Zoom: is the 12x Optical Image Stabilized Zoom good?
1549938
Yes, it's excellent. As an example, I took some photos today while bouncing around on a wagon being pulled by a tractor off road. I was zoomed in on my subject and the shots were crystal clear. This is a truly awesome camera!! The photos are stunning and the image stabilizer is great. I take photos daily and have taken hundreds since I got it and I don't think I've had one blurry shot in any condition. The color is stunning, photos are so sharp and clear. The zoom is excellent on this camera, as is the lens. You won't regret it if you buy it. Highly recommend.
1649059
I think there are 2 - with and without optical stabilization. I have the one without OS which works just fine on a tripod for wildflowers (you don't use OS with a tripod anyway). The 150 mm focal length is a little much to use for handheld macros anyways IMHO! A very sharp optic.
1055144
Yes. I just got mine and have been reading the manual and watching demos and reading reviews. Zoom works when shooting video, optical up to 5X and then digital up to 20X. (I am shooting video at 1280x720 which is HD enough for me.) Also I understand that the automagic settings continue to adjust continually while taking the video, and the image stabilization is just beyond awesome - I have a hand tremor that you would think would be extremely noticeable in a video and there is no hint of it. I am in awe of this thing.
1476725
I'm using this lens for long range stills... like a shot of a full moon I have it mounted on a Nikon D3100 with a doubler 2X making it a 1000mm Zoom lens. The first thing I noticed was that I couldn't hold it still enough to take a picture without some sort of stabilizer (recommend a tripod), the second thing is the light was really low, which for my purpose was perfect. I haven't tried it for any moving objects.
1918120
I've had very good results using the optical zoom on both stills and videos. I was impressed with the video sharpness at high zoom settings. I've only used the digital zoom on stills. It got in really close with OK results but wasn't as sharp as I would have liked. I was using 1600 ISO settings which may have contributed to some loss of sharpness.
657605
Hi Sherry, 18-140 VR zoom lens does have the image stabilization. For more information you can visit this page :http://www.nikonusa.com/en/Nikon-Products/Product/Camera-Lenses/AF-S-DX-NIKKOR-18-140mm-f%252F3.5-5.6G-ED-VR.html
2169341
I very much like the zoom, which allows so much flexibility. I do use it at full zoom quite a bit, though.
391683
Thanks for the opinion on the LX3, I think I'll wait for one of the these new Canons. Agree with your point on megapixels too, it's seems like 12mp is probably overkill for these small image sensors, so I expect I'll probably crank mine down to 10 or 8 to see if I get less noise. Digic 4 sounds pretty cool too, hopefully that will help.
110373
Actually, I did sell my 12-60 to help pay for this lens -- they're about comparable w.r.t. image quality. The 12-40 doesn't have as wide a range of focal lengths, but is optically faster.I've also heard about a couple of examples of this lens having structural issues. But mine is holding up nicely, even in spite of a bit of accidentally rough treatment (I slipped on a muddy slope and landed on the lens).
465045
Yes the lens extends zoom. As stated there is a newer version that extends the range and comes with Tamron's version of Image Stablization
263011
I would like a viewfinder too. I suspect it may be difficult to do one well on a 12x zoom. Viewfinders are a little inaccurate even on 4x zooms. So, it may be that the cost would be prohibitive.
1680000
Pocket Sized 12.5X Optical Zoom with 24mm Ultra Wide-Angle Zoom Lens (24-300mm) 16 Megapixels, HD video 3.0" High-Resolution LCD
658102
Hi Dennis. There is no stabilization on this lens. It's very fast and we don't have a need for it. Now, if you are shooting videos, yes they will appear a little jittery of course, but for pictures it's perfect.
2103070
YES!!! I would recommend the lense especially to have that option of zooming when you may not be able to get closer. With a fixed range you have to zoom with your feet. Its a really well rounded lense. IMHO
975212
I would say yes. When you apply the zoom option, the beam get smaller and focused, creating a brighter effect.
1964730
Amendment to my previous answer. At 64X zoom, the effective resoluion may closer to 4 megapixels, not 1 megapixel. I was just experimenting with the camera at 64X and the images aren't bad, but they absolutely do require a well-lit subject!
42536
Sorry, the J28 doesn't have optical image stabilization. It just raises the shutter speed... and probably the ISO (giving you a noisier and more grainy image in the process). In general, any camera that offers "anti-blur mode" doesn't actually use optical or sensor based image stabilization.