>Don's recent post about video reminded me to ask about a product I saw
>advertised in the latest edition of Audubon magazine: the Canon 12 X
>something or other (36 or 40, I'm sorry my memory's not more specific)
>binoculars with image stabilization and a price in the thousand-dollar
>range.

I thought they're 8x, but could be wrong.

I've tried it, the technology works. It's expensive due to the implementation.
There's a compute inside and some small gyroscopes (does it take two
or three, that is the question - navigation systems take three). Anyway,
without getting too geeky the gyros are hooked up to a computer which
uses them to detect motion, and the computer then moves an optical
element to correct for it. No wiggle at all when you just look
through them, when you move them quickly and jerkily the computer
takes a split second to figure out what's up and the image swims
a bit giving kind of that seasick feeling.

For binoculars of that power, I think it's a bit of a gimmick, and
from Canon's perspective something to test the waters with. Zeiss
makes a 20x pair with mechanical stabilization (the guts are isolated
via springs) and the Canon technology works better. The Zeiss are
used most often when you're looking and moving I think, probably
developed for the German Army or something like that. Here's
one use for the new Canon binos: Birdathon! No need to stop the
car to look! Raise more money! Or perhaps pelagic trips in
extreme chop. For normal birding, not worth it IMO.

The Canon approach is the same they use in their stabilized video
and new stabilized 35mm telephoto (75-300mm zoom). The latter has
the wildlife shooting community a bit a-twitter, not over the
particular lens but over the possiblity of new, more serious
telephotos which could be handholdable. Not really big and
fast ones (they're too heavy), but like a 300/4. Be great
for sports photographers. But the technology would be useful
even with a big hunkin' telephoto, because one often shoots
from one's car using it for support rather than a tripod, and
a stabilized lens would be useful at lower shutter speeds, which
means less light or slower (better) film. So folks are excited
about new and expensive things to spend money on in the future.

>Image stabilization sounds great, but a thousand bucks is a lotta moulah
>for a casual neophyte birder like me to invest at this point in a pair of
>bins.

You'd be much better off with Zeiss or Leica optics - Canon's not
known for superb binocular optics (unlike their camera/video reputation).
Just like Nikon...

> If this is a new product, then what are the chances the price will
>fall?

The price will probably rise, due to the yen. In the camera world,
at least, Canon doesn't normally price a new product high and then
lower the price. They announce a product, set the price, and you can
buy it the next day (no "vaporoptics", either). And there the price
stays until the dollar drops against the yen.

Unfortunately the yen never seems to drop against the dollar these
days.

> Does Canon have any competition as far as this product goes?

Just the Zeiss 20x, which cost several thousand dollars, as far as
I know. These, though not as well stabilized as the Canon, are
very nice binoculars and very, very usable (remember they're 20x!)

I'll accept donations towards a purchase :)

>I realize we had a thread on optics a few months ago, but I don't recall
>any specific references to this feature.

The 35mm telephoto is brand new, the optically-stabilized video
camera almost as new I think, so perhaps these binos weren't out
then.

- Don Baccus, Portland OR <donb at rational.com>