My "basic" bird photography kit.

Lenses and Cameras My primary birding rig is a Canon 500mm f 4L IS lens mated to a Canon EOS 1D MkII dSLR. When I am out chasing the smaller bird species I use the 500mm lens with a Canon EOS 40D dSLR. I will use different combinations of teleconverters with these cameras and the 500mm lens depending on the amount of image magnification I need for a particular subject. When you are photographing birds you can never have enough focal length!

I cannot speak highly enough of the Canon EF 500mm f 4L IS lens. This is a magnificent lens for bird photography. It is sharp wide open, it is sharp stopped down a couple of f stops, and it is sharp when used with the Canon EF teleconverters. It is portable, more so than the 600mm lens IMO, and can be handheld for photographing birds in flight. If your sole purpose is to photograph the smallest of birds then, possibly, the Canon EF 600mm f 4L IS lens may be a better choice for you. However, as a general "all purpose" birding lens, the Canon EF 500mm f 4L IS lens cannot be beat.

For most of my dragonfly photography and, also, for birds in flight I use a Canon EF 300mm f 4L IS lens.

The Canon EOS 1D MkII dSLR (since replaced with a 1D MkIIn version and the recently introduced 1D MkIII) is the choice of sports photographers. Its high frame rate, large image cache, and 45 autofocus points make it the fastest handling dSLR on the market. These are the same qualities that make this dSLR a superior bird photography camera. Add to the advantages the weather sealing found on Canon professional series bodies and you have a great camera for general purpose nature photography, too.

My secondary birding camera is a Canon EOS 40D dSLR. This camera is one of the "prosumer" Canon EOS bodies and acts as a backup to the 1D MkII. Because of the smaller crop factor of the imaging sensor, which will be discussed below, I use this camera on the 500mm lens when photographing the very smallest of birds. Because of its light weight, this camera, too, is my primary dragonfly photography camera. I still retain a Canon EOS 20D dSLR as a back-up to the other cameras and for times when I have to "stack" 1.4x teleconverters.

So far I have not discussed crop factors. Digital sensors, being smaller in physical size than 35mm frames of film, yield a different image magnification at the film plane when used with the same focal length lens as would be used on a 35mm camera. The 20D has a crop factor of 1.6 and the 1D MkII has a crop factor of 1.3. You can find the effect the crop factor has on a given lens by multiplying the crop factor of the sensor times the focal length of the lens. For example, a 500mm lens mounted on the 40D has an equivalent 35mm camera focal length of 800mm (1.6 x 500 = 800). The same 500mm lens mounted on the 1D MkII yields a 35mm equivalent focal length of 650mm (1.3 x 500 = 650). The chart, below, lists the 35mm equivalent focal lengths for the 500mm lens plus teleconverters as used on the 20D and 1D MkII camera bodies:

I also perform a considerable amount of dragonfly photography. I use an older 300mm f 4L IS lens on a Canon EOS 40D dSLR for dragonfly photography. Although the older non-IS version of this lens is a tad sharper and yields a bit more contrast, I have had to sell the 300mm f 4L non-IS and have replaced it with the 300mm f 4L IS lens. I no longer am able to handhold telephoto lenses without IS due to constant tremors as the result of diabetes. I will place a 25mm extension tube on the 300mm lens and then place a 1.4x teleconverter between the extension tube and camera body when photographing dragonflies. The extension tube allows me to focus much closer than the minimum focusing distance of the lens alone and the 1.4x teleconverter increases image magnification an additional 50%. This is a killer combination for dragonfly photography!

Of course, I own more equipment than just the cameras and lenses listed above. Here is a brief list of the additional equipment I use with some of my observations about the equipment:

Teleconverters There are quite a number of third party teleconverters available for purchase. Not all manufacturer's teleconverters will allow full functionality with all lenses. I wholeheartedly recommend that you purchase the teleconverters that are offered by your lens manufacturer. These teleconverters are designed for maximum coverage and maximum optical quality when used with the manufacturer's own lenses. Mixing and matching different brands of teleconverters with different brands of lenses may save you a little money but seldom are the resulting images acceptable.

Since I use Canon lenses I have both the Canon EF 1.4x II teleconverter and the Canon EF 2x II teleconverter. These are probably my hardest used accessories. I almost always have one or the other of the teleconverters attached to the 500mm lens. These teleconverters are of such high optical quality that I will sometimes attach both teleconverters to the 500mm lens to be able to make that once-in-a-lifetime image I would not have gotten by any other means. I, also, own the Kenko 1.4x Teleplus Pro 300 DG teleconverter. I will "stack" this teleconverter with the Canon 1.4x II teleconverter on the 500mm lens when I am photographing small birds. When used in conjunction with the 20D dSLR I can maintain autofocus in good light.

Lenses You can't do all types of photography with just a single lens. I firmly believe many photographers have more lenses than they could possibly use. Ihave stripped my lens needs down to just the bare minimum I need to produce my photographs:

Canon EF 17-40mm f 4L zoom lens This is my "catch all" lens when I am not photographing birds and dragonflies. Attached to the 20D, this combo becomes my "intimate people" kit. Attached to the 1D MkII, this combo becomes my landscape kit. Much has been written about the inferior optical qualities of this lens. Perhaps it is a bit soft in the extreme corners of a full-frame dSLR (such as the Canon EOS 5D) when the aperture is set wide open, however, used on a camera with a 1.6 or 1.3 crop factor, the images are excellent. I have 24" x 36" inkjet prints from images made with the 17-40mm lens and the prints look fine.

