editing and deleting. Any OT discussion, issues etc should be taken via PM or another thread.

[michael.luczkow]

what's up with people voting for like 4 lenses?

[CyberDyneSystems]

You can vote for more than one

[Longwatcher]

The 100-400L IS is an outstanding lens which gives you the range you need to catch your targets before they catch you. Short of one of the longer primes I don't see how much could compete with this one.

I also voted for the 70-200/2.8L IS as you can also get excellent wildlife shots with this lens even with a 1.4x TC on it. While it doesn't have the range, the IS is superior and will allow for lower light levels, which can make a difference at times. But for wildlife I would get the 100-400 first, then the 70-200/2.8L IS. Lastly this is a great lens for tracking dive bombing seagulls.

Just my opinion,

[CyberDyneSystems]

Oh my GOD! Talk about a total massacre! None of our polls have such a dominant single lens thus far!

Thats said,. the 100-400mm was my first pic too. It is simply the best zoom lens made for wildlife except possibly for the larger Sigma beast, the 300-800mm.. which really almost belongs in the Prime catagory do to it's size and cost.

But the 100-400mm is far more flexible a tool, for many reasons but most specifically it's light weight and ease of use. It is lighter than the 70-200mm f/2.8 IS,.and has the longer reach as well as the broader zoom range. It is another Zoom lens which is capble of image quality that I would easily describe as "prime like" in the right circumstances. It's not perfect, but it seems to have the best combination of must have specs for a wildlife lens of any zoom lens made.

[Scottes]

100-400. 'nuf said.

[Anders Östberg]

100-400 all the way for me...

The Sigma 50-500 is good value, but I have to say the best 100-400 pictures I've seen on the web are generally slightly better than the best Sigma 50-500 pictures.

Tamron 200-500 is maybe a contender too.

[ijohnson]

I use the 70-200 2.8 with the TC. It is a nice combo but it is far too conspicuous. Animals see the white lens and scatter. Maybe that's just here. I want to paint the lens with Camo colors. It's either that or strap a tree to the lens hood.

[Anders Östberg]

Originally Posted by ijohnson

I use the 70-200 2.8 with the TC. It is a nice combo but it is far too conspicuous. Animals see the white lens and scatter. Maybe that's just here. I want to paint the lens with Camo colors. It's either that or strap a tree to the lens hood.

There's no real indication animals or birds react to a white lens. What they do see is movement, and they also react to the human shape. The white color may make the movements easier to spot though. I've often sat very still with a much bigger white lens in front of me, and I'm just scenery to the birds. Move a little and they fly off. I think your problem is much more that you have to be too close with that lens.

[jimtfoto]

Voting for both the 100-400 (which my wife uses on her 20D) and the Bigma (which I use on my 10D).

cheers,
jim

[malla1962]

why is the sigma 135-400 not listed?not that i have one it just seems a good focal range.

[alan sh]

I voted for the 100-400 and also the Sigma 100-300. Quality is superb (from what I have seen) and you can add a 1.4x converter and still keep the autofocus on a 20D.

Alan

[IanD]

There is another lens besides the 100-400?

[robertwgross]

Despite which lens is your preference for wildlife, there is an underlying message.

A versatile zoom range is about 100-400mm, or 100-300, or something in that range, depending on exactly what type of wildlife you are going after. You can shoot moderately close-in (1.8 meters), or you can reach out far on that range.

The possible exception is if your wildlife includes only small birds. Such critters tend to be shy, and you simply can't get close enough to them to fill the frame unless you have major, heavy-duty firepower (e.g. 500mm, 600mm, etc). Unfortunately, those lenses get very pricey. The Canon 100-400mm L lens is simply the most practical lens for those of us on a budget that is more modest than say, Belmondo's.

---Bob Gross---

[CyberDyneSystems]

And don't forget to check out the WildLife Primes -=TOP 10=-