Wildlife camera advice

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telscossie

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Hi , I would like to start of by saying over the last few weeks i have posted threads asking for advice on canon cameras and lens for wildlife photography mainly birds and i have had a great response with advice so many thanks for that , But i tried my friends nikon d850 and d500 yesterday paired with a 200-500 5.6 and 500mm pf and i have to say the focusing speed and image quality was great so i'm starting to wonder if i should move to nikon and get either of these setups or another brand , so basically what i am asking has anyone moved from canon to another brand ie nikon , sony , fuji and others and never looked back . thanks once again . ps at the moment i use 7d mk ii , 300mm 2.8 is + extenders .
 
I used to have a Canon 80D but every time I looked at the images I was unhappy, especially with the noise it produced, been a Canon user for a few years so had some decent glass as well. I then decided that a switch to Nikon would give me better images, especially less noisy ones and to be honest when I first saw the pics I was blown away. I lost a few quid in the change over but at the end of the day I definitely think it is worth it. Not going to bash Canon (they have some nice features) but I think it is common knowledge that Nikon produce better sensors and come with better dynamic range and less noise than their Canon counterparts.
 
The 7D2 is solid, as is the 300 f2.8, although the MkII is faster. The 1.4TC will slow it down a bit.

I'm surprised that the 850 & 200-500 is so much faster, although I have to say, if I went back to a DSLR again for wildlife, the 850 & 200-500 would be my preferred set up.
 
Simple answer is there will never be a system that stays ahead for long - they continually swap places and both have their strengths and weaknesses.

Canon is solid and in the right hands will easily produce award winning images.

That said, at this moment in time, Nikon has advantages in both ultimate sensor IQ and AF ability. Again - this is not to say Canon is bad in any way, just that Nikon has the edge at the moment. Actually, I'd say Canon has the edge in high ISO, but again this depends on your ability both in the field and at the computer in PP. This could all change over the next few years - a couple of years ago Canon lead the way for AF.

Bare in mind that what you need depends a lot on both the conditions you intend to shoot in, and your intended final usage, and you may find you can use something else completely - Andy Rouse knows a thing or 2 about wildlife photography, and last time I looked he was shooting Olympus gear after years of both Canon and Nikon. His pictures have continued to excellent.

The D850 is, to be fair, an awesome camera - if you think that 500mm is enough reach for you then the files will knock spots off your 7d2. The 200-500 will take a 1.4x as well, but when I tried it I found the AF took a larger hit than other cameras when a 1.4 is added. It should remain superb for fairly static subjects.

Get out in reasonable light, use good PP techniques and its surprising how little difference you will see in the end result between the systems - its not until you really push them that the respective abilities become apparent

Mike
 
pooley said:
Simple answer is there will never be a system that stays ahead for long - they continually swap places and both have their strengths and weaknesses.

Canon is solid and in the right hands will easily produce award winning images.

That said, at this moment in time, Nikon has advantages in both ultimate sensor IQ and AF ability. Again - this is not to say Canon is bad in any way, just that Nikon has the edge at the moment. Actually, I'd say Canon has the edge in high ISO, but again this depends on your ability both in the field and at the computer in PP. This could all change over the next few years - a couple of years ago Canon lead the way for AF.

Bare in mind that what you need depends a lot on both the conditions you intend to shoot in, and your intended final usage, and you may find you can use something else completely - Andy Rouse knows a thing or 2 about wildlife photography, and last time I looked he was shooting Olympus gear after years of both Canon and Nikon. His pictures have continued to excellent.

The D850 is, to be fair, an awesome camera - if you think that 500mm is enough reach for you then the files will knock spots off your 7d2. The 200-500 will take a 1.4x as well, but when I tried it I found the AF took a larger hit than other cameras when a 1.4 is added. It should remain superb for fairly static subjects.

Get out in reasonable light, use good PP techniques and its surprising how little difference you will see in the end result between the systems - its not until you really push them that the respective abilities become apparent

Mike
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Thanks for the reply , what kit do you use
 
Ha ha, this is where I might sound a little hypocritical...

I've used Canon for years - currently a 1dx with 500mm f4is and 100-400mm ii. I also have an underwater housing for the 1dx with 15mm fisheye and 100mm macro.

It's possible that in the coming years I'll be able to do more U/W work, which is my first love, so I'm looking at selling my Canon gear and the underwater setup will be replaced with a D500 system (crop cameras have a lot of advantages underwater). Earlier this year I had a couple of afternoons with a pair of D850's, along with the 500mm pf lens and the 600mm f4E.

As I want to upgrade to more modern gear I'm probably going to get a D850 and eventually a 600mm. This has involved a huge amount of uhhming and ahhing, and I've still not pulled the trigger, but the maths have been done, and it will cost me less to go this route rather than some specialist underwater gear I would need for full frame (that would have been a 5d4 )

If I was purely concentrating on birds and mammals I'd be more than happy to use either system and wold probably have stuck with canon as that's what I know best

Mike
 
pooley said:
Ha ha, this is where I might sound a little hypocritical...

