Tamron 150-600 and wildlife photography

[Kayaker72]

Hi Jamsus.....I was able to borrow Busted Knuckles Tamron 150-600 for awhile last January. Granted, this is all on the 5DIII and not crop, but it is a sharp lens capable of taking some great pictures....a few of mine that I liked:

small-4786 by kayaker72, on Flickr

small-4729 by kayaker72, on Flickr

small-4687 by kayaker72, on Flickr

Again, all of those were taken on the 5DIII.

Another thing I usually do when evaluating a lens is scroll through the Flickr Groups for that lens. For example....and this was taken with the 70D....

Red Kite in Flight by Unintended_Keith, on Flickr

In short, I am coming around to the opinion that the new 100-400 II plus 1.4 TC and the various 150-600 lens are all good options. So it gets down to evaluating various features and cost against what you want/can afford. Bryan does a nice comparison of the options at the end of the 150-600C review.

[jamsus]

Thank you again Kayaker.

Now i will make my decision between those, but before i have to decide between long telezoom & macro lens

[Anthony M]

I recently sent my Tamron off to get the VC firmware update as mentioned in the Tamron service advisory performed. $50 USD shipping for the pleasure of a free fix. They performed the needed update as well as a cleaning and "adjusting focus issues" (their words) and shipped it back to me last Thursday. Right after that they posted yet another Service Bulletin that the firmware needs to be updated so it will work with the 5Ds & 5DsR cameras.

Did they put in the most recent firmware on my camera? Or do I get to send it back yet again when I purchase the 5Ds?

This is one of the best reasons I can think of to go with the Sigma lenses, even if they were dead equal otherwise (which they seem to be). The value of being able to update the firmware on your desktop is huge. Plus, you're not without the lens for weeks on end. While Tamron's response and turnaround has been exemplary in their customer service department, my issue lies elsewhere with the company.

If I were serious about using this focal length, I'd probably consider the Canon EF 100-400 II and the TC as Kayaker72 mentions - because the results I've seen are excellent. Plus, you've got a much more manageable (and insanely sharp) lens when you don't need 600mm. I think for the added price, the performance and peace of mind will make up for that pretty quickly!

I'm interested to see just how it performs as I didn't mention anything about focus issues. As far as I knew it was fine! The dust they found (front element) was incredibly minor, it took a flashlight to see it! I really only expected them to update the firmware - and am just a little bit anxious about them taking it apart. I'm kind of a "if it ain't broke don't fix it!" type. I'll report back if I see any improvement with the lens above and beyond being able to leave the VC on while in panning mode. Or, if something is worse!

[jamsus]

In this weekend i tried the Tamron 150-600 and the Canon EF 100-400 II with 1.4 Extender... The Tamron was a good performer but, as you just said, the 100-400 has another kind of quality < 600m, and also with the extender, the lens was a very good performer!

[jamsus]

Coff coff, somebody has done it!

100-400 II IS USM incoming... i hope this friday!

[NFLD Stephen]

Enjoy! I got one 6 weeks ago and am having a lot of fun with it.

Stephen

[peety3]

I'm a huge fan of monopods for anything telephoto and beyond. I've done enough event shooting that my arm just can't keep the lens up all day, so I've bought a monopod I can enjoy and use it a lot.

As far as low shooting, several thoughts:
1: I have an "fplate.net" floor plate (now sold through B&H Photo) that I've experimented with using as a ground-level tripod.
2: My new RRS tripod gets fairly low, though probably still 9" off the ground due to the handle on the leveling base. I think they're working on a new knob to allow the leveling base to sit lower.
3: RRS has a "ground pod" (aluminum, two-section, designed to be <2" off the deck) you might consider.
4: Wimberley has some flash bracket pieces you could clamp to the lens foot and place it on a towel/beanbag (http://tripodhead.com/products/flash...other-apps.cfm).

[jamsus]

I'm a huge fan of monopods for anything telephoto and beyond. I've done enough event shooting that my arm just can't keep the lens up all day, so I've bought a monopod I can enjoy and use it a lot.

As far as low shooting, several thoughts:
1: I have an "fplate.net" floor plate (now sold through B&H Photo) that I've experimented with using as a ground-level tripod.
2: My new RRS tripod gets fairly low, though probably still 9" off the ground due to the handle on the leveling base. I think they're working on a new knob to allow the leveling base to sit lower.
3: RRS has a "ground pod" (aluminum, two-section, designed to be <2" off the deck) you might consider.
4: Wimberley has some flash bracket pieces you could clamp to the lens foot and place it on a towel/beanbag (http://tripodhead.com/products/flash...other-apps.cfm).

I will probably buy a monopod soon but... for the "ground pod" i got an idea and probably i will build it myself :-p

[jamsus]

I'm very ignorant in merit of big lenses, do you need a particular "Rail" for the tripod head to keep the 100-400 on it?

I got a ball-head which is ok for the weight, but i don't know if the tripod collar (is this the right name in english?) can be attacched on it!

[Joel Eade]

It make work well attaching the camera body to the ball head but you will probably want a lens plate compatible with your ball head. This is small "rail like" piece that attaches to the lens foot which allows the ball head to clamp to it. Also it allows some forward and back adjustment to balance the whole rig.