I didn't intend to start a thread this year. I'd got up at 3am to take my wife to the airport so I wasn't on best form to begin with and the weather was pretty miserable, making some comparisons I like to make impossible. I thought it best to let others take the lead. Apart from a comment or two in the Leica Noctivist thread everyone seems strangely quiet so far so here we go.
The best bit? Leica had a Rancillio espresso machine and a barister who knew how to drive it on their stand. Highly recommended! Seemed to draw a rather excited crowd.
I'm not going to say much about the Noctivid here. I already liked the Ultravid HD plus a lot and I like this a lot more. It did leave me with a lot of technical questions about exactly what they've done. Hopefully other forum members I spoke to will chip in with their observations. If the weather improves I may go back for another look.
I did have a quick look at the Trinovid HD. My main criticism of it's predecessor was that I didn't find it sharp. The light was too poor to make that kind of judgement yesterday but I confess I liked it better overall than the old one, though it didn't seem typically 'Leica'.
I'm not sure what to make of the Nikon Monarch HG. We already knew it was small light and had an enormous field of view and it didn't disappoint on that account. It was also really nice in the hand. Early the day the finish felt a bit soapy, but once a hundred punters or so had played with them, the grip had improved. I confess overall I was slightly disappointed though. I'd just tried the Noctivist and the colour and contrast seemed flat by comparison. Maybe that was unfair given the price difference but I got them to get out an EDG to compare and I have to say I found the differences quite stark. The Noctivist and EDG are stronger at the red end of the spectrum than the ELSV, SLC, SF, HT etc. and it seemed to my eyes, it was mostly this that was missing. I'm sure others will like it and probably feel it seems brighter.
At long last Meopta had their Meostar 12x50 and 15x56 HDs on the stand to add to the 10x42HD. It's all the HDs we will get in Europe due to the Cabelas relationship. The 15x56 HD was too much for me hand held, but the 12x50 HD was actually rather steady in my hand and, given the weather, was looking pretty special. Perhaps anyone contemplating one of the big SLCs might do well to check out the Meopta first?
Vanguard had flown in a couple of samples of the Endeavour EDIV for the show. As expected it has lost it's flat view, but the colour is much improved and it seemed brighter. I couldn't say if the resolution had improved, but the contrast in the fine detail certainly had. The ergonomic differences looked tiny, but I found it more comfortable in the hand. There was a good price on show pre-orders, but it is probably going to be around £400 depending on what happens to the exchange rate in the next couple of months. Hope to have more to say down the line.
I did spend some time with the Kowa Genesis 22. A nice little compact, but nothing like the level of CA control of it's big brothers. It would be interesting to compare it to the Opticron DBA 8x21.
The Zeiss SF apparently has had a minor upgrade. They've tinkered with the focus and made some cosmetic changes apparently but I'm sure Lee will have more to say about that.
I don't usually comment on scopes but the Zeiss Conquest Gavia didn't really do it for me. I'm sure others will fill in the detail.
Celestron were doing good business with their Hummingbird pocket scopes. They had half a dozen perched on monopods and punters were queuing up to try them. I found the 7-22×50 rather appealing. Sure £300 seems a bit steep for a 50mm that probably shouldn't been taken past 18x but matched with a gorillapod it would be perfect for the jacket pocket. Good fun! The x56 was probably OK upto about 20x. Had a little play with their Mini Mak c70mm. That's a lot of fun too for around £100, but not intended to be hauled around the countryside.
David
The best bit? Leica had a Rancillio espresso machine and a barister who knew how to drive it on their stand. Highly recommended! Seemed to draw a rather excited crowd.
I'm not going to say much about the Noctivid here. I already liked the Ultravid HD plus a lot and I like this a lot more. It did leave me with a lot of technical questions about exactly what they've done. Hopefully other forum members I spoke to will chip in with their observations. If the weather improves I may go back for another look.
I did have a quick look at the Trinovid HD. My main criticism of it's predecessor was that I didn't find it sharp. The light was too poor to make that kind of judgement yesterday but I confess I liked it better overall than the old one, though it didn't seem typically 'Leica'.
I'm not sure what to make of the Nikon Monarch HG. We already knew it was small light and had an enormous field of view and it didn't disappoint on that account. It was also really nice in the hand. Early the day the finish felt a bit soapy, but once a hundred punters or so had played with them, the grip had improved. I confess overall I was slightly disappointed though. I'd just tried the Noctivist and the colour and contrast seemed flat by comparison. Maybe that was unfair given the price difference but I got them to get out an EDG to compare and I have to say I found the differences quite stark. The Noctivist and EDG are stronger at the red end of the spectrum than the ELSV, SLC, SF, HT etc. and it seemed to my eyes, it was mostly this that was missing. I'm sure others will like it and probably feel it seems brighter.
At long last Meopta had their Meostar 12x50 and 15x56 HDs on the stand to add to the 10x42HD. It's all the HDs we will get in Europe due to the Cabelas relationship. The 15x56 HD was too much for me hand held, but the 12x50 HD was actually rather steady in my hand and, given the weather, was looking pretty special. Perhaps anyone contemplating one of the big SLCs might do well to check out the Meopta first?
Vanguard had flown in a couple of samples of the Endeavour EDIV for the show. As expected it has lost it's flat view, but the colour is much improved and it seemed brighter. I couldn't say if the resolution had improved, but the contrast in the fine detail certainly had. The ergonomic differences looked tiny, but I found it more comfortable in the hand. There was a good price on show pre-orders, but it is probably going to be around £400 depending on what happens to the exchange rate in the next couple of months. Hope to have more to say down the line.
I did spend some time with the Kowa Genesis 22. A nice little compact, but nothing like the level of CA control of it's big brothers. It would be interesting to compare it to the Opticron DBA 8x21.
The Zeiss SF apparently has had a minor upgrade. They've tinkered with the focus and made some cosmetic changes apparently but I'm sure Lee will have more to say about that.
I don't usually comment on scopes but the Zeiss Conquest Gavia didn't really do it for me. I'm sure others will fill in the detail.
Celestron were doing good business with their Hummingbird pocket scopes. They had half a dozen perched on monopods and punters were queuing up to try them. I found the 7-22×50 rather appealing. Sure £300 seems a bit steep for a 50mm that probably shouldn't been taken past 18x but matched with a gorillapod it would be perfect for the jacket pocket. Good fun! The x56 was probably OK upto about 20x. Had a little play with their Mini Mak c70mm. That's a lot of fun too for around £100, but not intended to be hauled around the countryside.
David
