Equipment for Safari - huge change up/additions needed

hiphopopotamus

hiphopopotamus

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I'm planning on taking a safari this winter in Africa, and clearly my current set-up is not at all built to make the most of it.

I'll have about £1000 available to spend on equipment. I need something long with a new body.

My current thought is to perhaps go the route of a 7D (mki) + 100-400 mki.
However, I have some concern as many people have often called the 100-400 mki soft, and also some concern that the 7D isn't the right camera for the job.

Anyone think, with the set up I will otherwise have, that they would take another route, either with the camera or the lens?

Edit: Or there is the possibility of renting, as pointed out by Mike below. Anyone have any opinions on this, and what they would rent for the trip?

Any input very welcome.

Thanks!
 
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hiphopopotamus said:
My current thought is to perhaps go the route of a 7D (mki) + 100-400 mki.
However, I have some concern as many people have often called the 100-400 mki soft, and also some concern that the 7D isn't the right camera for the job.
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I don't know about the 100-400 Mk1 being soft (I have the Mk2 which is excellent) but the 7D would be a great camera for a safari, although I'm sure your 5Dc would cope fine as well.
 
I have used the 7di and 100-400 i on safari and didn't like the combination at all, mainly due to the 7Di's low light / high ISO limitations. You will in all likelihood find many of the more exciting photo opportunities occur on safari at the start and end of each day. Sorry for the negative comments, especially as I am not sure what to suggest in your budget as an alternative, thought the ml I 100-400, especially at current second hand prices is a good call.
 
I just got back from a long trip to Zambia and I'd suggest investing in a couple of long lenses and dispensing with the body upgrade together. Will you be doing a lot of night safaris? The morning tours usually start at 6am, and the light's already pretty good. You may spot a porcupine or a leopard on the tail end of the evening safari for which the 7D *may* come in handy.

If you do decide to go for another body, then make sure you carry both with you in the jeep, Safaris are very dusty affairs and you don't want to be changing lenses once outside of camp unless you absolutely need to. For your reference, I carried a 70-300mm f/4 on my most recent trip. The 300mm was great, but 400mm would be even better.

Have a good trip.
 
Jackwow said:
I don't know about the 100-400 Mk1 being soft (I have the Mk2 which is excellent) but the 7D would be a great camera for a safari, although I'm sure your 5Dc would cope fine as well.
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whyone said:
I have used the 7di and 100-400 i on safari and didn't like the combination at all, mainly due to the 7Di's low light / high ISO limitations. You will in all likelihood find many of the more exciting photo opportunities occur on safari at the start and end of each day. Sorry for the negative comments, especially as I am not sure what to suggest in your budget as an alternative, thought the ml I 100-400, especially at current second hand prices is a good call.
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Opposite views I guess and that's really where my uncertainty lies. On the one hand the 7d seems like it would be good as it would give a bit more reach compared to 5d, but it also cuts down my max aperture relative to full frame. But whyone you make the point - what else could I do within my budget? I'm not sure very much. Difficult call.
Thanks both for the comments.
 
insomniac said:
I just got back from a long trip to Zambia and I'd suggest investing in a couple of long lenses and dispensing with the body upgrade together. Will you be doing a lot of night safaris? The morning tours usually start at 6am, and the light's already pretty good. You may spot a porcupine or a leopard on the tail end of the evening safari for which the 7D *may* come in handy.

If you do decide to go for another body, then make sure you carry both with you in the jeep, Safaris are very dusty affairs and you don't want to be changing lenses once outside of camp unless you absolutely need to. For your reference, I carried a 70-300mm f/4 on my most recent trip. The 300mm was great, but 400mm would be even better.

Have a good trip.
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Thanks for the kind words and thoughtful comments. I'm not planning any night tours, just early morning starts and hopefully evening.
I have heard that about the dust, hence why I had decided to get a 2nd body as I just never want to be far out of reach from my 85mm. I would carry both with me.
I am tempted by a longish prime or two instead (i don't shoot anything but primes usually, now out of habit and love for a select few lenses as much as anything else) but think the flexibility of zoom would ultimately suit much better for this.
If you could have carried the 100-400 on your last trip instead of the 70-300 do you think you would have?
 
