i need help choosing a digital camera that i can use to get good bear viewing shots while on a day trip to katmai national park. i have looked at the kodak with the stationary zoom lens and at the nikon and rebel with the lens that are purchased separately. i know at times the bears are not close and i want some respectable shots. i have seen many photos of alaskan wildlife that look awesome. i realize purchasing a base and lenses separate are costly but hey i want good photos if that's what it takes. please advise..thanks..

Hi freespirit...good questions. I am going to be bear-viewing summer of 2005 and have been wondering about camera equipment too. I am taking a 35mm SLR camera with two lenses and also a tripod. In addition, I am taking a simple point and shoot with a stationery zoom. I think since it may be a one time event, I want to be prepared for all the distances possible. Also, how do the veteran bear photographers change film out there?

For excellent digital photos you need a camera with the ability to make adjustments- a digital slr with changable lenses. 300mm recommended for Alaska wildlife, but just as important is high resolution. If going film- which can be superior unless you have the above costly equiptment- you need to take a variety and it pays to have 2 camera bodies and again that up to 300mm lens. Read up on composition, correct exposure- understand depth of field, f-stops, shuttle speed etc. Understanding these will set your photos apart from the point and shoot. Correct exposures yield superior photographs, do it right the first time and don't count on "fixing" problems later. Just my take for consistant photos.

Here are a number of camera sites where you can read reviews on cameras and tips on photo taking.
http://www.megapixel.net/html/issueindex.php?lang=en
http://www.steves-digicams.com/default.htm
http://www.steves-digicams.com/2003_...0_samples.html
http://www.dcresource.com/
http://www.imaging-resource.com/
http://www.dpreview.com/

To get excellent wildlife shots, you really need a 600mm lenses. Unfortunately, these are out of the price range of most amateur photographers. As BudgetQueen notes, a 300mm lense will provide decent photos and won't cost a small fortune (probably around $300).

If you are going digital, the Canon Digital Rebel has garnered excellent reviews from most everyone and can be purchased for $900-1000 (300mm lense is extra).

I'd also agree that a 300 is too short. I'd seriously think about renting some equipment as a decently fast 600mm lens will not be worth the cost unless you are going to seriously persue wildlife photography and/or have money to burn. I'd rent such a lens and also a teleconverter if you'll have plenty of light available. I'm not familiar with Katmai, is it wooded? If it's open, you should have plenty of light to use a teleconverter with a reasonably fast lens. You always tend to underestimate the length of lens you'll need to get the shots you have pictured in your mind. At least I do...

Take a look at www.photo.net. I know Phillip Greenspun, who originated that site, has bear photos from Alaska online, and he may have written tips as well. If not, I am fairly certain the site's archives will contain information of this nature. I have never been heavily into wildlife photography, but from limited personal experience I would think you could get decent photos with 300-400 mm, but may likely need longer for outstanding shots.

One thing about the digital SLR cameras is they have a 1.6 multiplier effect inside the camera that changes the focal distance of any lense. Meaning if you use a 200mm lense on a DSLR, your effective focal distance is 320mm (200x1.6). Then if you have a good enough 200mm lense that you can add a 1.4x teleconverter your effective focal distance is 448mm (320x1.4) with that 200mm lense. A 2x teleconverter puts you at 640mm.

Now I'll post my disclaimer. I am not an expert but you can read about this all over the internet. I may have used the wrong terminology regarding the multiplier factor and I know the more expensive DSLR's ($4-5000) don't have the 1.6 multiplication factor. But the cheaper Canon and Nikons do.

So, depending on how much you are willing to spend you can achieve your goal without buying or renting a 500-600mm lense.

Just back. As stated above, you are talking about some money. This year I took last years Nikon D100 & My new Nikon D2H with my favorite lens, my Tamron 28-300. This lens with the multiplying effect of the camera is great. If I was in the market now I would go with the new Nikon D70 with this lense @ less than $1400 street price. 300mm @ Hallo Bay was at its limit. You are better off with a tripod @ 300mm or at least a monopod. I use the monopod as a cane as some places do not allow tripods. Get your camera as soon as posible & practice @ the long mm's

thank you everyone for the info. i purchased a canon eos rebel digital and i'm going to buy a 300mm lens and tripod. hope this does the trick. i will practice prior to as this sounds somewhat technical from your replies. thanks again. i'll post when i return from alaska.

My husband used the Canon digital rebel for half our trip when an error suddenly popped up and he couldn't use it anymore. He also had the non digital Canon Rebel with him which is what he used in Katmai with a lens that could zoom to 500. He got phenomenal pictures with both cameras. Moral of the story--Make sure you have more than one camera with you!

just got back from alaska and i have to say i have more respect for photographers than ever. i went to katmai with emerald air services(awesome company) and took lots of pictures-bears of course- using a
300mm lens and and a 2X magnifier when needed. also took pictures of salmon and katmai landscape. i still have lots to learn about photography...i have looked at these pictures at least 5 times in 2 days and although the smoke made the park hazy i still got some great shots. i appreciate all the input and plan on taking a few photo courses so i can go take more bear photos next year.. and i agree that you need a backup camera-- thanks again everyone..

Congratulations on a good trip and I'm glad your camera/lens worked for you. I hope you'll post some photos so we can see your bears!

Tell us more about your bear watching trip. Thanks

Since i just learned the program for viewing the photos on my computer give me some time and i'll learn to post them for viewing. About the trip. We met at 8:30am where the plane is docked, picked out waders to walk thru the streams(very fashionable) and were given a briefing on bear behavior and rules. The previous day Emerald Air had been 25 miles from Katami and turned back because of poor visibility. They let us know this was a possiblity today also.Took about one hour to get to Katmaiand visibility was good although Katmai was hazy.previewed areas where bears where and Ken and Chris picked the area to land and we landed on a lake northwest area of Katmai.Off the plane with our fashionable waders on. We hiked across a bluff while Ken and Chris educated us on the plant and animal life. Ate a few blue and cranberries and looked in awe at all the salmon spawning and already spawned out. Dropped down to the streams and waded across them(somewhat challenging) and when we spotted a mama bear and three cubs we stopped,watched them for a while and then sat down,ate our lunch and kept watching them. Mama would look at us,sniff the air and continue to teach her kids how to fish.I took lots of pictures. We then continued on until we spotted another mama with 2 cubs and viewed them for a while,hiked some more saw a large male and then another mama with 2 cubs.We hiked about 5 miles total and it was incredible.The colors of the plants are changing as autumn is here.On the way back to Homer Ken circled around Mt. Augustine and we saw the steam venting from it. Even with the haze this place is majestic and I'm so glad it's preserved for these beautiful mammals.We returned to Homer around 6:00pm.after a full day.