new lens for wildlife using nikon3100

woody12

woody12

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paul
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Hi, through i'm very pleased with my first dslr - a nikon 3100 i need a better lens for taking bird, wildlife pictures, something that zooms in closer but as a complete novice i don't know what to look for so any ideas would help. thanks!
 
what lens do you have at the moment?

For wildlife you want more than 300mm at least.

The nikkor 70-300mm VR is supposed to be very good, or if you can afford it and manage the weight, there are also the sigma zooms, the 120-400mm OS and the 150-500mm OS.
 
I have a Nikkor 70-300 VR that I love and all of my wildlife shots are taken with it. I like that I can handhold it even at the long end. I would love something a little longer, or a fast 300mm prime that I could use a TC with, but I find that I can get decent shots with what I already have, so will have to wait a while to save funds for a longer lens.
 
thanks for the help everyone. As for budget not a great deal i'm afraid - round £100- £200 ideally just to start
 
How about the nikkor 55-200mm?

Supposed to be a great budget lens.
 
If you can't afford the VR version, the Nikon 70-300G is supposed to be very good and can be had for around your budget.
 
just get the 55-200. The 70-300G won't autofocus on the 3100. The 70-300 VR will but is outside of your budget and much bigger than the 55-200. The 55-200 is a great lens for the intro DSLR's and makes great pictures. It fits right in your budget.

Thanks,
Rick
 
thanks everyone for your help, it looks like the 55-200mm is the best for me. Madhouseof5 your photos are top class. They were amazing!! I can only hope for similar shots. many thanks
 
Hi

I started out with the nikon 70-300mm vr which served me well , its a nice lens to carry, has a decent zoom range, maybe if birds are your thing 300 would be a tad short... Optically its good,nice and sharp from 70-280 ish 300mm at 5.6 is a bit soft but at f8 it does the job. For the price it is a fine lens,so i would highly recommend it over the 55-200!..... Ah, i just read your budget! Maybe it would be worth saving a bit longer to get !

All the best
Phil
 
What about the sigma or Tamron versions of the 70-300. Both do them with in built moter to focus on the D3100 :shrug:
 
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