kidsdream 0 Posted April 20, 2011 Going to Cocos in June and am looking for recommendations for a Big animal blue water lens to work with my Subal/ Nikon D200. I most likely will be upgrading to a D300 or D7000 soon, so I want to stay with a compatible lens, I have a Nikon 12-24 that I used in the Galapagos etc., but I this lens is quite long enough and is a better lens on land than in the water (IMHO). I have some fish-eye lenses that a great for wrecks but are not appropriate. Any suggestions among the Sigma or Nikon offerings would be sincerely appreciated. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
kramer92911 2 Posted April 20, 2011 I don't have either lens but lots of guys like the sigma 17-70 or the nikon 17-55 might be an option. Jamie Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
DrFiscus 2 Posted April 20, 2011 I don't have either lens but lots of guys like the sigma 17-70 or the nikon 17-55 might be an option. Jamie Everybody loves the Tokina 10 -17 for big animals - as long as you can get close. Check out some of my sperm whale and whale shark photos on my website - they were all taken with the Tokina. You can't get much bigger than sperm whales and whale sharks and 3000 foot deep water off Dominica is pretty blue. http://oceandoctorshots.com/blog/?page_id=5 or www.oceandoctorshots.com and go to galleries 8 and 17 for the sperm whales and gallery 13 for the whale sharks. I have the Sigma 17 - 70 and it is a good general purpose lens but really doesn't get wide enough for big animals if you are relatively close. Andy Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
kidsdream 0 Posted April 20, 2011 I "think" I am looking for a "mid" distance lens to capture schooling sharks and groups of rays. I have a 16mm prime Nikkor that I love, but you need to get close to get great shots. And my 12-24 (with a diopter) and my 18-70 Nikon (stock) lens just are not sharp for animals that are 30-80' away. Everybody loves the Tokina 10 -17 for big animals - as long as you can get close. Check out some of my sperm whale and whale shark photos on my website - they were all taken with the Tokina. You can't get much bigger than sperm whales and whale sharks and 3000 foot deep water off Dominica is pretty blue. http://oceandoctorshots.com/blog/?page_id=5 or www.oceandoctorshots.com and go to galleries 8 and 17 for the sperm whales and gallery 13 for the whale sharks. I have the Sigma 17 - 70 and it is a good general purpose lens but really doesn't get wide enough for big animals if you are relatively close. Andy Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
NWDiver 43 Posted April 21, 2011 Been to Cocos twice. Used the 17-35mm on the first trip and the 17-55m on the second. Both trips this was the lens I shot 70% of the time. Think the Sigma 17-70mm would work, it can be a little dark down there so a 2.8 is nice to have. Your 12-24mm will probably work for the "big school" shots. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Deep6 7 Posted April 21, 2011 I "think" I am looking for a "mid" distance lens to capture schooling sharks and groups of rays. I have a 16mm prime Nikkor that I love, but you need to get close to get great shots. And my 12-24 (with a diopter) and my 18-70 Nikon (stock) lens just are not sharp for animals that are 30-80' away. Yo Jeff, If the Nikkor 12-24 is not sharp, it could be your diopter and or dome combination. The bad news for any lens is nothing will be sharp at 30 feet; water will difuse the image. Bob Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
sgietler 1 Posted May 5, 2011 I agree with Bob, it is probably a function of either the distance away the animal is, or the diopter/dome combination, not the lens. FYI the Nikon 10-24mm is a good all-around big animal lens. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
jcclink 8 Posted May 5, 2011 (edited) Lens choice depends in part on if you're using a rebreather or how long you can hold your breath. Bubbles tend to spook the sharks. So 12-24, 17-35, etc may be a better choice than 10-17. I use the 12-24 with the Nexus 170 dome (approx 6.75 in dia) & +4 diopter to sharpen edges. Works well. Edited May 5, 2011 by jcclink Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
gina 9 Posted May 5, 2011 Been to Cocos twice. Used the 17-35mm on the first trip and the 17-55m on the second. Both trips this was the lens I shot 70% of the time. Think the Sigma 17-70mm would work, it can be a little dark down there so a 2.8 is nice to have. Your 12-24mm will probably work for the "big school" shots. I've been to Cocos twice as well, the most recent trip being in March of this year. I used my (Canon) 16-35 lens exclusively (on a full-frame camera) on both trips, but I really would have liked a little more zoom. As NWDiver mentioned, it gets dark at depth so a large aperture is key. There's also a lot of particulate matter in the water so I found myself avoiding the use of strobes in many cases. If you're lucky enough to have some good schooling action you'll want to use the wider end of your zoom to capture that, but the big animals aren't *that* close so a lens that goes to about 50-55mm (or equivalent on a cropped sensor) would be your best bet. Have a wonderful trip! -Gina Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
