Thanks for sharing. I had never seen a photo of Mandarin ducks.

Fantastic shots. I love # 3.

Have fun. Even though I haven't yet gotten into heavy post, I always shoot JPEG+RAW on my D5300 so I have options in the future.

Love 'em all, but i think my fav is the last one. Thanks for sharing.

I was in Tanzania in March, two places in the Serengeti. Lions, leopards, elephants, giraffe, water buffalo, gazelle and many other types of antelope, rhino, hippos, hyenna, ostrich et al. One million wildebeast migrating with 800,000 zebras.

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Qualcomm, largest smartphone RF chip maker, designs the chips and handles their insertion, compatibility into each phone made by the phone manufacturers. It does not manufacture the chips; it is fabless. The chips are made by Samsung ( I think if memory serves me) and other chip foundries. So, the fact that Sony--which has a lot of experience manufacturing sensor chips--actually makes Nikon chips is not a negative. Plus, the chip making is very capital intensive and dependent on volume production. Everybody from the camera maker, chip maker to the camera buyer benefits with a superior product that costs less.

I travel frequently now that I am retired. Nikon D5300, which is also crop. I normally take the Nikkor DX 18-300 F3.5-6.3 and find that I usually shoot in the wider angle ranges. I don't really find the extra weight a problem, and it's nice to have a longer reach when I need it. With today's sensitive sensors set at auto ISO you won't have any trouble inside churches. You can brighten in post (with simple programs, including MS Windows 10) very easily when necessary to reveal more detail. I often carry my 35 mm DX F1.8 prime on trips, but have to admit I almost never use it. Perhaps, it's just laziness about switching lenses.

I was on safari in March. My main camera was Nikon D5300 with the DX 18-300 mm F/3.5-6.3. I decided not to take the Nikon 200-500mm. Instead, I bought a P900 for very long shots. I know you sacrifice quality because the sensor is small but you can grab the camera and shoot. I would advise using a second camera several times before making safari. I lost shots or had bad ones because I wasn't familiar with how the P900 works. There is not a lot of room in the Land Rovers and you're sometimes your moving quickly to get the bean bag on top and take your shots. (most of the guides have bean bags in the Land Rovers, check before you go with the tour company.)

You have gotten very good advice to get down to their level, get close, make sure the eyes are sharply focused. As a matter of attitude, I just treat pets as if I am taking portraits of people. I like to get close, often focus on their heads, expressions. Have fun.

I tried BBF for first time on my last trip. But, when I got to Tanzania on safari I found it tricky and went back to the regular. I couldn't react fast enough. It may have been that I had not used it sufficiently to make it "automatic" and natural. I can see how it would be good for birds, however.

Try going to an auto dealer with cars painted matte black for a repair stick of matte black or MJ designs or other craft store.

I took a Nikon DX 18-300, so I would recommend the 28-300. Make sure you have 1 gallon freezer bags to put the camera in as you go in the rafts to land on the islands, particularly wet landings. Also, plenty of lens wipes and microfiber cloths to remove spray.

I either carry a camera bag or pack my Nikon in the a carry bag/satchel that has gum, passport, prescription drugs, etc.

Incredibly sharp for hand held for that long a lens. I love the colors and framing.

Most folks don't really use the printed manual; they are often lost or misplaced. I download the pdf and put it on my smartphone and my desktop. I can always retrieve the manual even years down the road. It is amazing how many manuals for your appliances--even old ones--can be found on the Internet.