Budget Zoom Lens Below £500

jus_tin

jus_tin

Suspended / Banned
Messages
151
Name
Justin
Edit My Images
Yes
Off to India next month on a tiger safari, however dont own a telephoto lens. Got £400 - £500 to spend anything more and it eats into our spending money and if the mrs cant afford any cocktails she'll blame it all on me!!!

So, been looking around and so far its between the Tamron 70 - 300mm and the Nikon 70 - 300mm. I know i can get a used Sigma 150 - 500mm within budget but i think that lens is abit extreme because im not a wildlife photographer (macro and landscapes) so other than using this zoom lens for holidays it wont get much use back here in the UK. Can anyone suggest any alternative lenses or offer advice on the Tammy / Nikon? I own a Nikon D5100.

Thank you...
 
Have a Nikon 35mm 1.8 and a Sigma 105mm macro. Leaving the Sigma at home but taking the 35mm.

Thanks.
 
Never been on Safari so can't really comment of whether it is suitable for such an event, but having owned a Tamron 70-300mm VC i can confirm it is a nice lens for the price (don't bother looking at the non VC one though, they are pretty pants), nice and sharp and reasonably quick to focus, which should be too much of an issue shooting big cats i would have thought, unlike trying to shoot birds in flight which was the only time i ever really struggled with mine

What i would suggest though, if you are only wanting to use it for the holiday, either hire one when over there, or buy one second hand, and then sell it upon your return, that way you will lose minimal (if any) money on it, and you would probably get a better bit of kit for the money you have available
 
Maybe look for a used Sigma 100-300mm f4?

No IS but a lovely lens, sharp at f4 and works very nicely with the 1.4x converter so 400mm+ @ f5.6 should you need it. Lens and converter just about doable at £500.
 
Last edited:
rpsmith79 said:
Never been on Safari so can't really comment of whether it is suitable for such an event, but having owned a Tamron 70-300mm VC i can confirm it is a nice lens for the price (don't bother looking at the non VC one though, they are pretty pants), nice and sharp and reasonably quick to focus, which should be too much of an issue shooting big cats i would have thought, unlike trying to shoot birds in flight which was the only time i ever really struggled with mine

What i would suggest though, if you are only wanting to use it for the holiday, either hire one when over there, or buy one second hand, and then sell it upon your return, that way you will lose minimal (if any) money on it, and you would probably get a better bit of kit for the money you have available
Click to expand...

The Tammy is tempting for the price and from reading reviews not that far off the Nikon 300mm. Should cope well with the big animals and have no interest in birds so probably dont need anything longer / quicker..??? Though extra reach always helps. Im more interest in IQ.

I did wonder about hiring but works out quite expensive as im away for 22 days in total, though i only quickly googled hiring so may take another look. But if i can buy a lens close to the cost of hiring id rather purchase something.

Mike.P said:
Maybe look for a used Sigma 100-300mm f4?

No IS but a lovely lens, sharp at f4 and works very nicely with the 1.4x converter so 400mm+ @ f5.6 should you need it. Lens and converter just about doable at £500.
Click to expand...

Not sure i want to risk a lens with no IS / VC... havent planned on taking a tripod to be honest so could do with the extra assistance to reduce any soft shots. I will check it out though just incase.

Thank you!
 
Never been on Safari but can imagine this could be quite taxing on the kit, for instance you may be likely trying to get a shot of a tiger 100m away using a 70-300 at its best F4 or maybe 5.6 depending on lens , your going to be looking at shutter speeds of 1/500 or faster if there movement to keep these long lenses sharp , a slightly dull day and that could be a struggle. So i would expect IS to be a big help and the widest aperture you can afford to keep those shutter speeds down !

Nikon 70-300 VR seems to be in budget , having used a few sigma lenses in the past inc the 70-300 i would stick with Nikon as i found the Sigmas to be hopeless tbh !
 
I have had the the Nikon and Tamron 70-300's both are decent. The V.C on the tamron is very good.

