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Archive 2020 · Wildlife equipment, where to spend.

davev
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p.1 #1 · p.1 #1 · Wildlife equipment, where to spend.

Ok, here's the deal.

Let's say I have $3k buried in backyard.
I own 3 Sony cameras that are worth talking about.
The a7III, the a7RIII, and the a6400.
Also with those cameras, I have the Sony 100-400 with the 1.4 tc and the 2x tc.
Through in the Metabones 5 and the MC-11 to use my Sigma 150-600c lens. (good lens, but struggles in some areas)
I should also add that I still have my Canon 300 f2.8is and a 2x Canon tc. Great lens, not so much when adapted.

I'm looking at a used a9, a good price on an a7RIV, and the 200-600.

Where I'm shooting, getting close is always a challenge.

BIF is fun, but maybe only 5-10% of what I'm trying to shoot.

So where is my money best spent?

The a9 with it's silent shooting and 20 fps, (I'm a spray and pray king of guy) an a7RIV, with all those megapixels,
or the lens that should work well with the equipment I already have.

I see lots of photos that incorporate 2 of these three choices, if you could only get one, which
do you feel would be the best money spent.

I'm leaning to 200-600, but I'm constantly looking at the buy and sell board for a9's, and for deals on the a7RIV.

I'm interested in your opinion.

Feb 07, 2020 at 01:25 PM

mogul
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p.1 #2 · p.1 #2 · Wildlife equipment, where to spend.

Get yourself a rx10IV & Mtn. Bike...seriously, unless you are really into tracking w/ big heavy equipment, your present outfit is fine.

Feb 07, 2020 at 02:35 PM

Redorb
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p.1 #3 · p.1 #3 · Wildlife equipment, where to spend.

The a7iii and 7Riii have silent shooting. You already have great cameras invest in the lens.

Feb 07, 2020 at 02:50 PM

Redorb
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p.1 #4 · p.1 #4 · Wildlife equipment, where to spend.

The a7iii and 7Riii have silent shooting. You already have great cameras invest in the lens.

Feb 07, 2020 at 02:50 PM

A9Lon
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p.1 #5 · p.1 #5 · Wildlife equipment, where to spend.

I would suggest you consider selling two of the three camera bodies you currently have, take that money combined with the $3000 in the backyard and then buy a 200-600 and a used a9.

Feb 07, 2020 at 02:54 PM

Karl Witt
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p.1 #6 · p.1 #6 · Wildlife equipment, where to spend.

You won't be disappointed at all with the 200-600 on the A7rIII for the 85-90% of your shooting. If you want to grow into BIF and packing on a TC I think then you pick up the A9. Get the lens, get used to it and then see if you desire the additives of the A9, with a loss of mp's but the TC can make up for the reach to help with that.

There have been recently a few great deals on the 200-600 that showed up on the Buy Sell Forum here, don't miss out!
Karl

Feb 07, 2020 at 03:07 PM

unintended1
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p.1 #7 · p.1 #7 · Wildlife equipment, where to spend.

From your list I'd go with the 200-600mm.

But if it was me I'd sell a camera or 2 plus the Sigma 150-600mm C and get both the 200-600mm and an A9.

Feb 07, 2020 at 05:08 PM

Faraday
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p.1 #8 · p.1 #8 · Wildlife equipment, where to spend.

Do you print big or crop a lot or otherwise consistently need a ton of resolution? If not I'd say sell two of three cameras, say the a7iii and the a6400 (so you keep a high res option) and get an a9 and a lens, probably the 200-600. The a9 is a ton of camera power for its current used price.

Feb 07, 2020 at 06:26 PM

samosh
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p.1 #9 · p.1 #9 · Wildlife equipment, where to spend.

I like insane resolution of A7RIV. If you switch to APS-C mode you get 26MP and your 100-400 becomes 150-600 or just crop to whatever resolution you want. I would get A7RIV with your $3000 because you already have lens and TCs you need. I never tried 200-600. Thing that stops me is 4.7 LB weight.

Feb 07, 2020 at 07:45 PM

Steve Spencer
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p.1 #10 · p.1 #10 · Wildlife equipment, where to spend.

