Home · Register · Join Upload & Sell

Moderated by: Fred Miranda
Username  

  New fredmiranda.com Mobile Site
  New Feature: SMS Notification alert
  New Feature: Buy & Sell Watchlist
  

FM Forums | Canon Forum | Join Upload & Sell

  

Archive 2012 · African safari & 300 f2.8

  
 
Tony B
Offline
• • •
Upload & Sell: Off
p.1 #1 · p.1 #1 · African safari & 300 f2.8


I currently have 1D mkIII & 5D, 300 f2.8 L IS, 70-200 f2.8 L IS vII, 1.4xTC, 2x TC & landscape lenses. I know as much reach as possible is desirable for this type of trip but is a 300 + TCs adequate.
I could ,if necessary, purchase a 7D as I am toying between 5DII, 7D or wait for 5DIII with cash available now. Cash has to be spent before end of tax year on 30th June.
I would like to hear from those who took 300 as their long lens.

http://blog.guragear.com/?utm_source=Gura+Gear+Newsletter&utm_campaign=5d12d5a9f8-Demo_Sale1_9_2012&utm_medium=email



Jan 10, 2012 at 10:52 PM
Sharona
Offline
• • • •
Upload & Sell: On
p.1 #2 · p.1 #2 · African safari & 300 f2.8


Tony - It depends somewhat on your destination; often 300 is long enough, sometimes it is too long. So my main thought is that with a prime you don't have the flexibility of the zoom, and in my experience, that flexibility comes in handy. Always trade-offs.... I'll let those who have used this as their longest lens weigh in. It may very well work just fine for you. (I'm a fan of the 100-400 for Africa, but weight on small planes is always an issue for me.)


Jan 10, 2012 at 11:18 PM
skibum5
Offline
• • • • • •
Upload & Sell: Off
p.1 #3 · p.1 #3 · African safari & 300 f2.8


Tony B wrote:
I currently have 1D mkIII & 5D, 300 f2.8 L IS, 70-200 f2.8 L IS vII, 1.4xTC, 2x TC & landscape lenses. I know as much reach as possible is desirable for this type of trip but is a 300 + TCs adequate.
I could ,if necessary, purchase a 7D as I am toying between 5DII, 7D or wait for 5DIII with cash available now. Cash has to be spent before end of tax year on 30th June.
I would like to hear from those who took 300 as their long lens.

http://blog.guragear.com/?utm_source=Gura+Gear+Newsletter&utm_campaign=5d12d5a9f8-Demo_Sale1_9_2012&utm_medium=email


don't be afraid to use the TCs I was a bit too shy to impact the image quality which was very silly
a 7D wouldn't hurt

420mm was often short with a 20D and 40D which bother have higher density than either of your bodies
(of course at times 300mm could also barely fit a beast in the frame and sometimes even 70mm only just fit an animal, but out on the Serengeti even 300-400mm is often short at 20D/40D/5D2 density. They say that in Kenya you might a bit closer on average and even moreso down in South Africa.

you can use 70-200 on the 1D3 or 5D and 300 prime + TCs on a 7D or something perhaps

7D and 5D2 also take movies

sounds like you have lots of time to wait though so wait, 5D3 or 3D or 7D2 or whatever may blow you away by next june for all you know



Jan 10, 2012 at 11:24 PM
AGeoJO
Offline
• • • • • • •
Upload & Sell: On
p.1 #4 · p.1 #4 · African safari & 300 f2.8


Like Sharon mentioned above, it depends on the location. I was in Tanzania a few years back. In Serengeti NP, Ngorongoro Crater, etc. the vehicles cannot wander off the established "path". If the wildlife happens to be nearby then a short lens, even a 70-200mm will do fine. However, most of the time the wildlife is too far away even for a 300mm. I had my 500mm and most of the time, I had to put a 1.4X TC on it on my 1D Mark III. Even then sometimes the action was still too far away. In South Africa, at Kruger Park you can get fairly close. A 300mm lens, especially with a TC on a crop camera would be sufficient. Hope this helps somewhat and let others chime in with more info.


