Gear ?

Quite possibly the biggest question of all…

I’m often asked on the camera gear that I use or what I would recommend to people either starting out or looking to upgrade.

Although I have to much to show everything, here is a mini guide with the main camera gear that I’m currently using.

Sony A7R V

This is my main camera for photographing wildlife, it has incredible animal & bird eye tracking and the massive 61mp sensor gives phenomenal fine details in animals fur and birds feathers, along with offering an incredible amount of cropping ability in post for those shots that are a little too far away. It also has a full tilt and swivel back screen that is perfect for being able to see what you’re shooting no matter what height or angle you are at. Although it may not be anywhere close to giving you the fastest frames per second or the latest pre-capture for fast paced wildlife action, this camera is a fantastic choice.

Sony FE 400mm f2.8 GM

The perfect wildlife lens? Quite possibly… Some might say it’s not long enough for wildlife and a 600mm f4 would be better, although I find that having the ability to stop down to f2.8 on those dark and gloomy mornings can really make a lot of difference. Also the bokeh that the f2.8 aperture produces on this lens is just phenomenal, it’s also lightning fast at acquiring subjects and is razor sharp. The only real downside I have though, is it’s a little heavy if you’re carrying it around and using it hand held all day. So I’d definitely recommend bringing along a tripod.

Sony FE 200-600mm f5.6-6.3 G

This is probably the best all round lens you can buy if you want to photograph wildlife… (without spending mega bucks on a prime lens, that is). I have taken thousands and thousands of images with it over the years and it’s still the lens you’ll regularly see me out with. The image quality it produces is fantastic and by having that 200-600mm zoom range makes it perfect for photographing even those small birds when you can’t get too close. I really cannot recommend this lens enough, just buy it!

Sony FE 100-400mm f4.5-5.6 GM

This is my everyday walk around lens when visiting new places and my go to lens for Zoo photography. The 100-400mm range is perfect for almost all of the enclosures giving you the flexibility of being able to zoom all the way out for the closer smaller subjects. This G Master lens produces excellent sharp/detailed images.

Sony FE 70-200mm f2.8 GM II

This is another great everyday walk around lens and I regularly use this lens for photographing fish at aquariums along with reptiles that are behind those glass enclosures at the Zoo. Being able to zoom out to 70mm and still keep that f2.8 aperture is key to getting great images of these.

Sony 1.4x and 2x Teleconverters

I’ve found these to be a bit of a game changer when it comes to wildlife photography. Giving you that extra bit of reach when needed, turning the 400mm f2.8 into a 560mm f4 with the 1.4x teleconverter and an 800mm f5.6 with the 2x teleconverter. All while still delivering sharp images and keeping quick autofocus. Although if you are using the Sony FE 200-600mm f5.6-6.3, then I have found this lens seems to work best only with the 1.4x teleconverter.

Sony TOUGH Memory Cards

When it comes to memory cards, it’s worth doing some research into which ones perform best with your camera. I use both of these Tough G Series cards, whether it’s the standard V90 UHS-II SD cards with a 299Mb/s write speed or the ultra fast CFexpress Type A cards with a 700Mb/s write speed. I’ve found both types to be really reliable and work fantastically with writing the large RAW file images that the Sony A7R V produces.

Gitzo Systematic Tripod

I use the Gizto Series 3 Systematic Tripod GT3543LS combined with Gitzo’s Fluid Gimbal, a combo I cannot recommend enough. The tripod is full carbon fibre and has no center column, which means it will lay almost perfectly flat on the ground for those super low down eye level shots which is perfect for wildlife. While the Fluid Gimbal provides ultra smooth movement for easily tracking moving subjects.

Gitzo Monopod

This is the Gitzo GM2542 carbon fibre monopod. It’s perfect for when you don’t want to carry a tripod around all day but still want some steady support. Fully closed this monopod is 54 cm which makes it easy to fit into your camera bag and will extend all the way up to 164 cm. Surprisingly I actually favour carrying this over my Tripod as it’s much quicker to setup than a tripod if you are moving around a lot. I also attach the Wimberly MonoGimbal Head MH-100 which gives you great flexibility when tracking subjects.

LensCoat Ground Pod

Don’t let this plastic “saucepan style” dish fool you…. simply put this on the ground attach your gimbal or ball head and you’ll be ready for those ultra low ground eye level shots. I use this for photographing birds over the lake to keep your camera level with the water which gives you those incredibly blurry looking backgrounds. You can buy these from LensCoat’s website (shipped from USA) and there’s several different colours to choose from.

F-stop TILOPA 50L DuraDiamond

I have quite the collection of camera backpacks, in all different sizes for any occasion, however this bag has become my new go to for wildlife. The bag is waterproof and has more than enough pockets and storage space for all your gear and if you also add the optional Pro XL ICU it fits the 400mm f2.8 perfectly, with more than enough space for another lens and some accessories too.