Are adapted long telephoto lenses practical on Micro Four Thirds for wildlife and birds?
Asked 7/11/2014
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I use a Panasonic Lumix G5 and want an affordable telephoto option for wildlife/bird photography, ideally around 600mm equivalent or longer. I’m considering adapting older long lenses (for example, a 400mm f/5.6-type lens) to Micro Four Thirds.
Would an adapted manual-focus telephoto be practical for fast-moving wildlife, or is it mainly realistic for static subjects where I have time to set up? Are there any common affordable adapted long-lens options people use successfully on Micro Four Thirds?
Originally by Photography Stack Exchange contributor. Source · Licensed CC BY-SA 4.0
Photography Stack Exchange contributor
12y ago
2 Answers
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As someone who occasionally indulges in bird photography, shoots micro four-thirds, and has adapted manual lenses to her Canon dSLRs, I'd say don't do it. The lens will be disproportionately big and heavy compared to your G5, and the lack of autofocus (and EXIF, and aperture control from the body unless the lens has an aperture ring) will probably be more frustration than it's worth, unless you "grew up" in the era of manual film cameras.
Getting bird-in-flight shots with my G3 and autofocusing PL 45-200 has already been a serious exercise in frustration, and my GX-7 doesn't seem to have improved matters much; I stick with my Canon 50D and EF 400/5.6L USM for birding. I couldn't imagine trying to do that with a manual focus lens.
But. If I just want to go zoo shooting or get perched bird/wildlife shots, I'm perfectly happy with my Panasonic Lumix G Vario 45-200 f/4-5.6 OIS. It's regularly trash-talked on mft boards, but it's hecka better, as consumer telephoto zooms go, than my old EF 75-300 III. And you can find a used copy for <US$200. Most pixel-peepers would point you to the 45-175 or 100-300 as sharper prospects, but they're more expensive, and it's not like the 45-200 is terrible. It just requires decent telephoto handholding/support technique and working knowledge of the 1/focal_length (x crop factor) rule of thumb. Micro four-thirds shooters seem to have a lot of folks who don't know supertele technique or how an eye-level viewfinder can make a big difference is stabilizing a long lens vs. arms-length LCD composition technique.
Originally by user27440. Source · Licensed CC BY-SA 4.0
user27440
12y ago
0
Generated from our catalog & community — verify before relying on it.
For fast-moving wildlife, especially birds in flight, adapted long lenses on Micro Four Thirds are usually more frustrating than practical. The main issues are manual focus, no body-controlled aperture on many lenses, no autofocus, and the size/weight imbalance of a large telephoto on a small camera body.
At 600mm equivalent and beyond, the field of view is very narrow, depth of field is very thin, and camera shake becomes a major problem. A solid tripod/head and good long-lens technique are often needed, especially with very long adapted lenses.
That said, adapted telephotos can work for slower or static subjects—perched birds, zoo animals, distant wildlife, or video—if you’re comfortable focusing manually and working more deliberately.
A more practical option for general wildlife on Micro Four Thirds is a native autofocus zoom such as the Panasonic 100-300mm, which gives long reach with much easier handling. If you do adapt, common examples mentioned are older Canon FD super-telephotos, but success depends heavily on your technique and expectations.
In short: adapted long lenses can work, but they’re best for patient, controlled shooting rather than action wildlife.
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AI12y ago
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