Wildlife and Scenic Photography Equipment Recommendations

[ashley84]

Hi, I am to photography. For a very long time I have wanted to learn the art of wildlife and scenic photography. What advice do you have on equipment? I am starting from scratch any tips on what equipment I need and tips of capturing beauty of this earth, I would really appreciate any advice or where would be a good place to start. -Thank you-

[rs-eos]

There are some nice Canon Training Articles available.   On the left side of that page, you can narrow the articles down to say Landscape and Nature Wildlife.

In terms of landscapes or wildlife, are you able to pick one? Or would you like to start with both?   I ask since the equipment will most likely vary (lenses mostly).

In general though, at this point in time, I would recommend any of Canon's R-series cameras along with RF (or RF-S) lenses.   There's a wide range of cameras available at different price points (from the EOS R100 all the way up to the current top being the EOS R3).

By the way, do you have a budget on what you'd be able to spend?

[Tronhard]

Hi Ashley and welcome to the forum:

I have been a wildlife and scenic photographer for over 40 years and it is a wonderful and rewarding past-time.  In pursuing your images you get to see wonderful sights in nature and enjoy the great world we exist within.

I gather that you are new to photography so you have a bit of a learning curve to go through.  Getting a successful image is dependent on your ability to understand the nature of light and exposure, how to measure it and set your camera controls up for the right effect using the three main controls: aperture, shutter speed and ISO (it's actually a word, so don't spell it).
To get you going with that, I suggest viewing the following video on the basics of photography by National Geographic photographer Chris Bray: 

My colleagues will doubtless have other sources for learning the basics and I encourage you to explore them all. 

If you have access to your local library's on-line catalogue, look for an item called Linked-In Learning.  If it is available, you have free access to a great source of on-line tutorials using your library access.  Just do a search for photography fundamentals and you will have a range of courses by professional tutors that cover topics from the very basics to advanced topics.  Also if your local college has courses it may be worthwhile checking out their offerings.

The other aspect of photography is the creative, or artistic side, and that comes with studying the work of others - both photographers and painters.  There are many great wildlife and scenic photographers out there, and among my favourites is Sabastio Salgado - his book of natural images - Genesis, taken in black and white, is a masterpiece.  Still, a search on Google will render many names to follow up on.

Wildlife is a somewhat specialist subject and usually involves getting to know the animals you want to photograph in some depth.  The more you know of them the safer you and they are, and the better you will understand and anticipate their behavior, so allowing you to get better images. I would encourage you  to also watch videos on wildlife, to learn not only about the animals themselves, but to examine the techniques used by the photographers and videographers.  The BBC David Attenborough series are fantastic for that.

Wildlife has many genres: from taking very close-up images of tiny insects and reptiles, to capturing birds or macro predators.  Each of these tends to demand differences in gear, so it is helpful to learn early on what kinds of wildlife you want to photograph.  For example, for close-up images of tiny creatures you may want specialist close-up lenses, but for shooting birds of large animals big reach telephoto lenses, often zooms are required.  So this can get fairly expensive, but there are ways of starting off relatively cheaply.  Very often what are called crop-sensor cameras are an advantage in this area - as you study cameras this will make more sense.
EF 100-400MkII, 286mm, f/8, 1/640sec, ISO-200  R6MkII, EF 100-400@ 400mm, f/8, 1/400sec, ISO-6400  Female Sumatran Tiger: 403mm, f/7.1, 1/80sec, ISO-100

Scenic photography is more likely to involve moderately wide to moderate telephoto lenses and Full-frame cameras. So the more specialist you become so the equipment list diverges.

EOS 7D, 105mm, f/8, 1/3200, ISO-200           

So far you notice that I have not suggested a specific camera and lenses, and I am doing so because I hope you can be more specific about which genres you are most inclined towards - as I hope I have explained, each suggests a somewhat different gear list. 
All that said, one of the most important things to do is to learn the basics, and that means study and practice.  So, to help with that, please consider the following document and perhaps use it to answer some of the questions it poses.  The most fundamental question is one of budget, for example!
Considerations for Buying Camera Gear 

[ashley84]

Thank you for sharing your knowledge and that great video. It was exactly what I needed to get things started.

[Tintype_18]

As Ricky states, what is your budget?

[ashley84]

I am back with a budget... I would like to stay around $3,000 at the moment. I live in Idaho and am close to the Grand Teton and Yellowstone National Parks. These places have always been my favorite places to visit, and I visit them frequently though out the year. I want to be able to share my love of this place through the art of photography to everyone. My main focus will be on the larger animals and would still like to take some of those beautiful scenic photos. I know my budget isn't big at the moment but would like to get started on this journey and as I go hope to upgrade. Is there any recommendations on cameras and lenses from your experience that might fit in this budget? 

[stevet1]

ashley84,

First off, I envy you your location. I lived in Montana for a while, and I know what you're talking about.

I won t advise you what kind of camera to buy. I'll leave that to people who are smarter and more knowledgeable than I am.

But, In addition to buying a camera, you'll need to set aside money for some needed accessories.

Primarily, you're going to need a nice sturdy tripod. You'll also probably going to want a spare battery or two. You might want to get some filters, and a camera bag to carry your gear.

Your "extras" will probably ly run a couple hundred dollars all told before it's over.

Steve Thomas

[stevet1]

ashley84,

If at all possible, try to visit some place that sells cameras - a Best Buy, or a Walmart, or anything. Don't go there with the intention to buy.

Just visit a store and pick some up and physically hold them. Do they fit your hand?

Are they comfortable? Can you envision holding that camera up to your eye for possibly long periods of time while you wait for some animal to come from behind that bush?

Do the controls and dials seem logical to you?

Start with what feels good in your hands.

Steve Thomas

[March411]

I can say without hesitation that my opinion may differ from others since I decided not to go mirrorless at this point. I recently wanted to add another body to my stable and did the research so that I could maximize my investment.

I own both a 90D and 5D Mark VI (60D and M50) and both perform outstanding. The 90D I’ve owned for many years and it is almost always with me, never know when a great shot will present itself.

In my opinion you can’t go wrong with either of the bodies I mentioned but understand that they are the old guard, they are discontinued.

The secondary market has plenty of bodies in like new or perfect condition. Places like B&H Foto and KEH are trusted third parties.

Lenses, there is a ton of glass available both new and used in the EF mount and Sigma has some good prime lenses new. The EF mount has been a staple for a long time and finding a good lens shouldn’t be a problem for a while.

As for your budget and desire to shoot wildlife and the outdoors, I would pick up the Sigma 60-600mm. This lens is heavy, just over 7 lbs but it gives you great range. I have carried it all day at nature preserves with no issues. It isn’t the fastest lens but for outdoor shooting unless the weather was really overcast I have had no issues.

I looked and you can pick up the body and lens, excellent condition for under your budget which may allow you to purchase another lens.

For me the choice was fairly easy, I normally keep the gear I purchase and wanted to maximize my spend. Or maybe I am an old dog that is hard to teach new tricks.

Which ever direction you decide to go there is a vast amount of information on YouTube regarding specific cameras that will help you set up whatever gear you purchase and hone your picture taking skills, many on wildlife photography.

Simon d'Entremont has a You Tube channel and uses Canon equipment specifically for wildlife. He’s informative, gives camera specific tutorials and easy to watch…..most of the time.

[Tronhard]

On the equipment side of things, you are going to get a selection of opinions, often based on what and how our contributors shoot. I agree with my colleague, Steve about trying the look and feel of any camera you are thinking of buying (as I outlined in my buying guide), but don't actually buy from a box store, get your camera from a reputable camera shop, or Canon itself - as per below. 

I am going to attempt to follow a logical path based on your preferences and budget.

First, you have the advantage that you are not starting out with an investment in legacy gear, by which I mean DSLR cameras and lenses. While I understand the challenge for those who have invested in DSLRs (as I have myself), and the preference of some for that platform, in essence, the DSLR market represents the past, while the Mirrorless Interchangeable Lens Cameras (MILCs) market represents the future.  I am sure some of my colleagues will debate this, but one just has to look at where the investment and development are and the story is clear. The last DSLR was offered by Canon back in 2020, which is quite a long time in the camera world.  Since then Canon have release 10 R-series MILCs and 38 RF and RF-S lenses.  Canon have made it clear which way the are headed by steadily reducing their DSLR body and lens offerings on the market as they bring on more R-series MILCs.  Thus, I would suggest you will get better long-term value and performance from the burgeoning platform with development potential.

These have brought a host of advances including (but not limited to).  The ability to see what an image will look like for both exposure and focus as you shoot - previously, exposure preview required holding down a specific button to do so.  The sensors that record the images are significantly improved, but the greatest changes are in much, much better focusing options, including the ability to lock onto and track eyes and faces of people and animals.  Also, the new MILCs offer benefits in stabilizing the camera if hand-holding it, especially significant if shooting hand-held in dim light, or with long telephoto lenses often used for wildlife.

For those reasons, I recommend in going with an R-series body and likely at least one R-series RF lens.   Since your photography embraces both wildlife and scenic, I am going to suggest a full-frame sensor (one that has the same size as frame of 35mm film) instead of a ASP-C crop sensor camera which, as the name implies, has a smaller sensor.   You can always crop an image after shooting but you can't capture a wider area afterwards - if you were purely shooting wildlife my answer might be different.

I have been looking at Canon's refurbished site for cameras that are serviced and sold, essentially as good as new - they may be sample cameras for demonstration, have box damage or been returned by a client.  They are checked and, if necessary serviced by Canon's authorized staff. 

On that list it the Canon EOS R6 - there is now a newer model, the R6MkII, but the R6 is no less capable that it was when released and will be significantly cheaper to stay within your budget. .  I have two of that model (plus an R5 and R6MkII) and have been talking mostly wildlife shots with them for a while.  The R6 offers benefits of robust and environmentally protected bodies, large capacity batteries, dual cards to provide a backup for your images as you shoot, In-Body Image Stabilization (IBIS) that stabilizes the camera body, and works with R-series stabilized lenses to really help shoot hand-held.  A great 20MP sensor and a focusing system essentially the same as the higher end R5.  It's a brilliant camera and will take you a long, long time to outgrow.  There are cheaper models, like the R8 but they don't offer some of the features I have outlined and for wildlife I think the difference is worth the investment.

See this link:
Canon Refurbished EOS R6 Camera Body | Canon U.S.A., Inc.

Lenses are a bit trickier.  For scenic one tends to go towards wide angle, but for wildlife the opposite is very much true.  So, really you are looking at two different lenses, and preferably with a middle capacity to photograph general images like people, places and events.  So a lot to keep within your remaining budget. 
So my first suggestion would be a wide angle to moderate telephoto lens the Rf 24-105 STM, to cover scenic and social/travel photography
RF24-105mm F4-7.1 IS STM (canon.com)
For wildlife the RF 100-400 STM is a great lens at a reasonable price.
RF100-400mm F5.6-8 IS USM (canon.com)

That combined cost of all three would come in at around $2,450, leaving you finds for things like lens hoods to offer protection and to reduce lens flare when shooting more toward the sun, an extra battery, at least two full-size SD cards from reputable dealers, and optionally (and my preference) protect filters to avoid environmental damage like dust and salt abrasion or chemical reaction with the front elements of your lenses. For landscape work particularly you could well want to get a tripod as Thomas advocated.
There are numerous images posted on this site's galleries that use the R6: Search - Canon Community and I would suggest checking out reviews on the camera and lenses