Customer Reviews

Sony VCL-DH1774 74mm 1.7x Tele Conversion lens for Sony DSC-H7/H9/H50 Digital Still Cameras

5 star:		(11)
4 star:		(5)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

I love my Sony DSC H7 cybershot and bought it primarily for taking wildlife shots for work. I've bought several accessories for it, but out of all, I never go anywhere without the tele-conversion lens. I worried that I might get blurry images with the lens, but I was still able to get quality clear and focused shots.

The DSC-H7 is a small and light camera, perfect for my small frame... but I did find that the lens added considerable weight to the camera. I also would recommend using a tripod because the slightest movement will result in a blurry image. Either that, or stand very very still and don't breathe as you press the shutter!

In my hoby, I need all the zoom I can have, it is birds watching and photograp of birds, you know, birds are really tiny and use to be very far away from the camera, but my teleconverter 1.7x really improbes the zoom of my camera and I can bring them really near to my eyes. The best thing is that it doesn't reduce the quality of the photos you can make. in brief, really improbe the zoom, do not reduce quality, easy to use.

OK, if I were a 16 year old girl instead of a 59 year old man the subject line of this review might be "OMG! OMG!" I cannot get over how well this teleconverter works with my DSC-H50 with its Super Steady Shot! I am not a professional, but I am an avid amateur. I own several 35mm bodies and lenses up to 400mm plus 2x and 3x converters. I am very familiar with the problems of taking photos with longer zoom lenses with and without tripods.

To be able to use Smart Zoom with the teleconverter on the H50, do not change the settings to tell the camera you are using the teleconverter. This will allow the Smart Zoom to give you an amazing 137x total zoom at the VGA (640x480) resolution. Granted, this resolution does not give the absolute best image, but I am amazed at what a great image it does produce. Admittedly, I have been kind of pushing the envelope to see just what the camera and lens were capable of. Today I took some images I could not believe were possible. Braced carefully, but still handheld, I took a picture of a parked car over 600 feet from my building (I paced it off) from my 17th floor office. The license plate was very clear. With care, I could probable have stretched it out to 1000ft and still have been able to make out the plate with in-camera zoom. Don't get me wrong. I don't care about license plates; it was just a handy test of picture clarity. As I was showing the camera to a co-worker he saw a pigeon light on a building a full city block away. All I could see was a dark speck, but I zoomed in, and snapped off a completely handheld shot, no bracing at all. The pigeon was recognizable. With any steadying at all I'm sure it would have been a clear image.

I have not tried any of the higher resolution settings that limit the Smart Zoom significantly, but I am sure the lens will produce great images. A tripod would produce even better images at extreme zoom, but I am amazed at the results handheld with decent bracing.

This lens is a great accessory for the Sony DSC-H50.

good deal, put me close to the action, my sons wrestling years will be forever in digital pictures, with close ups of his facial expressions during takedowns. even from the top bleechers.

I purchased this lens for my Sony DSC-H50. Adding another 10x to my 15x optical zoom is really quite beneficial. I like to take bird pics on my property and that additional bit can really make the shot. I wish I had it when I had my dove nest!

I have always had good experiences with Sony lenses for the quality of the manufacturing as well as the quality of the glass, and this is no exception.

It does add some serious weight to the camera so I find that my tabletop tripods are not able to support it, but it works brilliantly with a full-size tripod. If anybody out there knows of a super heavy duty tabletop tripod that can support the weight, I would appreciate the information greatly.

The only pain for me, and this is probably a non-issue for some, is that I cannot go quickly back and forth between using it and removing it for closer shots because of having to do a setting change in the camera's menu. To use the lens (with my camera anyway) I must go into the menu and change the setting from no lens to either tele or wide (I have both). With my old, granted not nearly as good, digi cam I could just pull off the lens and keep shooting.

Over all, however, I would absolutely recommend this lens. I got mine at etronics for the best price I could find at the time, plus a $[...], for a bottom line price of $[...]!

Just got back from an Alaskan vacation and the lens worked well, it gave me that extra distance for the wildlife photos I wanted. I have also used it for some action shots from a soccer field sideline and I am happy with the results. I use it with a DSC-H50.

Without the Telepohto the effective 35mm focal length is 465mm at 8.1 megapixel but it becomes an astounding 790mm with it. Want to get really crazy? When the image size is set to 5 megapixels, the camera can zoom to 18x. When set to 3 megapixels, it is set to 23x. In the 2-megapixel widescreen mode, the H7 can zoom to 25x. At the smallest 640 x 480-pixel size, users can zoom up to 76x! Then add the Telephoto - good luck getting a blur-free pic though.

Autofocus doesn't track fast moving subjects well unless you use manual focus which is klugy at best. But if you stay within the camera and lens limitations you can't beat this combo for the price. I take this combo on long hikes instead of my Nikon D300 w/18-200MM VR lens and am very happy with the results. Most people can't tell if they were taken with the D300 or the Sony.

I ordered this for a good friend of mine. I have been amazed with the results. I shoot with a Canon 40D DSLR and to get anything close to this reach costs 10x as much. He has shown me hand-held indoor shots from a high school basketball game that blew my mind. Sharp, punchy results right out of the camera. I would highly recommend this for anyone with a compatible camera looking for more reach.

For Christmas, I purchased the Sony DSC-H7/H9 Digital camera and we were so pleased with it. Then we decided to go with the Sony VCL-DH1774 74mm 1.7x lens so that we would be able to take clearer pictures of wildlife. We are really pleased with the quality of pictures we get using this lens. We can hardly wait for our trip to Yellowstone this summer!!!

I had previously bought another tele lens for my H7 camera but was really dissapointed with the low quality pictures i was getting out of it. Then i figured i'd spend a little more getting something from sony themselves and decided to get this one.
After i took my first picture i just stored the cheaper lens i had bought and to date have no clue as to its whereabouts.
This is a great product, not produced anymore i guess because sony's got the newer nEX cameras on the market, but you will probably be amazed at the quality of the pictures you can get from it.