2 Of The Best Lenses For Nikon D3100 Cameras For Wildlife Photography!

We have seen some people asking for advice on the best lens for the Nikon d3100 for wildlife. Although we have been busy, we finally ended up with a few hours spare and decided to use it to publish this article to cover the lenses that we feel are best to capturing high-quality photographs of wildlife with your d3100.

As the d3100 is more of an entry-level camera, we will be focusing on lenses within a suitable price range for our article. That said, you can click here if you want to see a full list of lenses that offer a decent zoom range for wildlife photography and will fit directly on your d3100 camera mount. That list is pretty extensive and covers lenses across a large number of price ranges too.

Click Here To Check For Prices On High-Quality, Budget Friendly Lenses For d3200 Wildlife Photography!

Table of Contents

The Nikon 70-300mm f/4.5-5.6G ED IF AF-S VR Zoom Lens

We feel that the best lens for Nikon d3100 cameras for wildlife photography is definitely the Nikon 70-300mm f/4.5-5.6G ED IF AF-S VR Zoom Lens (Click here to check for product prices and availability). Although we usually recommend a more mid-tier price point lens first in our articles due to the increasing functionality and performance, we feel that the price tag of the Nikon 70-300mm lens is pretty low while its functionality and performance allow it to crush the competition anyway.

It is without a doubt one of the most popular Nikon lenses out there and has managed to earn thousands of independent reviews online (click here to read some of them) from third-party photographers sharing their experiences with the lens. Being a solid zoom lens that provides you with a telephoto zoom range ensures that you are able to use it in a massive number of wildlife photography situations to ensure that you are always ready to capture a great photograph no matter the conditions.

Additionally, the Nikon 70-300mm will fit directly onto your d3100 camera body making it quick and easy to mount the lens on your camera if you have been using a different lens but an unexpected opportunity presents itself. The photographs below offer some great examples of the image quality that the lens is able to provide you.

A nice and sharp photograph of a wolf that was captured using the Nikon 70-300mm lens at its mid zoom range. We feel this photograph offers a good example of the type of image quality the lens could provide your d3100. — A nice and sharp photograph of a wolf that was captured using the Nikon 70-300mm lens at its higher zoom range. We feel this photograph offers a good example of the type of image quality the lens could provide your d3100.

Another photograph captured using the Nikon 70-300mm but this time of a Koala bear captured at the mid-zoom range capabilities of the lens also offering a good example of the type of image quality the lens can offer your d3100.

One thing that we would like to point out is that the low light performance of the lens has received a little criticism over the years but you can try using a quicker shutter speed and mounting your camera on a decent tripod in low light conditions to help improve its performance. The vibration reduction technology on the lens performs very well and helps to reduce the vibration detection of the lens when used without a tripod or monopod and produce sharper images for you.

All in all, if you are looking to pick up a great little all in one lens that is perfect for wildlife photography then the Nikon 70-300mm is probably the lens for you. It’s not going to break the bank while also providing a great level of image quality that actually beats the image quality offered by some higher priced lenses on the market.

Click Here To Read Independent Third Party Reviews Of This Product!

Click Here To Check For Prices On This Product!

The video below offers an additional third-party, independent review for the Nikon 70-300mm to offer our readers an independent opinion of the product.

The Nikon 55-200mm f/4-5.6G ED IF AF-S DX VR Zoom Lens

Another solid contender for the title of best lens for Nikon d3100 cameras for wildlife photography and this time out entry-level/budget option is the little brother of the first lens that we covered, the Nikon 55-200mm f/4-5.6G ED IF AF-S DX VR Zoom Lens (Click here to check for product prices and availability). Although it provides slightly less functionality and performance than its big brother covered first in the article, it is also much cheaper making it perfect for anyone who is on a tight budget.

That said, the build quality of the lens is actually much higher than you would expect for the price tag and all of the core functionality that you would want from a lens for wildlife photography comes as standard. Again, the lens attaches directly to the lens mount on your Nikon d3100 camera body with minimal effort and its telephoto focal length ensure it is usable in a the vast majority of wildlife photography situations that may come up.

A great wildlife photograph that was captured using the Nikon 55-200mm showing the image quality that the lens is able to provide at its higher zoom ranges.

The Nikon 55-200mm has the same low light issues as its big brother above but again, our advice for this lens is exactly the same. If you are planning on trying to photograph animals in low light conditions with your d3100 then try mounting it on a tripod and using a quicker shutter speed on your camera for better image quality.

Click Here To Read Independent Third Party Reviews Of This Product!

Click Here To Check For Prices On This Product!

The video below offers an additional third-party, independent review for the Nikon 55-200mm to offer our readers an independent opinion of the product.