is this a good lens for wildlife?

[craigieboi]

Canon 70-300 is EF:shrug:

[gazedd]

300mm will certainly get you amongst the wildlife, I'd get yourself on Flickr or something like that and look for some pin sharp shots to settle your mind

[craigieboi]

thanks gazzd i know am a bit newby but thot id best get lens' now while i can afford em for snaps i want in future :thumbs:

[gazedd]

Idealy a fast 400mm would be the lens of my choice, Its just bloody to expensive

[CT]

I think it's a bit short in all honesty - it will mean you'll have to get that much closer to the birds, which sometimes you can do - sometimes you just can't. There's no substitute really for fast long lenses, but I'd go for a 300mm prime before a zoom - it should perform far better with converters, and most of the time with a zoom you'll be zoomed out to the long end anyway for wildlife.

[craigieboi]

thanks CT. dyu have any examples

[fracster]

thanks CT. dyu have any examples

Examples of lenses or images?

I think Cedric has the "odd" shot of wildlife scattered around his harddrive........:D

[craigieboi]

am i right in thinking a 'prime' is this.

Sigma 300mm f2.8 EX DG HSM Lens in that it doesnt go say XXmm-XXmm but rather a preset ?

[fracster]

am i right in thinking a 'prime' is this.

Sigma 300mm f2.8 EX DG HSM Lens in that it doesnt go say XXmm-XXmm but rather a preset ?

Yeah, primes are a fixed focal length that should be sharper and optically better than zooms, not always the case though.

[craigieboi]

thanks fracster. still tryn to get my head round it all :bang::bang:

just felt as i have the money there now and know what i want to snap i should mibbe try n get my lens' now

[fracster]

thanks fracster. still tryn to get my head round it all :bang::bang:

just felt as i have the money there now and know what i want to snap i should mibbe try n get my lens' now


Patience mate.Read up and make sure you know what you want before you buy, it will save you a lot of money in the long run................:thumbs:

[Teshi]

What kind of wildlife?

Most serious wildlife photographers are looking at 500-800mm and TC's on top at times.

300mm might get you a few more tame or relaxed animals or zoo's but nothing out in the wild.

[craigieboi]

not serious teshi .......not for several years anyways ,
many years of stupid mistakes to make 1st lol :thinking:

id say more wildlife like otters, rabbits, birds etc woodland animals , zoos and also domestic

[CT]

Good advice from Frac there. Take your time and don't dash in. Zoom lenses are very convenient, but compared to a prime lens, there's a lot has to happen internally to keep things sharp at all focal lengths, and good as modern zooms are they're inevitably compromised compared to a fixed focal length lens. (a prime lens) It's generally not a good idea to stick a converter behind a zoom lens as the drop in image quality tends to be obvious compared to using converters with a prime lens.

[Teshi]

not serious teshi .......not for several years anyways ,
many years of stupid mistakes to make 1st lol :thinking:

id say more wildlife like otters, rabbits, birds etc woodland animals , zoos and also domestic

In short then, I could invest in a 70-200 2.8 (non IS if you want) and then a Canon 1.4/2x TC.

Best investment to be made for that range to be honest.

[CT]

If you give us an idea of available wonga we could probably make some recommendations. ;)

[craigieboi]

i could probably stretch to £1000 maybe lil more ,

[Teshi]

For 1k, 70-200 2.8 non IS - Link (http://www.onestop-digital.com/catalog/product_info.php?cPath=24_26&products_id=167)

As much as I am a fan for primes, for your current needs, something with a bit of flexibility is ideal.

A 100-400 IS does fall within that budget too which i would also strongly consider.

[craigieboi]

thanks teshi..........

the only thing that scares me there is the non IS :help:

[Teshi]

thanks teshi..........

the only thing that scares me there is the non IS :help:

Well, theres a solution, bump you ISO and keep your shutter speed faster than the focal length. If you need the IS version, extra £200 or so via One Stop Digital.

[CT]

After all I've said about zooms, the 100-400L IS has to be a consideration. I used it for all my wildlife shots before I got the 500mm, but forget any idea of sticking a converter behind it.

Canon 300mm f4L IS ? This would give you a 420mm f5.6 with a 1.4X TC and still auto focus on a non 1 Series body

Canon 400mm 5.6 ? Should be a real sharp lens but wont auto focus with either converter.

[craigieboi]

thank to the 2 of you i have some food for thought to keep me going.........

appreciated :clap::clap::clap: