I haven’t been out shooting wildlife at all over summer. Whether it’s the mass of dense green foliage that offers wildlife so many places to hide, the long days, or simply life taking over, in the last week I’ve started heading out specifically to get to know my local area better—to search for locations that I can start to go back to again and again to discover and document the abundant wildlife here in Perthshire.
Yesterday, I headed out for the second time this week with my Z8 and 180-600mm in tow, tripod packed, and walked onto my local patch of woodland, open fields, and burns. It was a little later than I’d hoped for, after having dropped Sofia off at school, so I didn’t hold out much hope. But as I’ve found in the last few months, waiting for the perfect conditions means I’d drastically reduce the number of outings I take.
In the end, I was blessed with some fantastic encounters, discovered new areas, and found one particular location that I will be returning to with my full wildlife setup to try and capture the best shots that I can.
Gear Notes & Reflections
I took the decision over summer to reduce my kit down to just one system, in large part because of my heavy investment in Nikon Z wildlife lenses. Although I currently own the 400mm f/4.5 and 800mm f/6.3, it is usually the 180-600mm zoom lens that I take on these kinds of trips.
It’s heavier than the 400mm f/4.5, but it’s so flexible that it enables me to react to a wide variety of subjects, which is incredibly helpful when I don’t have one specific location or species in mind. On the Z8, I’ve found that it focuses fast enough even to allow me to capture fast-moving birds in flight, as well as being sharp enough to capture fur and feather textures satisfyingly.
The only areas where I feel the primes do better are in a slight AF speed advantage (marginal), the ability to isolate subjects, and—as I found in my latest outing—when the light levels drop, the aperture does sometimes force me to push the ISO higher than I’d like. No deal breakers, and at the price, it’s a fantastic lens.
I’ll be heading back to these spots to document the incredible wildlife we have right here on our doorstep. I can honestly say that simply searching for and being in the presence of these animals gives me a deep sense of peace and solitude that I’m truly grateful for.
As for the Z8, it continues to impress me and leave me wanting for nothing, whether I’m tracking birds in flight, shooting landscapes or capturing video clips of these beautiful animals. you can see my full review to learn more about it or see how I set it up for wildlife photography,