New Telephoto Lens for wildlife photography

EvilGrin

EvilGrin

EvilGrin

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Joined
12 Oct 2004
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Location
Aberdeen, Scotland
Hi all, we have a Canon 500D SLR (APS-C) and currently use a 55-250mm kit lens, looking for an upgrade, would prefer to pay around £300, but would stretch to around £500 at most. Any ideas? We're looking for more range, was looking at the Canon EF 70-300 mm f/4-5.6 IS II USM Lens for £448, but not convinced going from 250 to 300mm max will make enough of a difference. Also looking at Sigma/Tamron 100-400 or 150-500, it's getting more expensive there though.

Also a little concerned that the bigger telephoto lenses may be a bit heavy and unwieldy for her taking quick grab and go pics of the birds in the garden, which probably accounts for 70% of her pics. Any ideas?
 
The canon 400 5.6 might work.

Not too huge or heavy, sharp but a bit slow.

For significantly better photos of birds than your current 250 things get expensive very easily.

How close are you to the birds in the garden, can you get closer?
 
Would prefer a pretty decent zoom rather than a prime lens, we have bird feeders around 5-10m away and some pretty tall trees 40-50m away I'd estimate. I've been looking at the Sigma/Tamron 100-400mm as that could be enough. I saw a Sigma 120-400mm f/4.5-5.6 DG OS HSM for around £380 in excellent used condition on MBP, no idea if it's good or not though, presuming it's a fairly old lens?
 
I would definitely look at the weight,and also how fronted loaded the lens is,otherwise it does become a chore to use. I would get a lens which has a decent AF motor though,especially if you upgrade to a camera with better AF and a better viewfinder.
 
Another vote for a sigma 150-600 c
I use it on my d750 with the 1.4tc.
With a DX camera you won't need the TC but 400mm will not cut it for wildlife in my opinion

In really good light it's a brilliant lense but for the price you can't complain.

Sonsofalchal is my username on Flickr if you want to see examples of the lense in action.
 
Sigma 150-600 definitely looks like a fantastic lens, but it's a good £2-300 out of budget, plus it's 2kg, the wife complains about the kit lens being heavy and it's .45kg! lol. I figure the Tamron 100-400mm is a good in-between at 1.1kg and is basically up to 640mm with the canon crop sensor?
 
EvilGrin said:
Sigma 150-600 definitely looks like a fantastic lens, but it's a good £2-300 out of budget, plus it's 2kg, the wife complains about the kit lens being heavy and it's .45kg! lol. I figure the Tamron 100-400mm is a good in-between at 1.1kg and is basically up to 640mm with the canon crop sensor?
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You are asking the wrong set of people - they are really into their photography so don't mind lugging around tons of kit. I do the same when I go to airshows,etc. So monopods,tripods,etc. I also have a lighter mirrorless setup with a lighter telephoto lens when I go on holiday,and it avoids me needing a camera bag to carry my other setup.

Regarding the focal lengths,more is nicer,but plenty of people use 400~500MM lenses on even 35mm frame bodies to good effect. So I think a 400MM is not necessarily a bad idea.

Remember your camera is quite old now,it only has a 9 point AF,and a small pentamirror viewfinder which probably doesn't help - a camera with a larger pentaprism or electronic viewfinder is really helpful(especially in terms of brightness). Also as the 500D isn't the biggest camera,a huge lens on the front of it will make it lopsided and very front loaded. There is a reason why the professional bodies are chunkier,and you need to be wary of the weight on the mount too.

Although I am surprised no one has suggested a decent camera strap. Something like this will help a lot:

https://www.amazon.co.uk/OP-TECH-1501012-Pro-Strap/dp/B00092KD9C

It actually distributes the weight better over your neck and shoulders,and it won't cut into them like many of the included straps.

If you wife,really does not want a heavy setup,then you are throwing money away getting some of these recommendations,as your photos are going to be only as good as the lenses you bother to take with you. Also if you want to take quick pictures,a heavier more unwieldy setup is not exactly helpful!!

You will also need to invest in a bag too,to carry around the lens and monopod if you ever want to use it on holiday,etc.

Think if from that perspective - how much use is the lens going to have,especially if you want to travel. Honestly,I would get the lighter setup.

I would also actually try and find a good camera shop, and try these lenses with your camera,to see which ones your wife thinks she can tolerate.
 
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I have the old Sigma 120-400 F4.5-5.6 APO HSM in my collection, it's still a big heavy lens compared to the shorter Canon EFs lenses.

Mine sticks rigidly to the old reviews I have found, you need to keep the aperture at F8 or smaller for maximum sharpness, so for birds you would probably need to use a high ISO.

I only use it on my old APS C camera, an ancient 350D I bought new and the combo is usually in my bag when we go out just incase.