Jan 11, 2012 at 01:16 AM
Tony B
Offline
• • •
Upload & Sell: Off
p.1 #5 · p.1 #5 · African safari & 300 f2.8


Thanks for the replies. I may opt for the Kruger self drive for more freedom.


Jan 11, 2012 at 02:39 AM
Jay S
Offline
• • •
Upload & Sell: Off
p.1 #6 · p.1 #6 · African safari & 300 f2.8


I've been on several safaris to Southern Africa and Eastern Africa. and have never shot anything longer than 300 2.8 with a 1.4x extender. I use the 300 for maybe 70% of my shots with the rest split between a 70-200 and wider. I sometimes wanted more reach that sometimes led me to take better shots that were wider. if interested the WWW button below links to my site which has many photos taken with the 300 2.8 which has been my main safari lens since 2006.

Kruger is ok (it can be rather bushy and sometimes crowded) though I prefer Botswana and Tanzania or at least the private reserves that border Kruger. I am not a fan of self drive as a good guide can help find great sightings through tracking and experience. Plus they provide a lot knowledge and tell good stories too, which is useful if the sightings are slow.



Jan 11, 2012 at 07:47 AM
Ferrophot
Offline
• • •
Upload & Sell: Off
p.1 #7 · p.1 #7 · African safari & 300 f2.8


Take care with how you travel. Each African destination varies, and I think the private reserves around Kruger offer some of the best viewing and photo opportunities. National Parks come with a lot of rules such as not being able to drive off tracks and starting after sunup and back in camp before sunset. The private reserves such as Mala Mala have a much freer hand and can get you within a few yards of lions and leopards, with a bit of night viewing as well. Also each area has its own environment and game varieties. Some have very few cheetah while at others leopards are very rarely seen and so on. Research and stoppig off at different camps is important if you wish to get a good variety of animals. Animals are seen at all distances from a few yards to a hundred or so yards. While a good prime wll make those whiskers stand out a 100-400 will enable the same shot to be taken over a much greater range of distances. Changing converters "on the go" is a pain, often there is very limited time in which to get the shot, and it is difficult to know what is coming up next. There is a reason why even with primes, most photographers have a 100-400 mounted on another body.
The type of vehicle used is also important, an enclosed vehicle such as a car or minibus is difficult to shoot from as access is need on both sides. The landcruiser with an open top provided by the camps is ideal.
For first timers I would recommend the reserves to the west of Kruger for, say 3+3 nights, and then hop to somewhere copletely different, the open plains of Tanzania or Kenya depending on the time of year for another 3+3.
Finally don't plan on staying 2 days and hoping to see everything, it doesn't work like that, the more time on the ground on drives the greater the chance of seeing the best action, so plan to stay at each location for 3 -4 nights, and something like 10-14 days total (after which i'm prettyy well animaled out)..



Jan 11, 2012 at 07:58 AM
Karver
Offline

Upload & Sell: Off
p.1 #8 · p.1 #8 · African safari & 300 f2.8


I don't think 7D gives any advantage despite much higher pixel density.
At least Mk IV still outperforms 7D in image quality when shooting from the same distance. It is about pixel desity vs pixel quality, not just pixel density.

When I got Mk IV, I made series of test and sold my 7D soon after.



Jan 11, 2012 at 09:40 AM
matt4626
Offline
• • •
Upload & Sell: Off
p.1 #9 · p.1 #9 · African safari & 300 f2.8


I used a 100-400 most of the time in Africa. Those darn critters just keep moving around and a zoom is the only way to go IMHO.


Jan 11, 2012 at 12:44 PM
skibum5
Offline
• • • • • •
Upload & Sell: Off
p.1 #10 · p.1 #10 · African safari & 300 f2.8


matt4626 wrote:
I used a 100-400 most of the time in Africa. Those darn critters just keep moving around and a zoom is the only way to go IMHO.


Hah I guess it depends where and when you go. 95% of the critters I saw just stood or sat or lay around and I was, luckily since focus calibration was not good with my new 40D, often able to use 10x zoom liveview slow and tedious manual focusing on them! I barely ever used AI Servo.