How about renting a lens or two for the trip?
 
hiphopopotamus said:
I have heard that about the dust, hence why I had decided to get a 2nd body as I just never want to be far out of reach from my 85mm. I would carry both with me..... If you could have carried the 100-400 on your last trip instead of the 70-300 do you think you would have?
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I personally think an 85mm prime would be two restrictive and you're better off with two zooms spanning a greater range. I don't have a 100-400mm, but would have definitely carried it over the 70-300mm if I did.

Like you, I did consider renting one and specifically looked at LensesForHire. The problem I found was that renting is great if you're doing it for a couple days at a time. Unfortunately most trips to Africa are a couple weeks if not longer, and the case for spending a not insignificant amount on renting becomes less compelling.
 
Also consider:
Canon 400mm f5.6
Canon 300mm IS f4 perhaps with an optional 1.4x TC for when the light's better
Sigma 120-300 f2.8

I own option 2- but the others get plenty of love.
FWIW the 300mm f4 and 1.4x do not play nicely with my 5D- in my case at least that combo really needs a body with MFA.
 
There is a upfront cost, a little risk and a bit of hassle, but buying the right lens (something Canon with an 'L' in its name!) at the right price and then selling upon your return will usually be far cheaper than renting for 7 days +.
 
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Where are you going on Safari and what type of Safari is it? That will have a big impact on what you shoot. The standard Kenya safari is driving on roads in closed vehicles where you have no control on distance. Most people recommend as much length as you can get then. If it is South africa on a private reserve then you are much closer. When we went to SA last time I shot a 55-200 on DX (80-300 equivalent) and it was about perfect. To go back I would shoot an 80-200 2.8, though take a 1.4x with me depending on the season and drive.

An 85 1.8 wouldn't have been terribly useful where we were. A 5D with a 2.8 lens would have been far better for the lower light situations.

rick
 
insomniac said:
I personally think an 85mm prime would be two restrictive and you're better off with two zooms spanning a greater range. I don't have a 100-400mm, but would have definitely carried it over the 70-300mm if I did.

Like you, I did consider renting one and specifically looked at LensesForHire. The problem I found was that renting is great if you're doing it for a couple days at a time. Unfortunately most trips to Africa are a couple weeks if not longer, and the case for spending a not insignificant amount on renting becomes less compelling.
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The 85mm is really as I'll be heading with friends and family and enjoy how creative you can get with it in almost any situation.

Yeah I've looked into the renting and agree it's not a good option due to cost over long rental period. Thanks for the thoughts
 
casts_by_fly said:
Where are you going on Safari and what type of Safari is it? That will have a big impact on what you shoot. The standard Kenya safari is driving on roads in closed vehicles where you have no control on distance. Most people recommend as much length as you can get then. If it is South africa on a private reserve then you are much closer. When we went to SA last time I shot a 55-200 on DX (80-300 equivalent) and it was about perfect. To go back I would shoot an 80-200 2.8, though take a 1.4x with me depending on the season and drive.

An 85 1.8 wouldn't have been terribly useful where we were. A 5D with a 2.8 lens would have been far better for the lower light situations.

rick
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That is very interesting insight, thanks. I'm heading to south African private reserves, so perhaps I'm looking at the wrong lens! I will have to do a bit of research into specifics of our trip I think
 
Coyon said:
Also consider:
Canon 400mm f5.6
Canon 300mm IS f4 perhaps with an optional 1.4x TC for when the light's better
Sigma 120-300 f2.8

I own option 2- but the others get plenty of love.
FWIW the 300mm f4 and 1.4x do not play nicely with my 5D- in my case at least that combo really needs a body with MFA.
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Great list thanks. As I mentioned I am leaning towards zooms for flexibility as i will likely rarely be able to zoom with feet, unless anyone has any strong recommendations otherwise?

I haven't heard much about the sigma 120-300 but very intrigued given the 2.8, does it perform well?

Thanks
 
hiphopopotamus said:
That is very interesting insight, thanks. I'm heading to south African private reserves, so perhaps I'm looking at the wrong lens! I will have to do a bit of research into specifics of our trip I think
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Where specifically are you going? If it is Sabi Sands, then search around for Sabi Sands and Krueger on this forum as they have been discussed before. For reference, I think all of these were at 55mm on a 1.5x crop body. As I said, I shot a 55-200 at that time on a 6 MP D40 where ISO 800 was pushing it. The length was about right most of the time. A few times 55mm was too long, but not much. A few times I would have liked more than 200 for the birds, but not for the big stuff really. On full frame, 100-400 would be a great general option (there were people shooting them in our truck). If you can bump the ISO to 3200 comfortably (which I think the 5D can) for the lower light evening work then you're pretty well set. If you love birds then you might want to bring something longer on a DX body, but I wouldn't bother for the general big stuff.

