Oh 70-200mm f/2.8 lens, how do I love thee? Let me count the ways. This week I'm sharing a little behind the scenes information about my very favorite lens that is rarely off my camera, is used in every portrait session and accompanies me on trips out west and to Africa; the Canon 70-200mm telescopic lens. I'm in the process of transitioning to mirrorless gear so that means that I'm kind of straddling between Canon EF (traditional DSLR) and RF (mirrorless cameras) lenses.
The difference between DSLRs and mirrorless cameras is a topic for another post, but the biggies are that they're small and compact, weight less than DSLRs, have less moving parts - no flicking mirror means less camera shake and quieter operation and have viewfinder preview of the image exposure. Smaller and lighter cameras also mean smaller and lighter lenses (yeah!). Many of the newer mirrorless cameras are also equipped with advanced subject tracking features which can make photographing a moving dog a whole lot easier!
Below is a picture of my my new RF 70-200mm f/2.8 lens (left) and my "Old Faithful" EF 70-200mm f/2.8 lens; the RF is 30% lighter and 2" shorter, but it is a bit chubbier with a slightly larger diameter.
All the pictures in this post were taken with either the EF or RF 70-200mm f/2.8 lens; it's my go-to for high school senior and family portraits as well as pet portraits, equine photography and action dog photography. Despite being an incredibly light traveler, a talent honed over decades of international business travel, it's always in my bag on trips to Africa as well (and even then I'm usually wishing I had a longer lens!)
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Whether Photographing Dogs or Horses, I Never Leave The House Without My 70-200mm Lens
Everyone should be photographed with their new puppy, it's a big event and those little nuggets are only so little for such a short amount of time. I was thrilled when Maxine contacted me about photographing her with Chewie, her new little Cavapoo puppy. Squee! Yes please! The 70-200mm lens is perfect to create compression in the scene to separate the subject from the background as well as produce all that creamy bokeh (those soft bubbles of color and light in the background). Even though the roses were no longer in bloom, the Rose Garden of Farmers Branch still had lots to offer for this session.
My 70-200mm lens is also quite the traveler, making an annual trek to Florida to photograph horses and their equestrians on the beach. The long focal length is perfect for capturing running horses and eliminating distortion in portraits that shorter focal lengths can cause (nobody wants their horse to have exaggerated features!).
If you've ever been to a disc dog competition, then you need to check one out and get ready for a treat! These teams are true athletes and the dogs pull off some awesome aerial maneuvers that are a ton of fun to watch, and even more fun to photograph! Disc fields are large so you need to be away from the action with a longer lens to capture it. My 70-200mm to the rescue!
My border collie Rooney and I have been participating in a weekly Toss & Fetch league hosted at the popular The Sound at Cypress Waters dining and entertainment location in Irving, Texas by DFW Disc Dogs where in between our turns, I was able to capture these images. We're excited to try more disc games that are coming out with new organizations like Up Dog Challenge and SkyHoundz.
The past few years I've made a trip out west to Wyoming, or Montana, to photograph not only working cattle and horse ranches, but also the wild Mustangs like these at the Deerwood Ranch Wild Horse Ecosanctuary. This herd is made up of about 350 geldings. I photographed a large herd of wild Mustang mares in Oklahoma last fall and wrote about it in this post.
I have done entire pet portrait sessions in and around the Dallas - Fort Worth metroplex with just the 70-200mm lens. I always have various lenses in my bag, and will use them in specific instances and locations, but I feel that the elegant look of your dog or horse, in the beautiful, vibrant colors of nature, without filters and distortion, is my signature look and what clients come to expect from me. Don't get me wrong, I love a fun, wide-angle image as much as the next person, so when the mood - and the subject strikes - I'll included those in a session as well; they're always good for a chuckle.
Immediately after taking the first picture on my last trip to Africa I said "I wish I brought a longer lens", to which my husband just shook his head. Now, the next biggest lens I own is half again as long, and as wide, as my EF 70-200mm so it would have been quite a commitment (and take up a LOT of space in my bag - carry on only for me - always, no matter how long the trip is).
If we were only game viewing, I would have, but since we had another week following our 4 days at the game park, visiting friends and sightseeing, I decided that I really didn't want to drag around the equivalent of a very heavy loaf of bread for the entire trip and settled on the 70-200mm. I still got lots of great pictures, but did have pangs of regret when we finally found two young cheetahs that we had been searching for for days but they were quite far away.
All Around The Pet Photography Blog Circle
Its all about favorites this week, I chose to highlight my favorite lens but I can't wait to see what other pet photographers in the Pet Photography blog circle choose to highlight. Will it be a dog breed? Photo shoot location? Or another piece of photo gear that I will envy. Let's head on over to Elaine Tweedy of I Got the Shot Photography gives you her three favorite sources for great dog collars that are both functional and fashionable and then keep clicking on the links at the bottom of each post until you land right back here and then you will have completed the circle.
Tracy Allard of Penny Whistle Photography is a Certified Professional Photographer with the organization Professional Photographers of America; a designation held by fewer than 2,000 photographers nationwide and a hallmark of consistency, technical skill, artistry and professionalism. Tracy continues to conduct outdoor sessions (albeit in the morning only right now) despite 2022 being one of the hottest summers on record, on par with 2011 when the Dallas - Fort Worth metroplex had 71 days that topped 100º at DFW airport, but behind 1980 which had 69 days that reached 100º but delivered a three-day stretch of highs at 112°, 113° and 113° - the single hottest temp ever recorded at DFW Airport. Whew, we're almost half way through August, hopefully we only have a few more weeks of this oppressive heat to go!
Penny Whistle specializes in both on-location and studio photography providing pet, equine, family, couples & engagement and high school senior portraits as well as corporate headshots and commercial photography services in her studio located in historic downtown Carrollton as well as on location in Coppell, Grapevine, Southlake, Flower Mound and surrounding communities in Dallas – Fort Worth, Texas.