One of the worst things fledgling photographers can do is be penny wise and pound foolish in their equipment purchasing decisions. I would strongly advise you to always purchase name brand lenses. If you own a Canon digital single lens reflex body, buy Canon lenses. This holds especially true in the case of Nature Photography. The price difference between an off brand lens could be measured far more than dollars in a few years down the road if it costs you potential clients, time and money. There is nothing worse than reviewing older images only to find gaping holes in the quality of the images simply because you opted to save a few dollars on your lens purchase. Remember to opt for the best quality lens you can afford. This especially holds true for long telephoto lenses or long zoom lenses. You are far better of saving your pennies and buying quality in the long run. It’s kind of like the old story of the hare and the turtle. Remember if there is a substantial difference in the price between a brand name lens and the off brand lens, chances are you are not just paying for the name.

One should have an array of lenses in their camera bag that compliments their camera body. Try to avoid buying super long wide angle to telephoto zoom lenses that offers the coverage of three lenses in one. Your image quality can be seriously compromised, for instance a 28mm-70mm lens will offer far superior images than a 28mm-300mm lens. Although it may seem like a good idea you are taking from Peter to pay Paul by using a lens with such a wide zoom range. Be aware fixed focal length lenses traditionally outperform zoom lenses. If we look at a 28mm f 2.8 lens and compare it the 28mm-300mm zoom, the fixed 28mm lens will out perform the zoom at the 28mm focal length hands down. It’s simply a matter of physics and lens design. Keep in mind all lenses are made up of groups of glass or epoxy elements lined up together making the optical formula of that particular lens. As you zoon in and out the groups of elements move inside of the lens barrel giving you the zoom range or optical formula of the lens. Be aware even the material of the lens barrel can affect the quality of your images. How so? A metal barrel will keep all the optical elements in critical alignment as you zoom in or out far better than a plastic or polymer barrel.

Many have argued the advent of computer designed zoom lenses perform nearly as well as fixed lenses. In some cases this can be true however remember to compare apple to apples. A Canon 100mm-400mm zoom may perform as well as the fixed Canon 400mm 5.6 fixed lens. By the same token there is little cost difference between these two lenses. If you live in an area where you can rent lenses, I highly recommend you do so as opposed to making your decision based upon a review of a competitive lens in a photography magazine. Keep in mind photography magazines do not survive through readership dollars they survive on advertising dollars. Long or short focal length, you do get what you pay for when it comes to lenses. Should you always spend top dollar on your lenses? Not necessarily but keep in mind what your objective is. If you just want to capture moments and images for you to enjoy and share with friends and family then maybe not. For those of you have serious aspirations or intentions of using your images in a commercial or competitive venue then the answer may very well be yes.

So you’ve booked your once in a lifetime safari trip to Africa and now your thoughts turn towards photographing all the wildlife you are going to encounter on your adventure.

It would be a great shame to come across your first African pride of lions and not have some decent pictures of the memorable event to show your friends and family back home.

Unfortunately many people who go on safari don’t realize that the camera lens you take with you will be the deciding factor between getting wildlife photos where the subject is an unrecognizable blob in a sea of vegetation compared to a crisp, tightly framed image of that black maned leader of the lion pride.

I’ve been practicing wildlife photography on safari for over twenty years now and I’ve learnt which are the best lenses to arm yourself with when you go into the African bush to capture lasting, quality images you will be proud to display to anyone.

My recommendations here are for the occasional wildlife photographer such as someone going on an African safari and not for professional wildlife photographers as they have different needs when it comes to camera lenses because they take photographs for a living.

To help you choose a lens to take with you on safari, here is a list of the factors you need to take into account before putting your money down…

1. Size Of The Lens

Anything less than a 300mm lens for the big game you will encounter on safari like lion, rhino, elephant etc will be too small. A 400mm lens will allow you to get good pictures of the smaller animals like bushbuck, vervet monkey and the like. If you are aiming for bird photographs then a 600 mm lens will do the trick.

2. Your Budget

It’s very easy to find lenses that cost thousands of dollars but if you are primarily going to be using it for your safari trip and maybe a smattering of wildlife photography after that, you shouldn’t be spending more than a few hundred dollars. It is possible to get a lens of high enough quality for your purpose in that price range.

3. Image Stabilization

It’s not imperative but if you can get a lens with an image stabilizer it’s a huge advantage on a safari because you can handhold the lens without too much fear of blurring in good light which is especially useful if you are not next to a window in the safari vehicle or don’t have enough space to position your beanbag or tripod.

4. Zoom Ability

On safari one lens is better than two because of the nature of your subject. When you come across a leopard you won’t have time to switch lenses on your camera body because they tend not to stick around for too long so one lens with a good zoom is a big advantage to capture the very shy wildlife you will encounter. Another reason not to change lenses is that dust that is prevalent on an African safari can cause the camera mechanisms to clog up.

So keep these four factors in mind before you make your purchase and if you can find a lens that conforms to all the above requirements than you have a winner.