you can tell your wife knows what she is doing in that pic

Originally Posted by 1minute
RickyBobby:

Over the years Cookie has purchased some used cameras. I think B&H has been a good source with their bodies showing little if any sign of use. Their condition calls are spot on, and used gear often comes with a warranty. We have been lucky, however, and not needed any warranty work to date. There are a couple other good used sources out there, but they're not coming to mind at the moment. I don't know if the Camera World boys here do used gear or not. One might quiz them a bit.

One word of warning as to online sales - if one sees a really super deal on possibly even new gear, DO BE AWARE! Many companies will purchase gear manufactured for 3rd world countries that do sell at serious discounts. Even Amazon does this, so check all of their fine print. Those products, however, will rarely come with a factory warranty that's valid in the US. Also, some will break the box apart and sell things like a body cheaply and then hit one hard for lenses, batteries, chargers, cables, and software. Always check on exactly what comes in the box.

About 1/3rd of wildlife efforts involves patience, If one has plenty of that they can do well without magnum gear.

One might consider some of the crop frame bodies as they offer a bit of a multiplier affect on ones lens selection. For instance I think Cookie's Canon 70D is a crop frame with about a 1.6 multiplier effect, I.e. with a 100 mm lens installed, the image is the equivalent of one captured with a 160 mm unit. With a 500 mm on board, it's essentially an 800 mm. The 100-400 becomes a 160 to 640. These are great for wildlife that are subject specific. Not good though if one needs a serious wide angle shot. Those into landscapes will typically purchase a full frame body for big all encompassing pictures.

Cookie's passion is big game and at times she complains of too much lens when she can only back down to 100 mm. Here's a link to some of her efforts in the past couple weeks. She's committed to Canon gear and loves good spirited banter with her Nikon buddies. Their claim is "if one ever goes black, he'll never go back."
Cookie's recent deer shots

Nikon and Canon are the major players. Ones brand decision mostly involves a marriage to one or the other and a commitment to lenses. That is mostly where the cash goes and that other 2/3rds of success probably involves glass. Something in the 100-300 or 100-400 range offers a lot of flexibility at not an extreme cost to a starter. If one gets serious, then prime lenses in the 500-600mm range, but that's getting into the cosigner realm where few hobbyists tend to venture.

One can pick up some rather inexpensive but big off brand lenses (Sigma/Tamaron). Serious folks tend to avoid those though, as they are typically limiting in the early/late low light periods.

It's certainly been a great hobby for Cookie, and a reason for her to spend 3 to 4 months in the field every year. She probably burns more fuel now with her photography efforts than I do with my hunting/fishing trips.

Have a good one, best of luck, and do keep us up on your doings.

[Linked Image from i.postimg.cc]
One hint for now: It's all about the eye. Focus on the eye, and one often scores a good one.