Canon Reviews

Singlet magnifying lenses for cameras in diameters like this used to cost little more than skylight filters of like quality. It seems that as machines have become more elaborate their users have become more gullible, even about childishly simple things like the value of a ten dollar closeup lens.

Yes, It's not "pro lens" but if you need cheaper WIDE ANGLES LENS, it might be considered. Extra-wide to normal range is very useful. But this lens is not perfect because of the rotating front element and plastic lens mount. However, you cannot find any cheap lens which you can get 22mm wide angle and USM better than this. So far, I have no prob!

Though it's basically wide-angle lens, I use it in 9 cases out of 10. The results are beautiful. Even portraits are great. I use my another lens (70-210mm Sigma) only if I really need to zoom something. AF is very fast. Noise? I didn't hear anything. Very good quality/price ratio. I'm going to upgrade it to Canon 28-105/f3.5-4.5, but I will not sell it - will use wide-end.

I bought the Canon 18x image stabilizer binoculars a month ago and I love them.

The reason I bought these high-powered binoculars is I want to identify all the major landmarks in the San Jose South Bay area. My wife and I ride up to the mid-hill of Mt. Hamilton once a month. Most of the time before we are ready to turn back and coast down the hill, we spend a fair amount of time looking at the spectacular scenery of the San Jose and South Bay area. We want to identify as many landmarks as possible. With our compact Minolta 10x binoculars, we get a clear look at downtown San Jose and of course the Lockheed aircraft hangers. But we could not find the San Jose airport. With the new Canon binoculars, we can identify the airport and many other places. We can even find the street intersection that is only one street away from where we live. The interesting thing is once we identify a place, we can also use the compact Minolta to see the landmark, although with smaller vision. These Canon binoculars make excellent spotter.

The image stabilizer is an interesting high-tech feature. It helps to get a clear and stable view if you press the stabilizer button. However, the binoculars weight 2.6 lbs. I am tired after holding them for two to three minutes. Last time we rode up Mt. Hamilton, we bought a regular camera tripod with us. These Canon binoculars come with a built-in screw thread that can accept a standard tripod quick-release plate. With the binoculars mounted on the tripod, we spent a good half hour looking down the beautiful landscape. The obvious question is, does the use of the tripod defeat the purpose of paying extra for the image stabilizer? How much something is worth is a very personal question. It differs from person to person. I am not going to attempt to answer this question.

We are very happy to own these binoculars. This is a very pricey toy, but we love it. I first saw the Canon 15x image stabilizer binoculars at Wolf's Camera web site and they have a price tag of around $1,200. I was shocked by the price. I told myself some day I might buy it. A year later, amazon.com was carrying this 18x version at a much lower price. I was overjoyed and broke down and bought this toy the following month.

First, I don't own these binoculars (yet), but I've started saving my shekels based on the earlier reviews and the Canon name. Also, please note that these binoculars are 18x (not 50x as another reviewer suggests). For bird-watchers it's worth mentioning that one should keep in mind the difficulty that many have in finding a bird through higher magnification binoculars after spotting the bird with one's eyes. I have a pair of 12x50 Pentax binoculars that I like a great deal and have had only minimal trouble finding birds that I've spotted. My wife, however, doesn't have the same good fortune and so prefers her 10x50 Bushnells. The Audobon Society (the last time I checked) recommends 7x35 binoculars, but the average age of their membership is somewhere around 55, so most are unable to hold steady the higher power binoculars. I'm also curious to know how much these binoculars weigh and how bright the image is (as I'd read somewhere that 12x50 represented the best compromise between magnification and image brightness). From the other reviews it certainly sounds like that's not a problem. If I can ever afford them I'll add to this review.

These things are incredible! I received a pair of the Canon Image Stabilization Binoculars as a gift from a friend and was immediately blown away by how well they work. The fact that they don't shake makes it possible to read numbers and signs at great distances. I race on sailboats and the ability to read call letters and names on competitive boats is a real help. I also got the clearest view of the moon I have ever seen last night. The large lenses really capture a lot of light, so that you can see clearly at night as well. They are pricey, but you really get you money's worth with this product.

Any person who is hoping to do DV film making with this camera needs this lens! It actually works like a real lens, with real focus, manual zoom capable, and great optics. It is well worth the money and pays for itself in vastly improved image quality, depth of field and focus.

This is one of the finest optical instruments i ever bought. The Image Stabilizer works so fantastic and flawless you just don't wanna let this bino out of your hand. It even works while you watch from a driving car. You can make out license plate numbers from about 400 ft away. I also bought protective lenses which I use during daytime. When stargazing I realized some mirror effects from the protective lens - so just let those off during nightime. This is the most useful and inexpensive tool for stargazing. Even better than some telescopes for the same price. The AA at 2100 mAh last for about 3-4 hrs. Even with the IS shut off the optics are awesome - but with the IS engaged it is breathtaking. It is definitely worth to spend the extra money to get this system over any other w/o IS.

I bought these binoculars (along with "The Backyard Astronomer's Guide", "Touring the Universe Through Binoculars," and Starry Night software) to learn some basic astronomy. This has turned out to be a winning combination.

While these binoculars weigh 2.6 pounds, they have a very natural, comfortable fit in the hands and are easy to handle.

The image stabilization is amazing and really improves my ability to resolve stellar objects and surface details of the moon.

It does seem a little odd that Canon did not include front lens caps. However the 15x50s are threaded for 58 mm filters, so one can easily purchase standard lens caps. I bought a pair of 58 mm Canon lens caps which fit, although the heavy rubber armor leaves minimal clearance to operate the lens cap release buttons. With filters installed the lens caps fit exactly as they would on a camera lens with plenty of clearance to remove, even if wearing gloves.

These binoculars are spectacular. Point them at Jupiter and you see a bright dot wandering around in the field of view. Press the image stabilization switch and the planet and its moons instantly become visible. While they can't subtract all movement they do get rid of the little shakes that make hand held viewing so difficult. 15x is enough magnification that Saturn is obviously not round.

A complaint about earier versions of the Canon IS line was that your finger went to sleep holding the IS switch down. Now you can press it briefly to turn on the IS circuitry which will automatically shut off in 5 minutes. If you press and hold the switch it shuts off as soon as you release it.

I haven't had my pair long enough to comment on battery life but do see a problem changing them when they are mounted on a tripod. Unlike most binoculars where the tripod mounting is at the objective end where the two barrels rotate on the Canons it is at the bottom of the binocular near the center of the tubes which don't rotate. And the battery compartment is just in front of it so you can't get to it if the binoculars are on a tripod of have a quick release plate attached.

Since the lens barrels don't rotate intra-ocular distance is adjusted by actually moving the oculars. They are kind of stiff but that is good because they stay in place once you get them set.

The tripod mount is lower than the highest part of the lens barrels so if you have a big quick release plate like that of the Manfrotto (Bogen) 410 geared head (highly recommended) it presses against the bottom of the barrels and not the flat between them.

For some reason Canon doesn't seem to fell that the objective lenses need any protection as they don't ship lens covers for them. They do provide lens covers for the oculars but they pop off a lot because the eye cups are so soft. It looks like you need something like 69mm lens caps. They don't tell you in the manual but Canon sales says they are threaded to accept 58mm filters so you can buy solar filters for them.

I can use the binoculars with my glasses on due to the 15 mm eye relief but it is really easier to use them without the glasses.

They are heavy, ~2,5#, but if you support them on the heels of your hands very stable.