Whether you like to watch whales, birds or sport, a pair of binoculars is a great accessory. However, they do have disadvantages. Most binoculars are not light and the longer you use them, the more tired you become.

And the more tired you become, the harder it is to hold them steady and this problem is worse if you are using magnification of x10 or more.

The only practical solution to these related problems is to use a tripod. This relieves the strain on your arms and holds the binoculars absolutely steady but most people would find a tripod just another piece of gear that they don't want to carry.

Canon's solution to the problem is to produce binoculars with inbuilt image stabilisation. They compensate for the inevitable "shakes" you get when using binoculars and they are much more pleasant to use.

We reviewed two of the Canon range: the 15x50IS model which has 50mm objective lenses and x15 magnification and the 10x30IS which has 30mm lenses and x10 magnification.

Cutting straight to the chase, the x15 model is the one of most interest, since that degree of magnification is almost impossible to use without having a tripod. In fact, unless you are experienced in using binoculars, it is difficult to imagine how difficult such a seemingly modest degree of magnification is.