A fantastic gift! Do not stress about the stabilizing things, he just needs to keep the camera steady. You mentioned he is a guide then that 500mm lens is a problem, too big while he is guiding! A 70-300mm by far better for walking and vehicle guiding.When he is on his own then he can use the 500mm. I live in Southern Africa and is also a vehicle guide and I also take one camera with me and use the 70-300mm a lot for capturing wildlife and the guests. As a photo guide you give 100% opportunity to your guests first and you try to capture the scene through the back of guests heads and shoulders! But when you are alone to can do what you want and with what lens you want, then you have the time for using a tripod.

Apart from the camera and 500mm lense, please try and get a 70-300mm lens as well. Plus a polarized filter, extra battery, 220v battery charger and memory cards and maybe a memory card reader. A vehicle charger is nice but he will not need it as he needs to concentrate on his guiding and I have ever had the need to charge my camera on a game drive!

In Africa, camera equipment is very expensive as most are imported from the USA and currently in my country it's more than 20x the price excluding shipping if I need to import it!!!!

Try and get a manual for the camera, even if you need to down load and print for him as many lodges don't have internet access and internet in general is very expensive overall Africa and guides don't always have the luxury to spend hours searching and reading manuals. Again you are a special person to give such a wonderful gift.

Image Stabilization, or Vibration Compensation, or IBIS (in-body image stabilization) or Vibration Reduction, or... It's all nice to have, but if the camera and lens are already available, I'd concentrate on photographic knowledge and experience, first!

Yes, he will need a sturdy tripod capable of supporting that rig. Yes, a beanbag will work, but only on a stable surface such as a parked vehicle with the motor off...

But nothing will work as desired if he knows little about the gear, exposure, light, and general photographic techniques. CAMERAS do not make photographs. PHOTOGRAPHERS do. Once you get beyond the simplicity and capability of a fully automatic device, it's up to you. The camera and lens are just tools. Automation can disappoint about 15% to 20% of the time, so understanding what it is doing and knowing when to override it is important.

The most important thing he can do is to Read The *Fine* Manuals. If they are not available in hard copy, the Canon website has a support/downloads page for the body, and Sigma likely has one for the lens, as well.

Cheers!

Hello! I’m looking for some advice. I have a friend that lives in Africa and is a safari guide. He has tons of opportunity to take incredible photos, but has never had a “real camera”, only his phone.

I have an old Canon Rebel T2i I plan to give him, and was looking for a decent lens to pair it with. I found the Sigma 50-500, (I wanted him to have ONE lens with as much range as possible), it’s the Sigma Ex 50-500mm 4-6.3 APO lens for Canon (NOT OS).

After talking with the amazing woman selling it, and telling her why I wanted it, she ended up just giving it to me which was so awesome and generous!!

My question: the camera doesn’t have OS, the lens doesn’t have OS, is this THAT much of an issue? He will likely use bean bags on the roof of his truck. Or, if it IS an issue, what is the most affordable canon camera body that does have OS? I was looking at the T5 and T7, but I don’t know much about them.

I just want to give him a solid set up because - 1) he’s never had one 2) he will likely not have another one for a long time and 3) he won’t have send back/repair options.

What do you think? My budget for this is not great, so I’m not looking for the newest, nicest, just something that’s good and has what he needs :)

Thanks in advance for any advice!

Hello! I’m looking for some advice. I have a friend that lives in Africa and is a safari guide. He has tons of opportunity to take incredible photos, but has never had a “real camera”, only his phone.

I have an old Canon Rebel T2i I plan to give him, and was looking for a decent lens to pair it with. I found the Sigma 50-500, (I wanted him to have ONE lens with as much range as possible), it’s the Sigma Ex 50-500mm 4-6.3 APO lens for Canon (NOT OS).

After talking with the amazing woman selling it, and telling her why I wanted it, she ended up just giving it to me which was so awesome and generous!!

My question: the camera doesn’t have OS, the lens doesn’t have OS, is this THAT much of an issue? He will likely use bean bags on the roof of his truck. Or, if it IS an issue, what is the most affordable canon camera body that does have OS? I was looking at the T5 and T7, but I don’t know much about them.

I just want to give him a solid set up because - 1) he’s never had one 2) he will likely not have another one for a long time and 3) he won’t have send back/repair options.

What do you think? My budget for this is not great, so I’m not looking for the newest, nicest, just something that’s good and has what he needs :)

Thanks in advance for any advice!