in search of a good wildlife lens

jpgray

New member
Have a d7000 and will have about 1500 to spend ...really looking for a zoom lens ...what would yall recommend .
I've looked at the Nikon 80-400 mm the sigma 50-500mm and the 100-500mm..is there any thing else out there in the price range..will be shooting birds,deer,hogs etc...so will need to stay back 50-75 or maybe a 100 yards...thanks
 

Dave_W

The Dude
In your price range I think the best option is the Nikkor 80-400mm. Great lens for the money and will be especially nice on a DX body.
 

Sambr

Senior Member
I shoot a lot of wildlife and what I use as my primary lens is : Nikon 300mm F4 & 1.4 TC on a D3s or and now a D800. Works for me. The 80-400VR is way to slow, not very good in mornings or evenings when 90% of wildlife shoots occur. You would be better of with the Sigma 150-500.
 

Dave_W

The Dude
I shoot a lot of wildlife and what I use as my primary lens is : Nikon 300mm F4 & 1.4 TC on a D3s or and now a D800. Works for me. The 80-400VR is way to slow, not very good in mornings or evenings when 90% of wildlife shoots occur. You would be better of with the Sigma 150-500.

Ahhh, the 80-400mm is slow, eh? I've not used one but have been considering it. I assumed you're talking about the AF being slow, right? Since the difference of 1 stop in aperture isn't all that significant, especially with the low light capabilities of the newer cameras.
 

Sambr

Senior Member
Ahhh, the 80-400mm is slow, eh? I've not used one but have been considering it. I assumed you're talking about the AF being slow, right? Since the difference of 1 stop in aperture isn't all that significant, especially with the low light capabilities of the newer cameras.

Yes it drove me crazy even with my D3s it was slow to focus. Shooting wildlife one stop is huge, it's the diffrence between a clean crisp image or just a so-so image.
 

cbg

Senior Member
I'd look for a good used copy of a Nikon 300 f/4 and a 1.4 TC. I had te opportunity to take a few shots with one last Friday and really liked the images and focusing speed. Right now, I'm using the Sigma 150-500 HSM OS and while I like it, it really needs light at f/6.3 and 500mm.
 

Billy Y.

Senior Member
+1 for the 300 f4 and teleconverters. I have seen superbly sharp images from that setup, and the samples I saw from the 80-400 at 400 made me shy away from it.
 

BackdoorArts

Senior Member
I've been using a Sigma 150-500 with my D7000 for over a year now and think it's a great lens for wildlife. I do a ton of backyard birding and it's been perfect. My Flickr Photostream is chock full of that combination if you want to take a look. Most of these were taken handheld as well, though 1/2 the owl shots were on a monopod.

That said, my brother (who shoots Canon) just picked up the Sigma 120-300 f2.8 and I'm starting to wonder if that'll be my next lens. He's a newspaper photographer and has used it for sports, with and without a 2X converter, and he loves it. Rugged lens too - in the middle of shooting US Open Tennis it fell to the ground face first when his monopod lost its balance against a rail. While I wouldn't recommend this test, the lens hood absorbed enough of the shock that while it needed repair the lens didn't (and the crash was loud enough to get a rather ugly glance from Andy Murray).

The one thing I'd say about the 120-300 is that it's significantly heavier. Would be a tough haul out in the woods and you're going to need to go into weight training to handhold it. But the idea of that and a 2x next time I'm out somewhere shoot in the wild is very tempting.

And for what it's worth, Sigma service is excellent. The AF motor on the 150-500 stopped working after a year and they repaired it with a 10 day turn around. Can't beat the warranty.
 

Pierro

Senior Member
The Sigma 150-500, while a good lens if you get a good copy ( Sigma QC can vary ) is still a slow lens. With a max Ap of f6.3 its still loves light, not only that, many are a tad soft at f6.3 and lots of users have found f8 to be the widest Ap for sharper images. Can also be soft at full 500mm tele ( which is in fact a true 475mm give or take )

Having said that, i've had some great shots from this lens over the years, both in Canon and Nikon format.
 

BackdoorArts

Senior Member
The Sigma 150-500, while a good lens if you get a good copy ( Sigma QC can vary ) is still a slow lens. With a max Ap of f6.3 its still loves light, not only that, many are a tad soft at f6.3 and lots of users have found f8 to be the widest Ap for sharper images. Can also be soft at full 500mm tele ( which is in fact a true 475mm give or take )

Having said that, i've had some great shots from this lens over the years, both in Canon and Nikon format.

I absolutely agree with all of this. But bang for the buck there isn't a lot out there that will give you that kind of range without emptying your bank account. I will eventually upgrade to something else, like the 120-300mm 2.8 which, with a converter, will get me more range with the same or better light. The 150-500 was a great way for me to get a feel for what I need for certain situations as I was just getting back into the hobby.
 

Tami Jo

Senior Member
"I've been using a Sigma 150-500"

I just picked up a 50-500 OS which will arrive Tuesday. I am planning a trip to the Bosque Del Apache this coming Friday.

The birds have arrived!

I bet you are really going to enjoy that one. Its on my wish list currently. I am anxious to hear how you like it once you have gotten a chance to use it.

Sent from my SGH-T959V using Tapatalk 2
 

Pierro

Senior Member
For long reach on the cheap, its hard to beat Astro lenses. I've used a few over the years, and got some pretty decent shots IMO. If jpgray and others are ok with shooting manual with fixed aperture, then the bang for buck really cant be beat. I've had a 600mm lens, with the adapters and mounts for less than £500 GBP

Every photo below on my hosting site was shot with a 600mm Astro lens

Hound dawg photography - Astro Lens - Photo Sharing at WinSoftMagic
 

WhiteLight

Senior Member
For long reach on the cheap, its hard to beat Astro lenses. I've used a few over the years, and got some pretty decent shots IMO. If jpgray and others are ok with shooting manual with fixed aperture, then the bang for buck really cant be beat. I've had a 600mm lens, with the adapters and mounts for less than £500 GBP

Every photo below on my hosting site was shot with a 600mm Astro lens

Hound dawg photography - Astro Lens - Photo Sharing at WinSoftMagic

Those are great shots.. wat lens is that?
 

Pierro

Senior Member
It was a 600mm Skywatcher f7.5 ED80 - great glass- FPL53 Ohara ED element ( low dispersion for great CA control )
 

Pierro

Senior Member
Hah ! Thanks :)

Well poke, would you believe the scope weighs 3.4kg ? The previous model was even lighter. Although too cumbersome to hand hold ( it aint the weight, its the position of the focuser that limits hand hold ) its not a problem to carry around

I havent owned one since i got shot of my Canon and Pentax bodies, but l'm aiming to get another, as the reach is better than the Sigma 150-500, because these scopes are not soft at their max focal length, and you are getting a true 600mm, not the compromise that the Sig zoom has to be
 
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Pierro

Senior Member
Just for the record, here's my gold ( now sold ) first version of the ED80 Pro. The more modern version is all black and white ( ED80 Pro DS ).
I had to calm down the exterior as it was a bit over the top. The bits that came with it as seen in the alloy case are redundant

Last 2 photos are of a slightly bigger scope ( 120mm v 80mm Startravel... now sold ) and not in the same class as the ED80 Pro. Though i still shot some decent snaps with it as seen in the link


80EDdd.jpg

Focuser 2.jpg

Focuser 3.jpg

120+tripod.jpg

120 camo.jpg
 
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