There's no doubt whatsoever in my mind that Canon's EOS 1V is the best camera in production in the world currently with superior resistance to harsh weather conditions, such as pouring rain. Vastly superior to Nikon's F5. However my question is whether anyone has any practical experience as to whether any of Canon's lenses are ideally suited to an equal level of "weather engineering"? I've scoured Canon's literature and the usual web sites, only to see next to nothing on this topic. Can any lens be used in heavy rain without water seepage and fog/internal humidity becoming a factor? Any opinions would be appreciated.

-- Charles Hansen (charleshansen@aol.com), December 09, 2001

Answers

Well the new IS telephoto lenses have improved gaskets and seals (even on the lens mount) for better waterproofing. I don't think any of the shorter lenses do though. I'd be very nervous about using ANY lens in heavy rain without added protection (rain hood). I don't think any are sealed well enough to prevent internal fogging under severe conditions.

I'd treat the camera and lens waterprofing as backup protection in case of leakage through a rain hood or for giving you some protection if you HAVE to briefly shoot without a hood.

-- Bob Atkins (bobatkins@hotmail.com), December 09, 2001.

As Bob noted, the newer IS lenses are gasketed for weather resistance. Until fairly recently, this only included the big tele IS lenses. More recently, this has come to include the new 70- 200/2.8L IS and the forthcoming 16-35/2.8L. This is probably going to be "standard equipment" on future L-series lenses. I believe Canon claim that when attached to an EOS 1V or 1D, the lens and camera combination are downpour-resistant. Not every L lens is so well sealed! On Canon's website, gasketed lenses are noted with wording such as "this fast zoom is also highly resistant to dust and moisture" as was the case with the info on the 70-200/2.8L IS. The 70-200/2.8 non-IS does not have this wording.

http://www.usa.canon.com/eflenses/lineup/telephotozoom/index.html

-- Peter Phan (pphan01@hotmail.com), December 09, 2001.

Thanks, guys for all the info. Possibly Canon should position this information a little more prominently, to complement the excellent attributes of the 1V's weather capability. Really appreciate all the data you provided.

-- Charles Hansen (charleshansen@aol.com), December 10, 2001.

The Canon rep stated that at a demo he saw another rep completely dunk an EOS 1D {basicly a 1V} along with the new 70-200 in a bucket of water and then proceeded to take pictures. Our rep also sugested not to try this with our own equipment. He did say {but did not guarantee} that it would hold up to rain. I was persistant and asked Downpour? "Yes, but not guaranteed." Side ways rain? "Yes, but not guaranteed. So they say it weather resistant but are carefull not to give limits. Weather resistand has many differest definitions in the camera world. My best advice is to check the warranty and see if it covers water damage. Also make sure your equipment has insurance that covers water damage and not just loss or theft.

-- john (dogspleen@juno.com), December 11, 2001.