I think 300mm might be a bit short for safari stuff so the sigma you mentioned might be a better option.
 
Tamrons VC beats Nikons VR hands down and would be my choice for sure. They go mega cheap second hand and is a beefy enough lens to withstand the odd knock it may get when used on a safari. You'll get the efv of 450mm at the long end which may be just enough (no idea how close you will be getting)
 
Andrew Davies Photography said:
Never been on Safari but can imagine this could be quite taxing on the kit, for instance you may be likely trying to get a shot of a tiger 100m away using a 70-300 at its best F4 or maybe 5.6 depending on lens , your going to be looking at shutter speeds of 1/500 or faster if there movement to keep these long lenses sharp , a slightly dull day and that could be a struggle. So i would expect IS to be a big help and the widest aperture you can afford to keep those shutter speeds down !

Nikon 70-300 VR seems to be in budget , having used a few sigma lenses in the past inc the 70-300 i would stick with Nikon as i found the Sigmas to be hopeless tbh !
Click to expand...

Thanks Andrew, i agree the Nikon does have the edge, but for over a £100 less the Tamron does just a good of job for a lot cheaper. I noticed someone is selling a used Nikon 18-200mm i know id lose abit or range but IQ looks great!
 
For around £420 the Nikkor 70-300 4-5.6 VR is a good buy. I bought one to use on trips abroad because I didn,t want
to take my heavy Nikkor 70-200 2.8 VRll. I am pleased with the results I get using it on a D600.
 
f/2.8 said:
I have had the the Nikon and Tamron 70-300's both are decent. The V.C on the tamron is very good.

I think 300mm might be a bit short for safari stuff so the sigma you mentioned might be a better option.
Click to expand...

Yeh i'll be doing abit of cropping for sure, unfortunately the 500mm may just be out of reach!!

minnnt said:
Tamrons VC beats Nikons VR hands down and would be my choice for sure. They go mega cheap second hand and is a beefy enough lens to withstand the odd knock it may get when used on a safari. You'll get the efv of 450mm at the long end which may be just enough (no idea how close you will be getting)
Click to expand...

Thats what i keep reading, Tamrons VC works really well!! Im almost sold lol.
 
Well I have the 150-500 OS and it's pretty good but it's a beefy thing and weighs twice as much.

The Nikon 70-300 vr is ridiculously priced in comparison to the Tamron. No competition imo between those two. The VC will hold the image DEAD still in the view finder, mine was excellent and no optical difference at the shprt end to the long end. Brand new ones are about £290 and come with a 5 year warranty...
 
Jessops had the Tamron for £239 just after xmas and was so close to buying it just hadnt done my home work... regret not getting it now but still £290 is a bargain!!
 
Hi I've been to India on safari and you really need on occasion to go to 400mm
I took a 70-200 and 100-400mm canon
what about hiring the 100-400mm canon the new version is apparently very good
 
MWHCVT said:
If your not likely to use it much afterwards which seems to be what your saying why not hire a lens for the trip for your budget you could hire a very nice lens
Click to expand...

Yes that's what I thought
 
Also Andrew is spot on regarding the light I did struggle on a few occasions with low light on my 100-400 it only goes to f5.6 the new version has a more modern IS so you can go lower on the shutter speed
if I was able to go again I would hire the new version 100-400 or maybe the 400 2.8 but that's a bit big and heavy to carry on the plane
You definitely will need to be able to go to 400 mm on a crop camera tho as the jeeps have to stay on the tracks and cant always get that near to the tigers
 
Im away for 22 days so hiring would be quite costly.
 
What about buying a longer lens then selling it when you return?
 
jus_tin said:
Im away for 22 days so hiring would be quite costly.
Click to expand...

Not really with the sale you can hire a 80-400 for just £99 for 25 days plus any P&P that would even give you a couple of days either side of your holiday so as not to be rushing to return it and allows for any delays
 
Didn't notice that you have a nikon camera but as Matthew said the nikon 80-400 would be perfect
 
Am i right in thinking some of these shots are going to be from a moving landrover too ! in which case i would leave the Tiger photos to those with the 5k tele lenses, take some binoculars and buy a postcard.

