Recommended Ultra-Telephoto Lenses

What defines an ultra-telephoto lens? Of course, it’s the “ultra” (or at times “super”) prefix that we are concerned with when talking about these lenses, which enable photographers to get a close-up view of something from which we normally remain very distant.
These lenses are used primarily for photographing wildlife, sports, journalism, and perhaps paparazzi or “stake-out” photography. If most readers are not going on a stake-out or stalking stars, let’s say a clear majority of ultra-telephoto lens users are photographing sporting events, airplanes, boats, birds, or wild animals.
Let’s discuss some of the notable versions of these lenses, which are considered to begin at the 400mm focal length (or that equivalent when using crop-sensor camera systems) and top out at 800mm. Canon, at one point, did sell a 1200mm f/5.6 EF-mount lens, which we were lucky enough to try.

Nikon

The majority of serious sports and wildlife photographers use DSLR cameras, so we will begin with the ultra-telephoto lenses available for these cameras. Starting at the 400mm mark and working our way to longer lenses, we have the Nikon AF-S NIKKOR 400mm f/2.8E FL ED VR lens with its Silent Wave Motor, manual focus override, and image stabilization with “Sport Mode.” The f/2.8 maximum aperture is impressive, as are the flare-reducing lens coatings and fluorine-coated front meniscus glass. If used on a camera with a DX-size sensor, its equivalent focal length is 600mm.