Jan 11, 2012 at 02:15 PM
ssc45
Offline
• •
Upload & Sell: Off
p.1 #11 · p.1 #11 · African safari & 300 f2.8


I use my 100-400 90% of the time on my trips across the pond. Granted, sometimes the critters are closer depending on where you are and how you approach them. I have never done the traditional photo safari, so my experience may be different.

Cheers, Steve



Jan 11, 2012 at 04:18 PM
waldr_p
Offline
• • • • •
Upload & Sell: Off
p.1 #12 · p.1 #12 · African safari & 300 f2.8


I had a quick look through my photo's from a recent trip to Zambia. I was using a 7D with a Sigma 120-300mm F2.8. I also had the 1.4x and 2x TC's. I had the 1.4x on for most of the game drives. Around half of my shots were taken at 420mm.

Having said that I did also have a number of shots I missed because I just could not zoom out wide enough.

I used the 2x converter when shooting birds around camp and also on a few boat based trips where I knew the main photographic subject would be birds.

Based on my experience I think you may find a 300mm too short at times on a FF or 1.3x crop camera even with the 1.4x TC fitted. Having said that, given your current equipment I would go with the MkIII and the 300 F2.8 + 1.4xTC and the 5D with the 70-200. Try that on a couple of game drives and if you find you don't have enough reach you could always put the 2x TC on the MkIII and add the 1.4x to the 5D. With the two bodies, the two TC's and two F2.8 lenses you have a lot of combinations to play with here.

Paul



Jan 11, 2012 at 04:44 PM
Tony B
Offline
• • •
Upload & Sell: Off
p.1 #13 · p.1 #13 · African safari & 300 f2.8


Thanks all- food for thought
I've always talked about a safari & my wife the other day just said" Go!" . Now to decide where to go but more to the point how much am I prepared to pay!!!
Put the word 'photographic' in a travel description & the price jumps at least $5000 for the week.



Jan 11, 2012 at 05:03 PM
ChrisHA
Offline
• •
Upload & Sell: Off
p.1 #14 · p.1 #14 · African safari & 300 f2.8


Hi Tony,

For private reserves in Botswana and South Africa where you are allowed to go off road, I wouldn't hesitate using the 300mm/2.8 as my primary lens. In fact, I've done this with full frame and two of my favorite safari images came from this lens. If you like animal-scapes like Andy Biggs, then the 300mm and 1.4X would work in Tanzania too.

Friends have gotten nice images with the 7D. So that would be nice for insurance albeit not for first/last light images. That time of day is where the 300mm shines.

If you're into birds, then rent a 500/4 in lieu of the 7D.

Also, I have a lot of safari tips on my blog.

Chris
www.wildliferhythms.com
http://chrisprestegardtraveltipcentral.blogspot.com/



Jan 11, 2012 at 06:04 PM
WarrenL
Offline
• • •
Upload & Sell: Off
p.1 #15 · p.1 #15 · African safari & 300 f2.8


Having grown up in South Africa, I spent 20 years doing self drives to all the reserves in Southern Africa.

If you want bird pics, you will need as long a lens as you can afford to take with you. Granted these were days of film,
most bird shots were done at 600mm. I used a 150-600 5.6L zoom lens + often with converters. (loved the lens by the way). So with a crop camera today, a 500mm will be equivalent.

My last trip to SA 3 years ago, I took a 500 and a Sigma 120-300. Most of the animals were shot with the Sigma, but I did shoot some game with the 500.




Jan 11, 2012 at 06:59 PM
Ferrophot
Offline
• • •
Upload & Sell: Off
p.1 #16 · p.1 #16 · African safari & 300 f2.8


There is no need to go on a special Photographic Safari to get stunning photographs, but you do need a guide who knows about photography so it is wise to let the camps that you will stay at know that that is important to you. At the last camp I stayed at one of the guides was into photography and had some nice Canon gear and L lenses. If that is not possible then explain to your guide your requirements. You will find that most guides will do all they can to place you in the best position. On your part you will need to understand that that is not always possible.
On the drives a friendship often develops between the guide and the clients. Developing this over a meal or two also helps with the game drive experience and the photos taken.



Jan 12, 2012 at 02:58 AM





FM Forums | Canon Forum | Join Upload & Sell

    
 

You are not logged in. Login or Register

Username       Or Reset password



This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply.