Nature Photographers Favorite Lens, the 70-200mm
While all photographers have their own favorite lens, probably the most commonly used by professionals in nature photography is the 70-200mm zoom. This lens can be used in so many different situations and if the situation quickly changes, the lens can also so that you don’t miss a single shot. Granted the high-end 70-200mm lens is big, heavy and expensive, but if you make your living with your camera or are highly dedicated to it as a hobby this is one amazing lens to have available.
When zoomed out to 70mm, the lens is wide enough to take in a broad landscape or show animals in their natural surroundings. On the other end of the spectrum at 200mm, it is telephoto enough to get tight on an animal in many situations or to create a foreshortened perspective on a landscape. And for even more of a zoom range; some 70-200mm lenses will work with a 1.4x teleconverter which will bring the zoom range up to 280mm on a full-frame sensor DSLR, or about 450mm on a DSLR with an APS-C sized sensor.
Even though the 70-200mm lens is big and heavy, with the f/2.8 versions being even more so than the f/4 models, even the biggest 70-200mm is smaller and lighter than a 300mm telephoto and especially a 400mm. This allows you to more easily carry the camera and lens combination for extended periods while shooting outdoors, and allows for easier setup when you are trying to get a shot as well.
The first zoom lenses were not very sharp, and serious photographers tended to avoid them. Then roughly 30 years ago, manual-focus zoom lenses with a range of 80-200mm appeared and were had good enough image quality that the serious shooters started to use them. Professional quality autofocus 80-200mm zooms appeared in the 1980’s, and eventually became the standard 70-200mm zoom that many pros use today.
When selecting a new 70-200mm zoom lens you have important decisions to make as they are a considerably expensive purchase. Do you stay with the OEM manufacturer or aftermarket? Do you want f/2.8 or will f/4 work for your needs? Do you need image-stabilization or not? And most importantly, do you really need to make this investment to improve your photography?
- Thankfully both OEM and aftermarket lenses are all excellent quality these days, and you can’t really go wrong with either choice. Some people prefer to only buy OEM equipment, and it’s not a bad decision though it may cost slightly more in the end to do so. It doesn’t matter if you have a Sony, Canon, Nikon, Sigma or any other brand as they are all excellent quality and worth the investment.
- The choice between the lightning quick f/2.8 and the slower f/4 is a big one. The f/4 lens will cost roughly half as much as the f/2.8 and it is smaller and lighter to carry. The huge benefit of the f/2.8 lens is that it lets in so much light you will never have to worry about not having enough ever again! Imagine that your perfect shot will never come out blurry due to low light. Just one perfect shot due to the f/2.8 can earn you more than the lens costs, and that shot lost due to the f/4 giving you a blurry photo can cost you a lot more than that.
- Image-Stabilization or Vibration-Reduction is another great advancement in lens technology. These two terms mean basically the same thing; clearer images at lower shutter speeds, and who doesn’t want that? Just expect to pay about $500 extra for it.
- Will a 70-200mm lens help you in the field? Will it allow you to capture shots you’ve been missing? Will it make it easier to spend time shooting instead of changing out lenses all the time as conditions or situations change? In short will the $1500 – $2500 price of the lens bring you at least that much or more in return?
If you do get a 70-200mm lens in any configuration I’m certain you will enjoy it and will get good use from it for many years to come. Remember that upgrading your lenses is more important than your camera body. You will keep the lenses no matter what camera you have, and a quality lens makes all the difference to your picture quality.
