When you first start out shooting nature photography you can sometimes feel pressured to learn everything at once. When you’re learning, you’ll be trying many different techniques that will provide the foundation for just about everything you’ll ever want to do with your camera. That’s why the best camera for beginner nature photography is one that offers ease of use but enough advanced features for you to grow with it as you develop your skills.
Whether you’re shooting in your garden or at a local nature reserve, you want a camera that can withstand the elements and be capable of capturing a variety of subjects, whether it’s a fast-moving insect or fungi in the low light of a forest floor.
Many photographers feel they need the best full-frame camera to shoot nature photography, but the best APS-C or Micro Four Thirds format cameras tend to be more affordable and can give you more reach given their crop factor. For instance, a Micro Four Thirds camera has a 2x focal length magnification factor, turning a 300mm lens into a 600mm lens, for example, whereas an APS-C format sensor has a 1.5-1.6x focal length magnification making a 300mm lens look like a 4500mm or 480mm optic. For more on crop factor, check out our guides on when to use APS-C lenses instead of full-frame and our breakdown of APS-C vs full-frame sensors.
When you’re looking at the best beginner cameras, you’ll usually find that their AF systems perform great in good light but may struggle a bit in low light. The best camera for beginner nature photography will have a lot of AF points spread across the frame. You can look for the cameras with the most AF points, but also check how sensitive these AF points are in low light.
Build quality is also important when choosing a camera for nature photography. Because you’ll be shooting outside in all sorts of conditions, the best camera for beginner nature photography should be able to withstand the cold, drizzle, wet grass, muddy fields, even lying down on sandy beaches. You’ll want a camera with a metal alloy body, if your budget allows for it. Also check that your intended camera has weather-proof seals along any joints and around the controls.
With these factors in mind, let’s take a look at some of the best options for budding nature photographers. We’ve shot with all of these cameras, and you can read our more in-depth reviews, linked below, for a deeper analysis.
The Nikon Z6 and Z7 are great, but not all photographers want a full-frame camera. The Nikon Z50 offers that alternative for Nikon users wanting a mirrorless camera, and it has plenty to offer experienced photographers thanks to a solid build and a comprehensive feature set.
Its autofocus system is excellent and is capable of capturing fast-moving subjects in pin-sharp focus, even in gloomy conditions. Further good news is that the Z50 has both Subject Tracking and Eye AF modes. Eye AF is a must-have feature at the moment and it’s incredibly useful for portraits and social event photography.
Subject Tracking works in Auto-area AF mode and it’s useful for subjects that move erratically. Pressing the OK button in Auto-area AF mode activates a tracking point which is visible on the screen and in the viewfinder.
You then position this box over the subject and press the OK button again to start the tracking. As the subject moves, the Z50 tracks it around the frame, keeping it sharp in Continuous AF mode.
Inside the Nikon Z50 is a new 20.88Mp APS-C format sensor which is paired with the Expeed 6 processing engine. Together, these enable a native sensitivity range for stills of ISO 100-51,200 with expansion settings going all the way up to ISO 204,800. Meanwhile, the video range is ISO 100-25,600.
Thanks to the Expeed 6 processing engine, the Z50 can shoot at up to 11 frames per second with continuous autofocusing and exposure metering. This rate is achieved in Continuous High Plus mode while the maximum rate in Continuous High mode is 5fps.
The Nikon Z50 also delivers great video, capturing 4K at 30fps and Full HD at a range of frame rates.
The Sony A6600 is Sony’s flagship APS-C format mirrorless camera and it’s aimed at enthusiast photographers and videographers who want to shoot in a variety of conditions. It features a 24.2MP Exmor CMOS image sensor, the BIONZ X image processor and a front-end LSI as is implemented in Sony’s full-frame cameras for better enhancements in still and video image quality.
Among the A6600’s impressive feature set is Sony’s innovative 5-axis in-body image stabilisation system that provides a 5.0-step shutter speed advantage.
The Alpha 6600 also delivers an autofocus acquisition time of just 0.02 seconds, with 425 phase-detection AF points covering approximately 84% of the image area and 425 contrast-detection AF points.
Also on-board is Sony’s ‘Real-time Tracking’ and ‘Real-time Eye AF’, the latest version of Sony’s Eye AF technology, which employs AI-based object recognition to detect and process eye data in real-time.
Real-time Eye AF promises improved accuracy, speed and tracking performance of Eye AF for both humans and animals, and allows the photographer to concentrate exclusively on composition. It’s a significant bonus for pet and portrait photography.
High-resolution internal 4K movie recording with full-pixel readout without pixel binning in Super 35mm format is also on-board. You’ll also find built-in interval shooting for time-lapse videos and a 180-degree tiltable, 3.0-type 921k-dot (approx.) LCD touch screen.
It may not have the same shape as the Sony A7 series of full-frame cameras, but the A 6600 has much of the same technology, enabling it to deliver impressive results with a wide range of subjects.
Read our Sony A6600 Review
Canon has given the EOS RP an impressively-well specified autofocus (AF) system. As you’d expect with Canon, the imaging sensor is a Dual Pixel CMOS AF device, which means that the focusing uses phase detection. That’s usually faster than contrast detection.
