I traveled to Kenya recently for a short trip during which I had the chance to visit a couple of national parks and see some spectacular wildlife. When I'd previously lived in this beautiful country, I never had a super-telephoto lens to hand that could get me really close for shots of lions, rhinos, and more. I needed to remedy that on this trip.
This would be my chance to bring a lens that I otherwise couldn’t afford, nor make enough use of day to day to justify owning one. I was keen to take just one extra pro lens for the week to go with my Nikon Z6 II mirrorless camera, and for it to be relatively lightweight but capable of producing pin-sharp and high-quality images.
After much consideration of Nikon’s best Z lenses, which includes a decent range of prime and zoom telephoto lenses, I opted for the Nikkor Z 400mm F4/.5 VR S. Would this be the lens that equipped me to get the wildlife photos I dreamed of?
Choices, choices
Also on my lenses shortlist for the trip were the Z 100-400mm f/4.5-5.6 VR S, the Z 180-600mm f/5.6-6.3 VR, and the Z 600mm F/6.3 VR S. So how did I land on the Z 400mm f/4.5 VR S? By elimination.
The 600mm focal length is popular with many wildlife photographers and ideal for birdlife, but I was also aware of the wildlife variety I’d see. For example, would Nikon’s Z 600mm F/6.3 VR S be too tight for a giraffe? Most likely.
The versatility of the 180-600mm was tempting, but it’s larger and heavier than the rest, and it doesn’t don the ‘S’ badge that Nikon’s pro lenses do. TechRadar praised the zoom lens but noted that its optical quality, especially at 400mm and greater, is bettered by the fixed focal length lens. That lens wasn't right either.
I was originally going to opt for the 100-400mm, an excellent lens I personally reviewed for TechRadar. However, I was convinced I’d mostly be using whatever lens I took at its maximum focal length, so why not just go for the 400mm? It was more risky, but the slightly wider maximum aperture and its optical quality versus the zoom lens set to 400mm – plus it being around 15% lighter – swayed it for me over zoom versatility.
Would I regret that choice? Don’t judge me, but as a fail-safe, I also took the Nikkor Z 70-180mm F/2.8 lens without intending to use it – just in case I really, really needed it.
A steep learning curve
Hiring a lens for a specific shoot or a short trip is an excellent way to have top-quality glass in your hand without forking out the full whack to own it. An East African safari is a perfect example of when to do it. Trusted camera gear rental companies include Adorama in the US and Hireacamera in the UK.
The most telephoto Nikon Z lens I own has a maximum 180mm reach. That’s great for environmental wildlife or when you can get physically close to wildlife, but for me, it didn't get the photos I hoped for during my time living in Kenya. The 400mm f/4.5 lens was going to get me close to the action in ways I hadn’t before, and I couldn’t wait.
That comes with a word of warning – take as much time as you can to familiarize yourself with the new gear. I hadn’t used the 400mm lens before, nor did I have much time to play around with it ahead of finding myself gazing out the window of my friend’s 4x4 in Nairobi National Park, and I learned the hard way, quickly.
There were a couple of early moments where it didn’t focus on my subject at all. Unknowingly, the focus limiter switch was set to 6m to infinity rather than its full range, so anything closer than 6m wouldn’t go in focus. It’s a simple thing, but when the gear is new, problem-solving takes longer.
Tweaks were also necessary to get the best performance out of my lens and camera combination, mainly regarding focusing. The Z6 II’s subject detection autofocus for animals is simpler and less effective than its people tracking (the Z8 performs better). Ultimately, I honed my technique over the coming days, especially making use of manual focus refinements when autofocus wasn’t quite hitting the spot.
You’ll use the maximum reach of a lens for most photography on safari
I was limited to the 400mm focal length, and it didn’t matter. At times, the wildlife was practically in touching distance, yet in those moments, I gravitated to my phone for quick videos and snaps or simply enjoyed the moment without a camera.
Only on one occasion did I swap out the 400mm lens for the 70-180mm – for a photo of a giraffe that I was otherwise too tight on with the 400mm. It’s not my favorite photograph of the trip, though – far from it (see below).
When I reviewed the 100-400mm lens, I often found myself shooting wildlife and sports at the telephoto end – probably around 90% at 400mm – so here I was getting the best possible quality at that focal length by opting for the fixed focal length option instead. The maximum f/4.5 aperture is slightly better than the 100-400mm’s f/5.6 when set to 400mm, but, honestly, that 2/3EV didn’t matter to me one bit, especially in the bright weather. It wasn't for shallower depth of field either – a full frame 400mm lens at f/4.5 is super shallow, and I often stopped down to f/5.6 to get a little extra depth of field anyway.
And then came the kind of moment that I had hoped for: we spotted a serval wild cat up the track. The elusive creature jumped into the verge and out of sight. We tracked its potential path, and out of pure luck, we crossed paths with it again a mile further into the park.
The 400mm focal length was perfect for this encounter – a 600mm would have been too tight, the 70-180mm not tight enough. I took a single frame as it stared directly down the lens, and before I knew it, the serval had disappeared into the long grass.
Based on my experience using the lens and the photos I have come away with, I’m happy to have stuck with a single focal length and the 400mm option that I chose. Yes, there were times I wanted to be closer, like when we saw lions some distance away (see above). But, overall, this focal length offered the best of both worlds, the composition and depth of field I like for wildlife in various shapes and sizes, with a little scope for cropping afterward. I think I'd choose it again next time, but maybe take a teleconverter with me for the odd occasion I'd like to get even closer. That's another reason to opt for a fixed focal length lens – they perform better with teleconverters than zoom lenses do.
