Best Sony Wildlife Photography Cameras, Lenses & MORE!

Professional wildlife photographers Tony & Chelsea Northrup cover all the Sony camera equipment you need for wildlife photography, bird photography, nature photography and safaris with total budgets from about $1,500 all the way to over $25,000!

GEAR LINKS:

0:00 Introduction
1:30 Camera Bodies
1:54 Sony a6100, a6400 & a6700
3:27 Sony a7 IV
4:56 Sony a7R V
5:36 Sony a9 II
6:00 Sony a1
7:06 Using a Teleconverter with an existing lens
7:36 Sony 70-300mm and 70-350mm
7:54 Tamron 150-500mm
8:13 Sony 200-600mm
9:55 Sony 600mm f4
11:27 Gitzo gimbal head tripod
12:21 Summary

[craigoxley]

For me I use the A7RV + 100-400 GM. 400mm is more than enough for me but if I need the 600mm I will put my RV into APSC mode and I still get 26mp so its perfect for my needs especially with travelling

[DanPandrea]

For APS-C users on a budget, it can't get any better than the 70-350mm. It balances well on Sony APS-C cameras, has great reach and awesome image quality.

[johnmorey]

20k for a lens means I just need to get better at getting closer.

[lumixographer]

Great job (as usual), BUT you missed an AWESOME Sony camera that I carried on an 18 day Africa tour of South Africa, Zambia, Botswana, Numibia and Zambia. Through much, brush, dust, in and out of Range Rovers, my faithful RX10IV captured over 5k photos and videos. Phase detect focus with 24-600mm lens worked flawlessly! And, shooting at 600mm/f4 allowed for some beautiful low light shots. And, Sony's anti-mtion blur setting allowed night wildlife shots of a beautiful leopard that no one else in our group could capture. At $1600, the RX10 is a steal for, wildlife and anything else. And, dust and moisture protection kept it going without problems that might experienced by other cameras. At 2 pounds, the RX10IV didn't even cause neck or black strain, not to mention excess baggage cost. 😊👍

[jm]

Fact check. The AF in the A6700 is more advanced than the A7IV. It has that AI chip that the A7IV does not.

[CarlosMoctezuma-rf]

I’m surprised that a lot of Sony users don’t recommended the 100-400 gm. I feel like it’s a really good lens

[thatcrazydutchguy]

I'm kinda wondering why you guys recommend the tamron 150-500 over the sigma 150-600 dg dn?

[ARlELATOM]

Sony 200-600 is such an incredible lens. Great to see it getting some recognition

[Boatfood]

The A7R ii with the Tamron 70-300mm f/4.5-6.3 Di III RXD
Is a great option.
The only bad part of it are the 5fps but you can pick this combo up for around 1k on the used market.

[rlpring]

A used A9 is the way to go! No point paying more for an A9II because the difference is very subtle. 24mp, 20fps, no blackout, silent shooting, top-notch AF and a nice EVF. If you find a nice one between $1, 200 - $1, 500, that’s a great deal!

[Pictkr]

I was surprised not to hear about the 100-400. I am currently deciding what to do. I love the 70-200 with 2x idea.

[Jonathantuba]

What about the Sony 400 F2.8 GM lens? About the fastest super telefocal lens available for wildlife photography. No not as much reach as the 600 GM for small or distant subjects, but equally high definition and the ideal lens for larger subjects, be they mammals or large birds such as eagles. The definition is so good, that I get better results with my A1 than with the 200-600 zoom. Also don’t forget that F2.8 is invaluable at dawn and dusk, giving you maybe another 5-10 minutes shooting as the light dims over the F4.

[kgnash]

I have been using the Wimberley MH-100 Monopod Gimbal on a Benro Supa Dupe monopod when a tripod is not convenient. It is easy to carry either the 400 or the 600 across your shoulders and it is nearly as steady as the tripod.

[ulisesgonzalezzuniga]

Using a Sony a6700 with the 200-600. I'm getting NATGEO shots 😊

[phelanwolf]

For most shooters, shooting wildlife means birds and some land animals but there is also wildlife under the water surface.
There might be some recommendable gear like soft or hard camera cases and lights for under water photography.

[bramwnnkes]

I have the sony a6400 + Sigma 150-600mm sports lens and it's an awesome combination! I didn't go for a fullframe, because of the 1, 5x crop that a crop sensor gives you. I noticed i really need that extra crop.

[PatrickWithCamera]

My 70-350 and 200-600 gathering dust most of the time, I'm using more often tamron 150-500 with a6700, a lot easier to pack it in small bagpack than 200-600, also tamron is much better with macro than 70-350 or 200-600, so when there no birds or bigger animals around it allows me to do some decent macro shots, this way I never come home with empty card :D

[Anonymous-qjwp]

I’m currently on Fuji XT4 and I usually do street photography. But i really love birds and the few experiences that I had with photographing and filming birds makes me want to get a new camera and lens for this purpose. I just got into photography for like a yearish tho, so there’s still so much for me to learn. Currently looking at Canon and Sony but there’s so many choices idk which to choose.

[JohnPepp]

I like the Sony FE 400mm f/2.8 GM Lens as I can slap a 1.4x or 2.0x teleconverter on that lens to get that extra reach if I really need it. I like that has a 2.8 Aperture without the teleconverter for those low light shots. Granted you have to get closer to wildlife, but I like the challenge.

[Ruikesan]

I love the bloopers, please always keep that in! 😂