400mm at 5.6 from a moving car of a possibly far away and maybe moving subject ??? your looking at 1/1000 -1/4000 sec shutter speeds there surely ?

I know if this was me and it was a one off Safari trip of a lifetime i would be investing in some decent glass no matter what the cost, your budget may just be far too low for the expectations
 
  • Like
Reactions: RIR
Andrew Davies Photography said:
Am i right in thinking some of these shots are going to be from a moving landrover too ! in which case i would leave the Tiger photos to those with the 5k tele lenses, take some binoculars and buy a postcard.

400mm at 5.6 from a moving car of a possibly far away and maybe moving subject ??? your looking at 1/1000 -1/4000 sec shutter speeds there surely ?

I know if this was me and it was a one off Safari trip of a lifetime i would be investing in some decent glass no matter what the cost, your budget may just be far too low for the expectations
Click to expand...

They do always stop the jeeps when something interesting is sighted but its still tricky though with people moving about in the jeep
yes absolutely agree that if you are travelling that far it's worth taking the best gear that you can
 
Last edited:
LCPete said:
Didn't notice that you have a nikon camera but as Matthew said the nikon 80-400 would be perfect
Click to expand...

Actually just checked and my suggestion isn't going to be compatible with the OPs camera, honestly Nikon confuses the hell out of me :lol: :lol: but I still think hiring especially while the L4H sale is a viable option especially when the OP suggests it's not likely to see regular use back on the UK
 
MWHCVT said:
Actually just checked and my suggestion isn't going to be compatible with the OPs camera, honestly Nikon confuses the hell out of me :LOL: :LOL: but I still think hiring especially while the L4H sale is a viable option especially when the OP suggests it's not likely to see regular use back on the UK
Click to expand...

No worries I'm not familiar with nikon either
 
I took loads of pictures of tigers in India with a canon 100-400mm didn't struggle too much for light and the jeeps will almost always be stationary or moving very slowly when near a tiger they are lazy beasts and only move fast when they gave a reason.

I wouldn't want anything shorter than 400 at the long end but a zoom is very handy as they come very close sometimes!
 
We have our own private jeep so dont need to worry about fighting others for space to take photos, and yeh if anything like our last africa trip the jeeps stop to allow taking pictures.

Im going to take another look at hiring a lens, any good sites??
 
jus_tin said:
We have our own private jeep so dont need to worry about fighting others for space to take photos, and yeh if anything like our last africa trip the jeeps stop to allow taking pictures.

Im going to take another look at hiring a lens, any good sites??
Click to expand...

http://www.lensesforhire.co.uk As I linked above they have a 50% sale this month, also they are an advertiser here too, I've used them a couple of times and they are fantastic, there a few others but honestly with the sale prices I seriously doubt you'll find cheaper as they're normally about the best value anyway....if you go down the rental route I'd pay the extra for pre paid return as it's likely going to be cheaper than arranging your own postage ;)
 
MWHCVT said:
http://www.lensesforhire.co.uk As I linked above they have a 50% sale this month, also they are an advertiser here too, I've used them a couple of times and they are fantastic, there a few others but honestly with the sale prices I seriously doubt you'll find cheaper as they're normally about the best value anyway....if you go down the rental route I'd pay the extra for pre paid return as it's likely going to be cheaper than arranging your own postage ;)
Click to expand...

Excellent, that 50% sale makes it just about feasible as well!! Guess thats decided then, now just need to pick a lens and figure out what im going to use to support it!!
 
I don't like to wade into threads like this because it's obvious that I have a vested interest. But I think it's safe now.

If you're thinking of hiring, I'd recommend the new (AF-S) version of the Nikon 80-400 any day of the week. It delivers excellent image quality, which means you still have scope to crop your images if the wildlife isn't as close as you would wish. The trouble with (some) cheaper zooms is that they lose quality at the long end of the range.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top