I've used Canon for years - currently a 1dx with 500mm f4is and 100-400mm ii. I also have an underwater housing for the 1dx with 15mm fisheye and 100mm macro.

It's possible that in the coming years I'll be able to do more U/W work, which is my first love, so I'm looking at selling my Canon gear and the underwater setup will be replaced with a D500 system (crop cameras have a lot of advantages underwater). Earlier this year I had a couple of afternoons with a pair of D850's, along with the 500mm pf lens and the 600mm f4E.

As I want to upgrade to more modern gear I'm probably going to get a D850 and eventually a 600mm. This has involved a huge amount of uhhming and ahhing, and I've still not pulled the trigger, but the maths have been done, and it will cost me less to go this route rather than some specialist underwater gear I would need for full frame (that would have been a 5d4 )

If I was purely concentrating on birds and mammals I'd be more than happy to use either system and wold probably have stuck with canon as that's what I know best

Mike
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Do you have any photos that can be viewed anywhere
 
pooley said:
Ha ha, this is where I might sound a little hypocritical...

I've used Canon for years - currently a 1dx with 500mm f4is and 100-400mm ii. I also have an underwater housing for the 1dx with 15mm fisheye and 100mm macro.

It's possible that in the coming years I'll be able to do more U/W work, which is my first love, so I'm looking at selling my Canon gear and the underwater setup will be replaced with a D500 system (crop cameras have a lot of advantages underwater). Earlier this year I had a couple of afternoons with a pair of D850's, along with the 500mm pf lens and the 600mm f4E.

As I want to upgrade to more modern gear I'm probably going to get a D850 and eventually a 600mm. This has involved a huge amount of uhhming and ahhing, and I've still not pulled the trigger, but the maths have been done, and it will cost me less to go this route rather than some specialist underwater gear I would need for full frame (that would have been a 5d4 )

If I was purely concentrating on birds and mammals I'd be more than happy to use either system and wold probably have stuck with canon as that's what I know best

Mike
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I don’t want to derail this thread, but I’ve just gone back to diving, was going to use go pro, could you PM me as I have a D500
 
I had a 7D MKI with a Sigma 150-600mm sport, 100-400mm MKII and 300mm f/2.8L IS along with MKIII converters and bit by bit I have sold them and gone over to a D500, 150-600mm Sport and Sigma 500mm f/4 Sport along with converters. I know the MKI Canon is a lot older than the MKII but I have found the D500 to be in another league entirely where AF speed and noise is concerned ... I would imagine it's also better than the 7D MKII but by how much I have no idea.
 
i have the d850 and d500 along with the nikon 200-500 f5.6 lens and they work brilliant together for wildlife
having the constant 5.6 can make all the difference
 
Always difficult to answer I use a canon 7d2 with a sigma 150-600c. I use it for bif and other wildlife shots. I think it’s s great combination. It has got some really good shoots.
 
telscossie said:
Hi , I would like to start of by saying over the last few weeks i have posted threads asking for advice on canon cameras and lens for wildlife photography mainly birds and i have had a great response with advice so many thanks for that , But i tried my friends nikon d850 and d500 yesterday paired with a 200-500 5.6 and 500mm pf and i have to say the focusing speed and image quality was great so i'm starting to wonder if i should move to nikon and get either of these setups or another brand , so basically what i am asking has anyone moved from canon to another brand ie nikon , sony , fuji and others and never looked back . thanks once again . ps at the moment i use 7d mk ii , 300mm 2.8 is + extenders .
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Hi I use a 7D MK 2 with 300 2.8 mk 2 with mk 3 extenders
I’m really happy with this setup the image quality is excellent if I get the exposure right and the light is reasonable
The autofocus is also excellent I can shoot puffins in flight with this setup they are fast little birds
The 300 can be used hand held if you went to a 500 mm lens you may have to use a gimbal on a tripod
I’m just saying that it will be very expensive to swap to another brand
 
have to say i am happy with my Nikon D810 and afs 80-400 mm G VR lens. With 36 mp to play with cropping a photo works well for a closer shot
 
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pooley said:
Ha ha, this is where I might sound a little hypocritical...

I've used Canon for years - currently a 1dx with 500mm f4is and 100-400mm ii. I also have an underwater housing for the 1dx with 15mm fisheye and 100mm macro.

It's possible that in the coming years I'll be able to do more U/W work, which is my first love, so I'm looking at selling my Canon gear and the underwater setup will be replaced with a D500 system (crop cameras have a lot of advantages underwater). Earlier this year I had a couple of afternoons with a pair of D850's, along with the 500mm pf lens and the 600mm f4E.