For birds in the garden I used to set the 350D up on the shed roof pointing at the feeders and hide behind the shed with a 5m extension for the remote, works a treat if you have the patience to clamber up and tweak the settings a little at the start.
 
I wouldn't worry about a prime lens when photographing birds, unless you are photographing ostriches. Even 600mm and close up birds will typically require cropping. If you get luck enought o get so close you don;t get a full body portrait, so what? You can get a nice head shot.

As such I think the ideal lens for this kind of situation is like the Nikon 500mm PF. Doesn't help you but it is a complete game changer. Hopefully Canon doesn't fall too far behind in the Diffractive optics department and can produce similar lenses.
 
I do some photography training. I have several students interested in wildlife including my star pupil. FWIW, he has a Nikon D500 & his main wildlife lens is a Sigma 150-600. Another student has a Nikon D500 & the superb Nikon 500mm PF. If I was going to do more wildlife myself, I would also get the 500 PF. As you don't have access to that lens, I think you need to consider either the Sigma 150-600 or Tamron 150-600. Many of my students mention that with a long zoom, they almost exclusively use the long end. So, if you've got a 150-600, for most of your shots, you are likely to be at 600mm. The argument therefore is to get a prime instead. However without the advantage of the Nikon 500mm PF which you can hand-hold for half a day, it's going to be difficult for you unless you are happy to use a monopod. If you really want a zoom, go for the Tamron 150-600. It's a bit better at 600mm. If you are open to other options, consider the Olympus EM-1 mk II. Combine that with the Olympus 300mm f4 lens, you get an all day walk-around system, hand holdable, superb stabilisation both in camera & lens. With the 2x crop factor, you get a 600mm effective focal length that you can take anywhere.

Staying in budget, you need the Sigma or Tamron second hand. My suggestion though as you are not heavily invested in Canon, is to drop the system & go to Olympus. It's way more suited to you.

https://photographylife.com/reviews/tamron-sp-150-600mm-f5-6-3-g2
https://photographylife.com/reviews/sigma-150-600mm-f5-6-3-dg-os-hsm-contemporary
 
So, ended up buying the 100-400mm Tamron as it's the lightest super-telephoto out there (~750g), figured it'd be the best option as the number one thing for her is to have something usable for pick up and grab quick shots in the garden. She's been trying to use it at 400mm and it's just too heavy for her to keep the image stable despite the IS being good on the lens and a monopod wouldn't work for various reasons, I don't think a decent strap will either as it's just her wrists are too weak to support as well as just wanted to grab and shoot.

So unfortunately it's going back and now we're back to looking at 70-300mm lenses, won't give much of a boost over the 55-250 kit lens she currently uses, but figure if she can get something usable at 4-500g as that should be manageable, the extra 50mm will help a bit, but improved optics will be a boost too.
 
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EvilGrin said:
So, ended up buying the 100-400mm Tamron as it's the lightest super-telephoto out there (~750g), figured it'd be the best option as the number one thing for her is to have something usable for pick up and grab quick shots in the garden. She's been trying to use it at 400mm and it's just too heavy for her to keep the image stable despite the IS being good on the lens and a monopod wouldn't work for various reasons, I don't think a decent strap will either as it's just her wrists are too weak to support as well as just wanted to grab and shoot.

So unfortunately it's going back and now we're back to looking at 70-300mm lenses, won't give much of a boost over the 55-250 kit lens she currently uses, but figure if she can get something usable at 4-500g as that should be manageable, the extra 50mm will help a bit, but improved optics will be a boost too.
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micro four thirds set up would work well by the sound of it.
 
EvilGrin said:
So, ended up buying the 100-400mm Tamron as it's the lightest super-telephoto out there (~750g), figured it'd be the best option as the number one thing for her is to have something usable for pick up and grab quick shots in the garden. She's been trying to use it at 400mm and it's just too heavy for her to keep the image stable despite the IS being good on the lens and a monopod wouldn't work for various reasons, I don't think a decent strap will either as it's just her wrists are too weak to support as well as just wanted to grab and shoot.

So unfortunately it's going back and now we're back to looking at 70-300mm lenses, won't give much of a boost over the 55-250 kit lens she currently uses, but figure if she can get something usable at 4-500g as that should be manageable, the extra 50mm will help a bit, but improved optics will be a boost too.
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It's why I suggested going to a camera shop and trying the lenses out. Tamron made a 70-300MM VC which is quite light(I have used it myself),but as suggested micro four thirds might be an option too.
 
The Canon 400mm f5.6 L is a great lens, with the built in hood. I had one for a while. For a wildlife lens it's light weight and not crazy big, but yea a lot bigger than little EFS kit lenses.
 
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