The Dual Pixel design means that every photoreceptor is split in two so they can all play a part in focusing. There are 4,779 user-selectable AF points which cover 88% of the width and 100% of the height of the frame.
According to Canon, the RP’s AF system is operational down to -5EV when using an f/1.2 lens. That’s 1 stop behind the EOS R, but impressive nevertheless.
Face and Eye detection is also on hand and the Eye detection works with continuous AF.
Read our Canon EOS RP Review
Although the Olympus OM-D E-M10 Mark IV can hide amongst compact cameras with smaller sensors, it’s a mirrorless camera that accepts lenses with the Micro Four Thirds mount.
Like other Olympus OM-D camera such as the Olympus OM-D E-M5 Mark III, it has mini-DSLR styling with its 2,360,000-dot electronic viewfinder at the centre of the top plate. There’s also a 3-inch 1,037,000-dot touch-sensitive LCD on the back of the camera that can be tilted up or down for easier composition of landscape orientation images from above or below head height. This can be flipped down through 180° to make it visible from in front of the camera, making it ideal for shooting selfies or vlogging.
Mounting the camera on a tripod obscures the screen when it’s forward-facing, but thanks to the in-body stabilisation, you don’t need to use a tripod very often.
Despite its ‘entry-level’ status, the OM-D E-M10 IV has some advanced features such as Olympus’s excellent Live Composite and Live Time modes that make shooting long exposure images and light painting much easier than normal.
Read our Olympus OM-D E-M10 Mark IV Review
The only physical upgrade that the X-T30 makes on the Fuji X-T30 is the switch to a 1.62-million dot screen on its back rather than a 1.04-million-dot unit.
The upgrades come as a result of firmware and algorithm improvements. For example, the X-T30 II gains the enhanced autofocus algorithms seen on the X-T4, which means it is faster and has improved low-light sensitivity – down to -7.0EV with the XF50mm F1.0 lens mounted. The Face/Eye detection is also more reliable, but it’s still only of use when photographing humans.
Fujifilm has also given the X-T30 II two additional Film Simulation modes, Classic Neg and Eterna Bleach Bypass. In addition, there are controls to adjust the Clarity, Tone Curve and Monochromatic Color while the Auto White Balance can be set to White Priority and Ambience Priority, and there’s the Color Chrome FX Blue option to enhance blue subjects.
In another useful improvement, the X-T30 II is capable of recording 4K video continuously for up to 30minutes whereas the X-T30 is limited to 20 minutes.
Read our full Fujifilm X-T30 review
Read our Fujifilm X-T30 Review: Updated with Firmware Ver.1.01
While the Nikon D3500 is now listed as discontinued, no successor has been announced and it can still be found on sale.
Inside the D3500’s monocoque body is an APS-C (DX) format sensor with 24.2 million effective pixels. This is paired with an Expeed 4 processing engine and its a combination that’s capable of delivering excellent-quality images.
With just 11 individually selectable points, the D3500 AF system’s specification may seem unimpressive next that of the average mirrorless camera, but it’s fast and capable of getting moving subjects sharp.
As it’s a DSLR, the D3500 has an optical viewfinder so you see a natural view of the scene with no interpretation by the camera. There’s also a fixed 3-inch screen with 921,000 dots on the back of the camera which can be used to compose images in Live View mode (as well as review them), but the Live View autofocus system is quite sluggish.
One of the main selling points of the Nikon 3500 for beginners is its excellent Guide Mode that teaches the user about photography and the camera controls using non-techy language.
Read our Nikon D3500 Review
The Canon EOS M50 Mark II makes a relatively modest update on one of Canon’s most popular mirrorless cameras. Inside it has the same 24Mp APS-C format sensor paired with the same Digic 8 processing engine.
Like its predecessor, the Canon EOS M50 Mark II can shoot 4K video at up to 24p but there’s an additional 1.5x crop applied to the framing and the autofocus system relies on contrast detection. Switch to Full HD or stills shooting and the phase detection system that is enabled by the Dual Pixel sensor design becomes active.
The key upgrades made for the Mark II are eye tracking in both stills and video mode, vertical video recording and the ability to stream live to YouTube video a smartphone hotspot.
If you’re looking for a small full-frame camera with Sony’s excellent autofocus and noise control systems then the Sony A7C is the way to go as it’s smallest of the Sony A7-series cameras. It has a flat-topped rectangular body that makes it look similar to the Sony A6600, but there’s also a vari-angle screen rather than a tilting monitor. And inside, the A7C has the same 24Mp sensor and core features as the Sony A7 III.
Paired with the FE 28-60mm f/4-5.6 kit lens., which is a small collapsible optic, the A7C makes an attractive choice for travel and everyday photography.
However, in shrinking down the A7C, Sony also made a few compromises on the handling. There’s no joystick on the back of the camera for example, and there’s only one control dial. In addition, the electronic viewfinder is the type of unit that is more commonly found in APS-C format cameras.
While it’s great to have a vari-angle screen, if you can live without it, and don’t mind a slightly larger camera, then the Sony A7 III, which sits above the A7C in the range, makes a great alternative and costs a little less.
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