In this video, I revealed a question I ask myself when deciding on a new camera and it always worked for me. I also share a new photography technique which allowed numerous of my students getting photos that won international awards and made print sales. I also talk about my go to camera and lens. Enjoy.
1:21 The one question to decide if mirrorless is for you
2:44 A new and powerful photography technique called EARL that helped a lot of people win awards
3:33 Alaska bear encounter and photo technique
5:57 Tanzania lion encounter and photo technique
6:45 Why mirrorless is a game changer
7:18 But switching to mirrorless is so expensive
7:48 Why not switch to mirrorless 3 years ago
8:30 A summary of the four step technique
9:20 which camera, pros and cons
10:13 My favorite combo
Also make sure to check out this video about my camera choice:
JOIN MY COURSE ► https://tinmanclass.com/swp2yt1
What’s Next
Join my free email newsletter where I share photography techniques:
https://tinmanclass.com/supersharp1
🏆 My Goal 🏆
My goal is to share strategies on how I take photos that move people even if the condition is challenging “low light, fast action, tough sighting).
I remember not knowing where to start and wishing that there was someone to help me. Now I want to help YOU, whoever you are out there reading this, taking great bird and wildlife photos can make you happy and hopefully change your life for the better. 🚀
Hi, I am Tin Man Lee, a wildlife photography based in the US. In the last few years I have mentored hundreds of students to take photos that evoke emotion even if they are busy and only have very limited time to travel. My students have won over 300 prestigious national and international awards, published in prestigious books and magazines such as National Geographic and Remembering Wildlife series to help conservation.
If you want to work with me on-location or online, my mentorship is on invitation only, please fill out the application form to be notified for the next cohort opening.
https://tinmanlee.com/mentorship
Here are my suggested gear:
https://linktr.ee/tinman
I sell limited edition prints, please check out my photos in my Instagram and email me tinman@tinmanlee.com for inquiries
https://instagram.com/tinmanlee
Check out these Youtube videos:
How an encounter with 7 male lions in Serengeti changed me forever
9 Proven Techniques for Taking Incredibly Sharp Photos
Nikon Z9 1-year review: The ultimate mirrorless camera?
6 Deadly Sins To Avoid In Bird and Wildlife Photography
How To Take Great Wildlife and Bird Photos Even If You Don’t Have A Lot Of Time To Travel
How to choose the best laptop for travel photography?
Don’t buy the New Nikon Z 600 f/4: $15,000 mistake?
Bear Cub in DANGER: Alaska Vlog with Canon R5 and Sony A1
7 mistakes as a photographer: I almost lost my life
5 Days on a Remote Island: Puffin Photography
7 Biggest Mistakes For Beginning Photographer
Lion King Moment In Real Life? A Special Photography Encounter
The Most Powerful Animal On Land And Why They Are Disappearing
The Key to Successful Wildlife Photography!
Best Backpack for Photographers: ThinkTank Mindshift 36L Review
Photo contest judge critiques 11 photos
How To Travel For Photographers: 4 Things That Can Ruin Your Trip
$990 Lens vs $12999 Lens: bird and wildlife photography
I QUIT MY 6-FIGURE JOB FOR 60 DAYS IN YELLOWSTONE: Extreme photography with Canon R5
WHY I WAS SO WRONG ABOUT MIRRORLESS. CANON R5 VS SONY A1. 6 MONTH REVIEW.
4K Yellowstone National Park Wildlife with Canon R5: Wolf, Owl, Bison, Fox, Bighorn Sheep, Coyote
Canon R3: Should I wait? Only 24MP? Eye control eye focus? Vs R5 and Sony A1
Why I bought a Canon R5 and RF 100-500 for wildlife photography… Unboxing
22 Comments
Some very good pieces of advice Tin Man. I have not yet changed over to mirrorless yet. But I would like to. I am a Canon shooter and am thinking about purchasing the Canon R7 as I photograph birds.
Can you explain in a video why the Canon R5 was replaced by your Nikon Z9?
I'm curious about your experience with the Z8.
Tin Man, beautiful pictures.I use the R5 as my primary wildlife camera and my R6 as a backup. My Canon R6 also has fantastic for eye tracking.
Tin Man, first many thanks for your nice pictures and for pretty useful teaching. I have a question about the stile of many your photos. I do follow Tim Flach for a long. And I came to observation that many his photos (dogs, birds) are looks similar to yours (as puffins from your examples, in terms of background). Tim works in studio, your photo from nature, but result is close. Is not? Can you comment, please?
I ordered a Z8 and am using a Z6ii now. The reason I am upgrading is the AF on the Z6ii is not very good at tracking moving subjects.
THANK YOU!!
Thanks Tin Man, enjoy your Nikon! 👏😀👍
I really like your videos. But…are you sure that you are not suffering from GAS? I am asking because I do 🙂
Canon live view on DSLR was pretty good. But nothing like Mirrorless
Thanks for sharing your techniques on getting great backgrounds. I alway wanted to know why your backgrounds were so Dreamy.
Getting my second camera from nikon d3300 to canon eos R
100% agree re mirrorless. Great content with tons of good tips and suggestions.
I have the Z9 and Z7II. I got the 400 2.8 tc a month ago and preordered the z8 the day it was announced then booked a trip to Homer Alaska in July! I can’t wait to watch the bears!
Nailed it. Couldn't agree more. My list of benefits are
-As you mentioned and is "gane changer" is The lcd for low angles (I too have got images I've wanted for years and just couldn't pull it off until the capabilities of the Z9)
– Silent shutter. My preferred style of photographing is being alone, hiding out and blended into the habitat. I love that my camera can now do that as well without a sound.
– Blackout free EVF
– Focus peaking in EVF. I use MF override quite a bit.
And after using the Z6, Z6ii and Z7ii, Having no rolling shutter in the Z9 was basically everything, for what/how I mostly photograph.
You nailed it 🔨! This is exactly the biggest difference between my D850 and Z9, shooting at very low angle while using the flip out screen. Before I had to lay in the mud all the time. Especially with waterfowl things were very complicated when confronted with steep banks descending to the water surface. Now my current combo is Z9 and 500Fl ED on the FTZ adapter (+- TCs)…very happy with what Ive got 😊😊😊
Great video, I just purchased the Canon R5 and the 100-500 lens and have been taking photos I’ve never been able to take before, with the flip lcd screen I can now take low level shots just above the water line, since I have a terrible back condition this has helped me tremendously. PS: love your photography 👍
for me canon build quality went down from 1dx bodys the r5 is very light but to much plastic nikon and sony are much better for build quality and canon knows this thats why when the release the r1 it will be like the old 1dx cameras made to last forever i use sony a7r v for pixel shift shooting only z9 for all types of photography and just sold my r5 but kept the 100 500mm until they release the r1
We need to work on what "a long long time" means. It should be more than 3 years…
I am using the camera I always dreamed about which is the D850 😄 but I do encounter those low angle and AF problems. Sadly there is times where I wish I had a mirrorless.. 😅
Nonetheless batterylife and sturdyness are always great to have.. there is no perfect camera!
QUESTION… do you assign a back button like on DSLR for back button focus to use it for the eye focus or only use the shutter button as you've described.
QUESTION: I currently use Canon 70D and have a variety of lenses because I also enjoy landscape and some nature photography, but have a desire to improve wildlife shooting. If I spend the $$$ on the Canon R5 can I start with some of my lenses with an adapter before I jump into buying new lenses?
I'm going to upgrade to the Z8 in due course. Sadly, not yet – just blew the funds on a desperate attempt to save my dog's life – and unfortunately the vet hospital was unable to save her