Wildlife photography is surely one of the most approached genres in India now a days. And with a demanding passion, comes a common question about the gears to be used. Well, most of the experts will say about 150-600mm or 200-500mm or any lenses above 400mm reach. Now the curiosity is, why not something in the range of 70-300 for this genre?
If you are buying a Nikon or Canon DSLR with a dual kit, you are going to have probably a NIKKOR 70-300mm or CANON 55-250mm lens attached. But are they effective enough to give you satisfied image quality? If bought individually, the Nikkor 70-300mm AF-P VR f/4.5-6.3 lens has a price around Rs.12000 and many people keep complaining about the image softness. Thus I would love to share with you all, the advantages of Tamron 70-300mm Di VC USD (A030n).
Image Samples and Discussion :
This lens comes at a price around Rs.20000. Providing a maximum aperture of f4 at the wide side and f5.6 at the tele side, it is already 1-stop above the Nikon 70-300mm. Wildlife Photography has changed a lot in its presentation style. Few years back taking close up shots were trendy and viewers used to love the close up much more. But with time, given that fine arts and conservation messages have their influence on wildlife photography these days, showing the habitat and composing the frame along with the surroundings have become a critical need. If you are using 200-500mm or 150-600mm it becomes an incredibly tough job to show the same. Here 70-300mm gives you the hand to fulfill your target.
Nikon D5300 Tamron 70-300mm Di VC USD (A030n) Focal Length : 300mm Shutter Speed : 1/320s Aperture : 7.1 ISO - 400
Moreover, in tiger safaris, there are many times when the big cats or sloth bears come within 10 feet of your gypsy and with a super telephoto lens, certainly your long-awaiting frames are gone. This multi-purpose focal range of 70-300mm gives you the flexibility to shoot photos and videos without fearing for a tight cropped frame. Tamron 70-300mm (A030n) has just the perfect silent focusing drive that you need in a field trip, along with the fact that the corners in 300mm range are never softened out. I started my photography few years back and I own a 70-300, 150-600mm G2 but trust me when I say I prefer the 70-300mm for its light weighted portability, less focus hunting incidents and as well as I could show the surroundings so much that generates the flavour of wildlife shots.
Nikon D5300 Tamron 70-300mm Di VC USD (A030n) Focal Length : 210mm Shutter Speed : 1/200s Aperture : 6.3 ISO - 800
Overview :
Coming to some macro shots, if you dont have a dedicated macro lens you can blindly go for Tamron 70-300mm Di VC USD as super telephoto lenses will take you incredibly far from the object for proper focusing and bokeh whereas this one will serve just the optimal one. Tamron 70-300mm f/4 - 5.6 has indeed a great build quality with fluorine coating over its front element that resists water and dusts, making them easy to clean. The zoom ring may be a little tighter than usual but that actually resists the accidental zoom ins or zoom outs. The auto focus and sharpness is immensely better than the conventional Nikon 70-300mm f/5 - 6.3 AF-P lens. Thus in terms of macro shots also, you can use this all in one lens as I call it.
The front surface of the lens element is coated with a protective fluorine compound that is water- and oil-repellant. The lens surface is easier to wipe clean and is less vulnerable to the damaging effects of dirt, dust, moisture and fingerprints. This is perhaps one of the most awesome features if you dont have a filter. (Well I too dont have one). The glass element is so much cleaner and dust free just due to this. Instead of conventional hoods that come with tele lenses, this one comes with long flower hood that even enables you for a great portrait capture. Also, this full frame lens weighing at just 765gms, this is super easy to carry even if you are a mountain climber or if you trek steep places. So to sum up, what can I share with you is simple - TAMRON 70-300MM Di VC USD G2 (A030N) is a perfect choice over other 70-300mm lenses or similar focal length lenses in this budget. For Wildlife, even for landscapes at 70mm (if you aim for the high peaks of north Bengal). For portrait, its a super lens too. So to all the amateur wildlife enthusiasts out there, you must not worry about bigger lenses and definitely use this one as your tool for composing master-shots. Look around, shoot the habitat and let your viewers be connected to the world you are seeing through photographs.
P.S : For all photographers out there who think a lot before going for a 3rd Party Lens, it really does not matter that much when you re in the field. Dont let the artist inside you be suppressed due to mythical assumptions. Choose your tool and master it wisely.