Keep the XM1 with 18 for some wide stuff and camp shooting. If you have a macro lens for the XM1 that is small and packable there can be fun things around camp during the daytime (drives are in the evenings and mornings where we were). Aside from that, I'd leave the rest at home and travel light.

rick



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casts_by_fly said:
The standard Kenya safari is driving on roads in closed vehicles where you have no control on distance.
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We have done Tsavo A, Tsavo B and Governors' Camp and were never in a closed vehicle. Open Land Rover or similar each day.

The Tsavo safaris were, as you say, on roads with no option to leave them but Governors' Camp was 'go anywhere'.

Whichever, a long lens was desirable, though the couple of cheetahs and the large elephant which gave us a close inspection needed something reasonably wide!
 
Have you considered a 1d mkii instead of 7d mki ? Similar money s/h now.....
 
Thanks all for the comments, certainly lots to think on.

B1ts said:
Have you considered a 1d mkii instead of 7d mki ? Similar money s/h now.....
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Thanks for the thought - I hadn't actually considered any of the 1D series no, really because I just don't know much about them. Why do you think it would be good to consider over 7D?

Would anyone else think the same?
 
Check https://www.outdoorphoto.co.za/. The site owner is Hedrus Van Der Merwe, a pro wildlife photographer and a good guy. He has a shop in Pretoria, and I think there's a branch in Nelspruit (Mpumalanga/Eastern Transvaal), which offer rentals. Might be cheaper than renting in the UK because you'd only be paying for the period you actually need the gear, and the GBP/ZAR exchange rate would work to your advantage. There are a few other pros and serious wildlife photographers/guides on the forums, so I'd register and chat to them. You can also mail Hedrus directly if you want to.
 
hiphopopotamus said:
Thanks all for the comments, certainly lots to think on.



Thanks for the thought - I hadn't actually considered any of the 1D series no, really because I just don't know much about them. Why do you think it would be good to consider over 7D?

Would anyone else think the same?
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More robust plus imho better handling and poss better iso/noise than the first 7d and af performance less complicated to get the hang of yet of good performance for safari animals as long as you get a fixed or post focus issue model, most will say in their ad as such a known about thing.

Not that long before a 7d mki the 1d3 was flagship pro kit, so circa 3k kit now for 400 ish vs 1.5k kit now 400 ish also in a not too far apart timeline.
Was just a thought to add to your dilemma :) :)
 
MartynK said:
Check https://www.outdoorphoto.co.za/. The site owner is Hedrus Van Der Merwe, a pro wildlife photographer and a good guy. He has a shop in Pretoria, and I think there's a branch in Nelspruit (Mpumalanga/Eastern Transvaal), which offer rentals. Might be cheaper than renting in the UK because you'd only be paying for the period you actually need the gear, and the GBP/ZAR exchange rate would work to your advantage. There are a few other pros and serious wildlife photographers/guides on the forums, so I'd register and chat to them. You can also mail Hedrus directly if you want to.
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Thanks so much Martyn, that's invaluable to know. I'll get in touch when I have decided more on equipment changes!
Thanks again.
 
B1ts said:
More robust plus imho better handling and poss better iso/noise than the first 7d and af performance less complicated to get the hang of yet of good performance for safari animals as long as you get a fixed or post focus issue model, most will say in their ad as such a known about thing.

Not that long before a 7d mki the 1d3 was flagship pro kit, so circa 3k kit now for 400 ish vs 1.5k kit now 400 ish also in a not too far apart timeline.
Was just a thought to add to your dilemma :) :)
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aaand now I think I'm convinced on the 1dmkiii!! In my eyes you're right about kit level, and think I'd ultimately be much happier with the 1.3x compared to 1.6x crop factor on the sensor.
But I'm a little concerned about the 10.1mp - seems v small to what is available today (and certainly compared to 18mp 7D!)- what would be the max size anyone would print out to with that resolution?
I'm hoping that a few of these pictures will be good enough to wall hang, so just a bit concerned about that.

Thanks
 
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