By Steve Hillebrand, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service [Public domain], via Wikimedia Commons
Buying camera equipment and optical gear can be very confusing. There are so many choices that itcan be very difficult to make a decision. The first thing you have to ask yourself is what are my goals?Do you want to take snapshots or do you want to make pro quality images? Maybe you’ll be happywith something in between. Are you a landscape, sport or wildlife photographer? Different camerasand lenses are for different purposes. Maybe you want to go out to watch birds or go to a footballgame. Different quality optics are used for different activities.
In this article I’m going to send you in the right direction. All these recommendations are just a guide towhat you can buy. They’re all excellent products, but by no means your only choices. The good thing isAdorama has everything you need.
I’m a professional wildlife photographer and mostly buy pro quality equipment. Most people wouldnever make the financial commitment as the prices border on the ridiculous. Everything I’mshowcasing is affordable and of excellent quality. Let’s start with cameras.
Point and Shoot cameras:
Sony DSC-HX90V Digital Camera, 18.2MP, 30x Optical Zoom$428
Panasonic Lumix DMC-ZS40 Digital Camera, 18.1MP, 30x Optical Zoom$350
Canon PowerShot SX700 HS Digital Camera, 16.1MP, 30x Optical Zoom$280
There’s no question there are more expensive models out there. They may have more features butyou can do just fine with these. They all have wide angle and telephoto zooms so they’ll be good forboth landscape and wildlife photos. If there’s any drawback it would be in focus speed. No problemswith landscapes but sports and wildlife may prove to be a bit frustrating. All three companies make fineproducts.
DSLR cameras:
Canon EOS-5D Mark III Digital SLR Camera Body, 22.3 MP$2500
Canon EOS 7D Mark II DSLR Camera Body, 20.2MP$1500
Canon EOS Rebel T6i DSLR Camera Body, 24.2MP$750
Nikon D750 FX-Format Digital SLR Body Only Camera, 24.3MP$2000
Nikon D7200 DX-format Digital SLR Camera Body, 24.2 MP$1100
Nikon D5500 Digital SLR Camera Body, 24.2MP$750
Again, there are other companies that make very good cameras. Canon and Nikon are the mostpopular. I use Canon but it’s a personal preference. I have lots of friends who shoot with Nikon andthey’re extremely happy.
The more expensive cameras on the list both have full frame sensors. They’re ideal for takinglandscapes. They are more than capable for taking both sports and wildlife. I use the Canon EOS 5DMark III. It’s a fantastic camera but for wildlife I sometimes find that the shutter doesn’t give meenough FPS (frames per second). It only has about 5 which sounds fast but my other camera is thesecond one on the list. The Canon EOS 7D Mark II has 10FPS and is more conducive for taking birdsor people in motion and flight. The sensor on this camera has a 1.6X crop factor. In other words, ifshooting with a 400mm lens you get the equivalent of a 640mm lens. This has become my camera ofchoice. The Digital Rebel cameras also have the 1.6X sensor but not as fast a shutter speed.Nevertheless, they take excellent photos.
The second and third Nikons listed have a crop factor of 1.5X so the same 400mm lens will give you a600mm crop factor. You can’t go wrong with any of these cameras.
Lenses:
Canon EF 100-400mm f/4.5-5.6L IS II USM (Image Stabilized) Zoom Lens$2200
Canon EF 24-70mm f/4L IS USM Zoom Lens$900
Nikon 80-400mm f/4.5-5.6G AF-S VR Nikkor ED Lens $2700
Nikon 24-120mm f/4G ED-IF AF-S VR II Vibration Reduction $1300
Tamron SP 150-600mm F/5-6.3 Di VC USD Autofocus lens $1070
Canon lenses will not fit on Nikons and vice versa. I’ve chosen lenses that will give you all the focallenghts you’ll need to take landscapes, portraits and close-ups. I personally use the Canon EOS 7D IIwith the Canon EF 100-400mm f/4.5-5.6L IS II USM lens combination when I don’t want to carry my600mm bazooka. I must use the 600 with a tripod (Gitzo GT3532LS $930). When all is said and donethe “rig” comes to 20lbs., ouch! If you plan on buying a tripod, besides Gitzo there are othermanufacturers that make very decent ones. Companies like Induro and Benro come to mind. I highlyrecommend getting a carbon fiber model. They are very rigid and don’t have much vibration. Theseare two factors that will help with acquiring sharp images.
Binoculars:
Kowa 8×32 BD Series Water Proof Roof Prism Binocular $415
Meopta 8×32 MeoPro HD, Water Proof Roof Prism $650
Zeiss 8×42 Conquest HD Water Proof Roof Prism Binocular $970
Leica 8×42 Ultravid HD, Water Proof Roof Prism Binocular $2000
As you can see, just like camera equipment, binoculars have a wide range of prices. There are muchcheaper choices out there but I wouldn’t recommend them. If you’re going to go looking for wildlife ononly an occasion then I would buy the Kowa. It’s lightweight and will do the job. If you’re going to goout birding on a regular basis then buy the best you can afford. I personally use the Leicas. Thedifference between the less expensive and more expensive is that the cheaper models will allow youto see the bird and the more expensive will allow you to see the feather details of the bird. BTW,another choice in the high end is Swarovski. They are probably the best and most expensive.
Accesories:
BlackRapid CURVE (RS-7) Ballistic Nylon Sling Camera Strap, Curved Ergonomic $62
You’ll be carrying your camera for several hours and this strap will take all the pressure off your neck.Highly recommended.
Freehands Ragg Wool Knit Thinsulate Gloves $24
Freehands Softshell Photo Gloves Large, Black $35
If you’re going to be out in the cold weather there is nothing like a good pair of gloves. I’ve found that itcan be very difficult to use your controls wiith clumpy gloves on. These have openings for your thumband index finger. It makes it easier to feel the shutter button on the camera or the focus wheel on thebinoculars.
I could go on and on but this should at least make it easier with your buying decisions.
Happy holidays to you all.