I think this is a case where you can actually have your cake and eat it too. If you sell your A7 III, you should be able to get about $1,200. You can add another $1,300 to this and get a Sony A9. You will have no need for the A7 III when you have the A9 as the A9 is better in almost every way. That leaves you $1,700 of the $3,000 you have buried in you backyard to get the 200-600, and if you buy it used it should only be about $1,400 or so. It seems you have more than enough to upgrade you A7 III to an A9 and keep your high resolution A7r III, and you have lots of money to get the 200-600 too.

Now if you want to upgrade your A7r III to an A7r IV, you can probably do that too. Just sell both your A7r III and your a6400. The A7r III should get you about $1,700 and the a6400 should get you about $750. That is about $250 short of the money it would take for an A7r IV, but you should have that $250 left from the above transactions.

So to summarize sell your A7 III for about $1,200; your A7r III for about $1,700; and your a6400 for about $750. That give you $3,650, now add to that your $3,000 buried in your back yard and buy the A9 for about $2,500 used, the A7r IV for about $2,800, and the 200-600 for about $1,400. That comes awfully close to allowing you to get exactly the kit you want (just $50 over or so) and you won't miss the A7 III with the A9. You won't miss the A7r III with the a7r IV and if you use the A7r IV in crop mode I don't think you will miss the a6400 either, and you will have the lens you want too.

Maybe that is too much money. If it is forgoing the A7r IV would still leave you with an excellent kit even if you had to sell the a6400 to make it work. Even the A7r III in crop mode is a quite decent replacement for the a6400. Alternatively, you could sell the 100-400, which you will use less when you have the 200-600, and then the plan ought to work nicely as well. Or you could sell the Canon 300 f/2.8 IS to make it work as well, although there you might miss the extra speed of the much faster lens.

So, I don't see any reason why you can't have your cake and eat it too. You ought to be able to get at the A9 and pair it with the A7r III (if not get the A7r IV too) and pair those cameras with the 200-600.

Feb 07, 2020 at 07:58 PM

scrappydog
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p.1 #11 · p.1 #11 · Wildlife equipment, where to spend.

I like the idea of selling one of your cameras and getting the A9 and 200-600. You can get the A9 used for $2,500.

I used to be a A7r2 / A7r3 shooter until I got the A9 + A6400 combo. Now, I pretty much shoot the A9 for everything -- BIF, astro, landscape, street, etc. I used to think of the A9 as a sports/wildlife camera, but it's a really good all-around camera with killer AF. Although the A6400 has good tracking, the A9 is a lot more usable than the A6400 from an ergonomics and usability standpoint. You will lose 0.5 to 1 stop of dynamic range from your A7r3, but the never-miss AF is worth the trade off IMO.

BTW, if you get the A9, you can spray-and-pray less because it usually nails the focus. I typically shoot it in the Low continuous setting, even when doing BIF.

Feb 07, 2020 at 08:04 PM

davev
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p.1 #12 · p.1 #12 · Wildlife equipment, where to spend.

Thank you all for your responses.
Lots to think about.
Selling my cameras is tough to do because they aren't in perfect working order. (well the a7RIII is)
I think I need to fully commit to Sony, and sell off my Canon gear.
Then the 200-600 is a no brainer, then it's the choice between out of this world AF, or class leading megapixels.
The fact is, no matter which way I go, I'll always have that one day were the camera I didn't get, would have made the task easier.

But again, thanks. I think I'm going to need to buy into the Buy and Sell section soon.
Anyone need any Canon stuff?

Feb 07, 2020 at 08:54 PM

arbitrage
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p.1 #13 · p.1 #13 · Wildlife equipment, where to spend.

davev wrote:
Anyone need any Canon stuff?

"crickets"

Feb 07, 2020 at 09:09 PM

rdcny
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p.1 #14 · p.1 #14 · Wildlife equipment, where to spend.

Focus as much on figuring out what it is you want to do with the equipment...

Feb 07, 2020 at 11:07 PM

kimknapp
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p.1 #15 · p.1 #15 · Wildlife equipment, where to spend.