As I want to upgrade to more modern gear I'm probably going to get a D850 and eventually a 600mm. This has involved a huge amount of uhhming and ahhing, and I've still not pulled the trigger, but the maths have been done, and it will cost me less to go this route rather than some specialist underwater gear I would need for full frame (that would have been a 5d4 )

If I was purely concentrating on birds and mammals I'd be more than happy to use either system and wold probably have stuck with canon as that's what I know best

Mike
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Or you could always go down the Olympus route mike ,quality I.q coupled with light weight and they also make there own U/W housings ... with a super range of lenses ??
 
the black fox said:
Or you could always go down the Olympus route mike ,quality I.q coupled with light weight and they also make there own U/W housings ... with a super range of lenses ??
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Nearly did Jeff, but believe it or not, for what I need it worked out more expensive to go with olympus underwater than Nikon, despite the housing being just over half the price of the Nikon variant - bizarre.

Anyway, sold my soul now, gonna be some Canon gear in the classifieds soon...

Mike
 
Ill throw in my current wildlife set up, Sony a7Rii (42 MP) twined with the Sony 100-4000 GM lens and a Sony 1.4x Teleconverter :)

Images can be seen in my Flickr account below :

Les
 
Lez325 said:
Ill throw in my current wildlife set up, Sony a7Rii (42 MP) twined with the Sony 100-4000 GM lens and a Sony 1.4x Teleconverter :)

Images can be seen in my Flickr account below :

Les
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Whats it like for birds in flight
 
LCPete said:
Hi I use a 7D MK 2 with 300 2.8 mk 2 with mk 3 extenders
I’m really happy with this setup the image quality is excellent if I get the exposure right and the light is reasonable
The autofocus is also excellent I can shoot puffins in flight with this setup they are fast little birds
The 300 can be used hand held if you went to a 500 mm lens you may have to use a gimbal on a tripod
I’m just saying that it will be very expensive to swap to another brand
Click to expand...
Do you have any shots i can view with your combo
 
pooley said:
Nearly did Jeff, but believe it or not, for what I need it worked out more expensive to go with olympus underwater than Nikon, despite the housing being just over half the price of the Nikon variant - bizarre.

Anyway, sold my soul now, gonna be some Canon gear in the classifieds soon...

Mike
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Lots of changes going on at the moment mike , quite surprised to see your mate John ( with the big black dog) has also changed to Olympus .. times they are a changing
 
the black fox said:
Lots of changes going on at the moment mike , quite surprised to see your mate John ( with the big black dog) has also changed to Olympus .. times they are a changing
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Yeah, he told me when the Owls were around he was thinking of it, then next thing I knew I get an email offering me all his Canon gear. He loves his macro though, so with high ISO not being so much an issue in that field he took that on the chin for the lighter weight. IQ is getting better all the time for 4/3rds and his 300mm f4 has the same effective angle of view as a big 600mm f4 on full frame.
 
pooley said:
Yeah, he told me when the Owls were around he was thinking of it, then next thing I knew I get an email offering me all his Canon gear. He loves his macro though, so with high ISO not being so much an issue in that field he took that on the chin for the lighter weight. IQ is getting better all the time for 4/3rds and his 300mm f4 has the same effective angle of view as a big 600mm f4 on full frame.
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I already had the Panasonic G80 plus the 100-400 lens mike and noise is not a issue with mft for some reason . The only problems I had were for Af on b.i.f .. the Olympus 1mkii has cured this with the firmware update and quite frankly I’m stunned so far.. talking to John on Sunday he is also more than pleased with the move .. and with 66 months full warranty plus a free macro lens it was a no brainer for me
 
telscossie said:
Whats it like for birds in flight
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Very good with the Sony "Lock on AF flexible spot" focusing- catches them and keeps them in focus too./

Les
 
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I've had to go a long way back in my Flickr pages, but here's a BIF shot from the 150-600S & 7D2, and as I recall, it was the first outing with the Mk2, so it probably wasn't set up properly....

Cormorant2 by Steve Jelly, on Flickr
 
pooley said:
Yeah, he told me when the Owls were around he was thinking of it, then next thing I knew I get an email offering me all his Canon gear. He loves his macro though, so with high ISO not being so much an issue in that field he took that on the chin for the lighter weight. IQ is getting better all the time for 4/3rds and his 300mm f4 has the same effective angle of view as a big 600mm f4 on full frame.
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Ha that's funny I got one too;):D He a fine fine wildlife tog Jon I really REALLY admire him.............. hope he has fun with it.


Been an interesting read this thread Mike, same goes for you with your switch I hope it works out for ya kiddo. You do know ya don't need to change anything Mike, I know we all have ,'erm, wants ....... but it doesn't matter which way you cut it,the images are already there . just sayin' !!

God, I bet you've been doing some head scratching. :LOL:

stu
 
I use a Canon 80D with a Tamron 100-400 for wildlife and I'm chuffed with my results so far.
 
Been playing around with the various settings on the omd1-mkii since the weekend ,think iv’e got it ticking nicely now
 
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