The Canon EOS R7 is Canon’s enthusiast APS-C camera, and the one wildlife and sports shooters keep coming back to. It launched in May 2022 at $1,499 for the body with a 32.5MP APS-C sensor, 15 frames per second with the mechanical shutter, and in-body stabilization. The APS-C crop gives every lens 1.6 times more reach, which is exactly what birders want.

Put Canon’s RF 100-400mm on it and you get the field of view of a 640mm lens for very little money. That combination alone sold a lot of R7s.

Most telephoto zooms that reach 400mm cost thousands and weigh well over a kilo. The Canon RF 100-400mm F5.6-8 IS USM costs about $650 and weighs around 635 grams. It’s light enough to carry on a hike, cheap enough to buy on a whim, and a lot sharper than the price suggests.

That’s why it became one of Canon’s most popular RF lenses. It’s the default “first long lens” for R50, R10, R8 and R6 Mark II owners who want to try birds, kids’ sports or airshows without committing serious money.

For Nikon Z wildlife shooters, the Nikon Z 180-600mm f/5.6-6.3 VR was the lens that changed the math. Launched in 2023 at about $1,700, it gave affordable 600mm reach with fast autofocus, weather sealing and an internal zoom. A lot of people built their whole bird-photography kit around it, often on a Z8 or Z6III.

Internal zoom means the lens doesn’t get longer as you zoom. The barrel stays the same length from 180mm to 600mm. Balance doesn’t shift, it doesn’t suck dust in, and it sits better on a gimbal head or a monopod.

When Nikon launched the Z9 in late 2021, it was the flagship that brought Nikon back into the mirrorless race. Then in 2023 Nikon took almost everything inside it, removed the built-in vertical grip, and sold it as the Z8 for about $2,000 less. Same 45.7MP stacked sensor. Same processor. Same autofocus. Roughly 30 percent smaller.

It has been one of the most loved cameras of the decade ever since.