What Binoculars?

[jakep]

I have been on my first 'proper' bird watching trip this morning - with U3A.
I was loaned a pair of Praktica Sport 10x25 which I got on very well with. Just looked on Amazon and managed to fry my brain!
Please can anyone recommend a good starter pair of bins at a reasonable price. I know NOTHING!
Thank you

[ladybirder]

Get the best you can afford. My first were Leica which I bought secondhand. Secondhand is worth considering as I got a £1,000 pair in perfect condition for £600. You need a wider vision than 10x25. I would suggest 8x42. Try them out before you buy.

[sunny-dave]

Try before you buy - it's (very) easy to make an expensive mistake.

If you have a local specialist then go and talk to them - my favourites are

http://www.focusoptics.eu/focus/

< declares interest - I live round the corner from them and have been known to have a pint with the owner >

I recently bought a pair of Hawke Sapphire Compact ED 8x25 (approx £180-£200 from various suppliers) and at least one of my bird watching friends borrowed mine for a few minutes & had her own pair by the next weekend.

They are small, light and (very) bright - 8x magnification is a good "walk and look" compromise - and they now come with me on every walk (I even realised they were on my belt last time I was shopping in Aldi, they are so light & inconspicuous).

I also have a pair of Canon 18x50 stabilised bins - stupidly heavy and big, but ideal for sitting quietly in a hide & getting a good look at stuff.

So think about what you want to use your bins for, set yourself a budget & then go and have a play with some different models - nothing beats actually getting your hands/eyes on the hardware. Don't turn your nose up at 'used' either - many people trade in perfectly good 'starter' bins as they develop there interest.

dave

[sunny-dave]

'their' interest.

As ladybirder says, buy the best you can afford - Leica are wonderful, but you do pay a lot for the red spot ...

[ladybirder]

Dave, I just went onto ebay and my Leica bins I mentioned in my first post are on there for £100 more than I paid for them! Wow!

[jakep]

Thank you both for very informative answers.
I will def try before I buy and realise that used is probably the way to go as my budget is very much lower than has been mentioned.
Stupid question alert!
What is the difference in what I actually see between 8x42 and 8x25?

[sunny-dave]

The magnification is the same (8x) but the lens diameter is bigger (42mm instead of 25).

This means that you'll get a wider field of view and also a brighter image. The downside is that they will be bigger (and probably more expensive for similar quality).

"ED" glass has a high transmission rate for light - a 25mm ED lens will often give pretty much the same brightness as a 42mm standard glass lens - but you do still lose the 'wideness' of the view through the 42 gives you.

[gness]

Jake...if your budget is quite limited really consider second hand. My first scope was a better second hand than I could have afforded new. I have many serious birding friends who often trade in fantastic bins for something new on the market....and try before you buy is the best advice on here....enjoy the best hobby in the world! :-)

[jakep]

Dave, thank you. I really understood that. Gness, yes I will go for used.
There is a 'show' every month where I have been today of new & used binoculars. The company is kayoptical.co.uk - I will go to the next sale.
I had a lovely time (north kent) and new to me was a pair of blackcaps.

[ladybirder]

Blackcaps are very pretty jake aren't they.
Glad you're going for secondhand, you will get a much better deal. Mine had belonged to a guy that had to have the latest thing out and would then exchange it again as soon as the next thing came along. His stuff was always immaculate.
Happy Birdwatching:-)

[gness]

Jake....there is a group of people who post on Northants Birds daily so I look at what is in my area every day...great if something unusual pops in. We follow them for Waxwings every winter. See if there is something similar in your area...it's fun x

[Tuvok]

I can recommend a website for you

http://www.strathspey.co.uk/

[carrust]

5yrs ago when my Ziess gave up the ghost I went down to my local camera shop & tried many pairs (leica, zeiss opticron etc). I chose a pair of Nikon monarch for about £300-00. They were just as good as pairs costing over 3 times that amount. If you go to an RSPB reserve ask fellow bird watchers to have a look through their bins, they usually will be more than happy to help you.

[jakep]

ladybirder, thank you. So far it's lovely, early days.
gness, will look for Kent. On holiday in Norfolk, January 2009, we saw a single waxwing.
Tuvok, very helpful link, thank you.
carrust, thank you

[carrust]

Don't mention waxwings in the company of Rowan or Redman1 I had over 80 in my front garden a couple of months ago & they both had a hissy-fit.LOL

[gness]

If anyone knows Carrust would they please smear black shoe polish around the eye pieces of his bins....thank you. Waxwings...80 waxwings....80 flipping waxwings! In his..garden! Harrumph!!!!

[carrust]

Waxwings are still 10 a penny up 'ere in Sheffield, saw a flock the other day not 300yds from my house. More interesting was a displaying goshawk in the peak district a couple of weeks ago. Don't have any red kites though:-(

[seadogg]

It can also depend on age jake, as we get older our eyes cannot accept light so well and higher magnifications - 8 plus are not so good in unsteady hands.
Remember also the golden rule "the best binoculars are the ones you are carrying". Big heavy jobs stay at home and without the lightweight Leica 8 by 25 I always carry, I would have missed a merlin yesterday when out with the dog.

[gness]

Carrust, swap you a few kites for a few waxwings? Did you see Sunny-Dave's film of the kites feeding?

[carrust]

Yep, saw that gness. last time I was in wales I went to the same site....awesome

[jakep]

seadogg, thank you, good point - I do have quite bad arthritis in my thumbs.

Oops, can, worms - or is it waxwings!!