If you sell a lot of Canon equipment, add the $3000 and 750 from the 6400, and get the 600GM. I'll bet it will make the 7iii seem like a 9 does on a 200-600! And, it might make the 7Riii feel better than the 7Riv on the 200-600. (Both statements are a bit speculative, but I feel they are pretty close to reality).
Good combo with the 100-400, too.

Feb 08, 2020 at 10:22 AM

Danpbphoto
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p.1 #16 · p.1 #16 · Wildlife equipment, where to spend.

As a viewer here only, from what I have seen, that a7Riv is fantastic with wildlife! The images posted here with that body and a long lens are just superb!
But you have the experience with Sony so go with your gut and the suggestions here.
Dan

Feb 08, 2020 at 10:32 AM

davev
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p.1 #17 · p.1 #17 · Wildlife equipment, where to spend.

kimknapp wrote:
If you sell a lot of Canon equipment, add the $3000 and 750 from the 6400, and get the 600GM. I'll bet it will make the 7iii seem like a 9 does on a 200-600! And, it might make the 7Riii feel better than the 7Riv on the 200-600. (Both statements are a bit speculative, but I feel they are pretty close to reality).
Good combo with the 100-400, too.

As much as I'd like to have the best lens out there, I'm not willing to use a tripod.
I'm very lazy when using one. It's like the feet are in concrete. Once I set it up, I don't want to move.

In the last few years, I had some physical limitations show up, so even hand holding my 300f2.8 has become challenging.

You are right about the Canon stuff. I started the switch to Sony about 2 years ago, and it's time for most of the Canon stuff to go.

Feb 08, 2020 at 11:57 AM

davev
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p.1 #18 · p.1 #18 · Wildlife equipment, where to spend.

rdcny wrote:
Focus as much on figuring out what it is you want to do with the equipment...

That's some of the problem.
I want one camera to do it all, I just can't find it.
I want the most reach, so a7RIV, even the a6400.
Best AF, has to be the a9, but the reach is lost.
Max pixels, I have the a7RIII, and it's fantastic, but the AF for moving subjects can be lacking.

I had/have the same thing going with Canon.
6D for low light, 1D4 for speed and AF, 80D for reach.

Different systems, same conflicting thoughts on which is the number one to own.

Feb 08, 2020 at 12:07 PM

lunar module
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p.1 #19 · p.1 #19 · Wildlife equipment, where to spend.

davev wrote:
That's some of the problem.
I want one camera to do it all, I just can't find it.
I want the most reach, so a7RIV, even the a6400.
Best AF, has to be the a9, but the reach is lost.
Max pixels, I have the a7RIII, and it's fantastic, but the AF for moving subjects can be lacking.

I had/have the same thing going with Canon.
6D for low light, 1D4 for speed and AF, 80D for reach.

Different systems, same conflicting thoughts on which is the number one to own.

ROFL. First world problems.

There IS NO single, one camera solution at this instant in time that will give you what you want. Until/unless Sony comes out with a 42 mp version of the A9, I'm afraid that you are just going to have to make do with two bodies, one for high res more static subjects that you can crop when needed and one with medium res and ultra high performance AF body for BIF and other wildlife action.

The best compromise that I have come up with that is semi-affordable is a combo of an A7R3 and an A9 with the 100-400 and the 200-600. I use the 1.4x TC but didn't get the 2.0x. This combo is pretty great for all but the most challenging situations. I would love to have one or both of the big fast superteles, but I am a mere mortal and cannot justify the expense.

You are already more than halfway there with your A7R3, 100-400 and TCs. Get a used A9 and maybe a used 200-600 and you would have a great setup while waiting for the mythical high res A9 to appear some time in the future.

Feb 08, 2020 at 12:49 PM

AZHeaven
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p.1 #20 · p.1 #20 · Wildlife equipment, where to spend.

I've been inspired by what I see on the Sony FE 200-600 page here in the Sony fourm. Also if you are on Facebook, think about joining the Sony Alpha Wildlife Shooters page.

If I had that "extra $3,000? I'd finish off my lens wants to go with my A7III. 200-600 or 100-400 ( though sometimes it left me wanting longer, I rented one last month) and a 90mm macro. I only for the moment have a 24-105 f4.

Feb 08, 2020 at 03:14 PM

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