Looking for a camera setup advice for shore/song birds.

[beano]

I always thought the Z50ii with the z 400 f4.5 would make a great combination for small bird photography. The combo would provide a 600mm field of view in a small/lightweight package. Reminds me of the D500/300mm f4 pf package with a 1.4 teleconverter.

I have the 400 4.5 here as well, and yes, it is a very good, lightweight setup. Haven’t done much shooting with the z50ii /400 4.5 though, at most an hour or two of walking around.

I do find the 100-400 and 180-600 more practical, from the perspective of versatility. For smaller birds, the 180-600 gives me 900mm on the long end, and I am happy enough with sharpness and good contrast, even wide-open. The 400 4.5 is a fraction sharper, as well as better contrast, vs the 180-600, but with the variety of Birds in my neighbourhood, a bit limiting.

 

[Roy]

Looking for suggestions on a wildlife setup, I shoot mostly shore birds and song birds given I live in Rhode Island. I have rented a Sony A6700/A7IV with the Sony 200-600, Nikon z8 with the 180-600mm lens, and the canon R6mii with the 200-800mm. I hated the Sony autofocus, I had such a hard time with it. Up close the AF was amazing but anything medium to far away and it was constantly searching, so Sony would be out of the picture for me. I am currently looking at these setups:

Budget: $3000 USD

Debating this setups, I am open to any substitutions.

Nikon: Nikon z50ii with 180-600mm

Canon: R7 with RF100-400, R8 , R6mii with possibly the canon 200-800 (If I go FF), not impressed with the canon 100-500 price and reach. Also not a fan of their lack of 3rd party lens support.


Out of all the setups I rented I feel the z8 was the best overall, canon r6mii had the best AF, but their lackluster lens lineup concerns me. Their lenses also tend to be extremely expensive. If it was in my budget I would go with the z8 180-600 hands down, but clearly it's not lol.


Any help would be much appreciated!

Cameras get outdated but glass is forever ...

 

[David Berry]

Cameras get outdated but glass is forever.

Be careful when saving money by purchasing wildlife lenses – in good condition, of course – that are from the pre-mirrorless era.

‘Old glass’ might be still usable, but DSLR lenses are hardly the ‘forever’ choice for the mirrorless cameras referred to in this thread (Nikon Z , Sony Alpha and Canon RF).

It’s quite likely that a mid-2020s mirrorless camera’s exciting new features – eye-detect autofocus, for example – won’t be available when using older lenses. The concern that I raise is not whether the old lens will work as flawlessly as ever (I’m sure it will), but whether one’s 2020s camera will continue to operate with the desired features of a 2020s mirrorless camera when an old lens is attached.

Be cautious (check and double-check)… especially, if birds in flight are involved.

 

[Lee R]

I'd go for the Z50ii and 180-600 personally. VR is very good on the 180-600. Also look at the Tamron 150-500 if you want a bit more compact setup.

You could also go with a Z6iii and a Sigma or Tamron 150-600 on the FTZ adapter. I use a Sigma 150-600C on the Z8 I had from DSLR and it optically is so close to the 180-600 I rented this weekend that it stopped me from buying that lens. Everything else about the Nikon is better but end output looked nearly identical out of both save a very very small difference at F6.3. I'm adding the 150-500 Tamron instead for its more compact portability so it goes more places more often as it'll fit in a much smaller bag.

Food for thought as some of those DSLR lenses on FTZ still work really well and optically are not much different (corners are sharper on the Nkon but that made no difference in any of the BIF shots I took).

 

[maranoblet]

A used 400 4.5 and a new Z50ii might squeak in under or around your budget. The lens has great VR so no IBIS isn't really a thing to worry about and it gives you an effective 600mm lens in a super lightweight very good quality setup. If you need more reach than 600mm the 1.4 TC works brilliantly with the 400mm, though it's a bit more cost obviously. Personally I would go for that unless you are desperate for a zoom, in which case there is the 100-400 5.6 giving you a 150-600 effective.

You are then up and running and can decide if you want to begin saving for the improvements a Z8 will bring. The Z50ii looks like a competant enough (if not excellent) camera to start out with if you can live with EVF blackout and SD cards. I would have thought the 180-600 might be a little unbalanced on it due to the weight but I've not tried it.

 

[Ken Miracle]

I am a bird ID photographer and that is my primary use for my Z9's my Z6III is my people camera indoors and out it also works quite well for birds but the z9's better.

Keep in mind the Z6III is FX (full frame) and the Z50II is DX (crop frame) so any given lens will have a longer effective focal length and smaller field of view.

My wife had the Z50 now uses Z7II. I have 2 Z9's and Z6III. Z6III's new viewfinder is the best I have ever had, better than my Z9's and helps AF. I have read about the Z50II but have not used one but it appears to have a more robust processor = faster AF and good subject detection performance and a much better view finder than the Z50.