Contax/Zeiss Vario-Sonnar 35mm-70mm f 3.4 T* zoom lens This is my only non-Canon lens. With a proper adapter, this lens fills the gap between the 17-40mm f 4L lens and the 70-200mm f 4L lens. I have to use this lens in manual mode but the images from this lens are stellar and worth the extra hassle of all manual camera controls. If you don't mind shooting in manual mode, many of the Carl Zeiss lenses made to fit Contax and Yashica 35mm film cameras will perform well with a proper Canon/Zeiss adapter.

Canon EF 70-200mm f 4L zoom lens This is as close to an "all purpose" lens that I own. It serves as my candid people lens, as a long landscape lens, and it serves as my close-up lens. I very seldom shoot true macro subjects any more. I do, however, like to photograph the cactus blossoms in the spring. Combined with various lengths of extension tubes, the 70-200mm lens delivers some terrific close-ups.

Canon EF 100mm f 2.8 macro lens I do love to photograph cactus flowers in the spring! I spent the previous 15 years, or so, photographing mostly close-up and macro subjects. The Canon EF 100mm macro lens combined with teleconverters, diopter lenses, and extension tubes makes for a high quality and versatile macrophotography system.

Tripods I own two carbon composite tripods. My lightweight tripod is a Velbon El Carmagne 630A carbon composite tripod. I use this tripod primarily with the 300mm f 4 lens for dragonflies. I also use it for the occasional landscape image I may shoot. It is of excellent build quality, very stable, and very light. The tripod is a bit short for people over 5' 6" tall but it has a center column that can be raised a few inches for a more comfortable height. Contrary to popular belief, raising a tripod's center column a few inches will not adversely effect tripod stability. You just can't go overboard with how much you raise the center column. Raising the center column a whole foot, or more, will degrade the stability of the tripod.

My second tripod is a Gitzo G-1325 carbon composite tripod. This is the tripod I use with the 500mm lens. Gitzos are known for extra stiffness and the carbon composite legs dampen vibrations much more quickly than do aluminum legs. In my opinion, if you have to cut expenses somewhere, cut expenses on the camera body so that you can afford a good carbon composite tripod.

I cannot emphasize strongly enough how much the consistent use of a quality tripod will improve the images you make. Before I owned any of the Canon "supertelephoto" lenses with IS (Image Stabilization) I was a vey reluctant tripod user. Since I use a tripod for 99.99999% of the images I make with the 500mm lens I now feel naked when I do not shoot with other lenses attached to a tripod. At the very least I will use a monopod if a tripod is truly unwarranted. Anything you can do to provide stability to the camera/lens will significantly improve your image quality and using a tripod is the best method to increase camera/lens stability.

Tripod Heads I have recently purchased the Jobu Black Widow Heavy Duty gimbal head to support my 500mm lens and camera. Previously I used a Wimberley Sidekick gimbal head in combination with various heavy duty ball heads.The Sidekick worked very well to support the camera and lens, alone, but I was unable to ever properly balance the 500mm lens and camera when I had my flash attached to the lens mount via a Wimberley flash bracket. The Jobu Black Widow Heavy Duty head supports the 500mm lens, camera, and flash with ease and allows for proper balance of the whole rig. In fact, I like the Jobu gimbal heads so much I bought a BWG-J2 Jobu Jr. gimbal head for use with my 300mm f 4L IS lens for chasing dragonflies.

The second tripod head I own is the Really Right Stuff BH-40 ball head. I use this ball head to support all of my other camera and lenses. For up to medium duty use, the Really Right Stuff BH-40 ball head is by far the very best ball head in its class.

Tripod Head Quick Release Systems The only secure quick release systems, in my opinion, are Arca-Swiss style assemblies made by Kirk Enterprises, Really Right Stuff, or Wimberley. Lens plates and camera plates from each manufacturer will work in each manufacturer's quick release assemblies. Choose no others!

Extension Tubes An extension tube simply allows a lens to focus closer than its minimum focusing distance by increasing the distance from the back of the lens to the film/sensor plane. I use extension tubes quite often when photographing dragonflies with the 300mm lens and occasionally with the 500mm lens for really close birds.

I once was a great fan of Kenko extension tubes. Sadly, I no longer care for them. The Kenko extension tube bodies are made of a graphite composite material that I feel is too weak and brittle. I had dropped one of my Kenko extensions tubes on some rocks one day and I did not notice a hairline crack that formed on the extension tube body. When I connected the extension tube between a lens and the camera body, the hairline crack gave way, broke, and I nearly dropped the camera body on the rocks below. This would have been absolutely disastrous. I have since replaced the Kenko extension tubes with Canon EF extension tubes made of aluminum. When dropped, the aluminum may dent but it will not break.

Electronic Flash I use an electronic flash quite a bit in bird photography as fill flash when natural lighting becomes extreme. I use a Canon 550ex electronic flash coupled with a "Better Beamer" flash extender in "high speed" synch mode for fill flash. Rarely do I ever use flash only as the primary light source for bird photography.

In reviewing my equipment choices, perhaps you have noticed that I tend towards high quality, lightweight equipment. I will gladly trade off those extra f stop, f 2.8, lenses and their heavy weights for more portable, lightweight lenses. After all, I have to carry this equipment! In almost all cases, f 4 Canon L-series lenses perform equally as well as their f 2.8 counterparts for nature photography. The only exception I would admit to is the Canon EF 300mm f 2.8L IS lens. This lens is in a class by itself.

Whatever personal photography kit you choose for yourself, you must choose your equipment to fit your needs. My personal kit fits my needs. Perhaps this review of my equipment list, and the uses to which I put this equipment, will help you in deciding what is best for you.

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