Choosing a lens to suit wildlife photography.

A while back I decided to go into photography all the way, I proceeded to buy a Canon EOS 400D and chose to kit it up with good lenses. Once I would have the lenses that are appropriate for what I do, wildlife photography, I would then proceed to buy a better camera, another Canon as you may have guessed. Good Canon lenses do not come cheap and I consider them an investment, but I digress.

Just over a year ago, I needed to replace my Sigma APO 170-500mm F5-6.3 DG after an unfortunate accident, I was in no ways unhappy with the lens, it was cheap and did the job as you can see from the photo of the African Fish Eagle taken near Lower Sabie in the Kruger National Park with a Canon EOS 300D here bellow. However, it was a very hard lens to use in low light conditions as well as being extremely sensitive to camera shake.

After the accident, I started to look around for other lenses that would do the job in the conditions that I had to deal with when photo hunting. Conditions that are not always ideal, low light, camera shake and movement from the vehicle caused by other passengers are all considerations that I had to take into account. From my experience with the Sigma APO 170-500mm F5-6.3 DG I knew that it did not cater for my needs anymore. I opted to invest into a Canon lens in staid, this was to lead me to my downfall. I bought the Canon EF 100-400mm f/4.5-5.6L IS USM.

So why was it my downfall? What is wrong with it? The answer is quiet simple: NOTHING! Except the price… One thing is certain though once you have been exposed to a Canon L lens, you will never go back. Hence my downfall.

This lens has 4 features that put it apart from the rest:

1. It is a Canon L lens, thus a professional grade lens, the definition goes as follows “Canon’s fluorite lenses are top of the range, with a lower dispersion value than normal optical glass for sharper images with reduced aberration for recording sharper focus and better colour rendition”, in my experience it is true.
2. USM, the definition is as follows “Instead of a motor, ultrasonic vibrations power the lens, making focusing precise, virtually noiseless and incredibly quick – some lenses focusing literally faster than the human eye. The USM starts instantaneously and stops the moment focus is achieved, with no overshooting. What’s more, the USM requires minimal battery power so you can shoot for longer on a single charge.”, it is so quiet that I sometimes wander if it works, the Image Stabiliser is noisier. What is not said is that it also has the facility to readjust the focus manually during or after auto-focus.
3. Image Stabiliser, the definition is as follows “Canon’s optical stabiliser uses micro gyroscopic sensors that detect light camera shake and inform the onboard computer which then actually shifts the IS lens group to compensate for the movement in your hands. With this system you can shoot at much lower shutter speeds and still achieve sharp pictures.”, in this case the IS gives an equivalent of 2 extra f-stops, it makes all the difference when you are out there.
4. On an APS-C camera like the Canon EOS 400D the actual zoom range is a whopping 160-640mm making it ideal for wildlife photography.

There are a few drawbacks too, the lens is heavy at 1380g you will feel you muscles working quickly but the image results outweighs that inconvenience as seen below, this photo of 2 hippopotamus was taken at Lengau Dam in the Pilanesberg National Park done with low light, it was the first time I used the lens.

But the reality of the quality of the lens can be seen in this next photograph taken by my wife, who had no experience with either the camera or the lens, in Kruger National Park at 06:58 in the morning in terrible lighting conditions and from a safari 4×4 vehicle with other people in it. Trust me when I say that I am jealous. I will be publishing her photos of that trip on Flickr shortly.

In brief, I think I made the right choice for the use I have for it, however L lenses as brilliant as they are make all other standard lenses feel a little antiquated and cheap, I still use my Canon EF-S 18-55mm f/3.5-5.6 II kit lens and I long for the day I can replace it with an L lens.

Related posts:

1. Choosing a lens to suit indoor sports and wildlife photography.
2. Living with a Canon 100-400mm f/4.5-5.6 IS L lens in the wild.
3. Canon 24-70mm f/2.4 L – First impressions.
4. Shooting the moon

Tags: Photography