An obstacle to birdwatching
My little binoculars seem to have broken. I can’t get both eyes in focus at the same time. I will have to buy new ones; my “normal” binoculars are simply too heavy to carry around, and even if I try to use them, they’re not ergonomic.
Unfortunately, this brand isn’t sold in the US (I bought this pair in New Zealand 2 years ago), though I suppose the fact that they broke so soon means they weren’t a very well-made product. But they were tiny and light and I’m not sure I can find another pair that portable.
Problem solved!
I bought two (fairly inexpensive) new pairs of binoculars–one very tiny pair of 7×18 binocs (which means they make things look 7 times closer/larger, and the lens is 18mm which has to do with how much light they let in which affects how well you can see what you’re looking at, but also affects the weight and size of the binoculars), and one small pair of 10×25 (which makes things look 10 times closer/larger, and lets in more light with the 25mm lens, but it’s still pretty small and light). Yesterday I tried out the tiny pair down by the bay, and saw some fun birds including black-necked stilts, a snowy egret churning up the muddy water with its feet and then eating whatever it had disturbed, some black phoebes, a whole flock of red-winged blackbirds, and a very disgruntled-dinosaur-looking great blue heron.
Today I tried out the 10×25 pair in my neighborhood. They’re definitely not quite as portable as the tiny ones… but… wow, I was surprised at how good they are! I was able to identify a very distant red-tailed hawk, and had an incredibly detailed view of a Steller’s jay. I’m also pretty sure I saw some tree swallows. I have struggled to identify swallows, but I could hear these ones as they swooped around, and Merlin describes tree swallows as “often giving cheery gurgling calls” which is an accurate description of what I heard.
I’ll have to tag @lies to make sure he sees this post that is very relevant to his interests!
Thanks for tagging me in! I’ve been extra-busy lately, which has been interfering with my ability to keep up with my dash, but updates on your birdwatching are very much at the top of my priority list when I have time for Tumblr.
Binoculars are very important. Having a pair (or pairs) that fit well with your needs makes a huge difference in your birdwatching. Your setup sounds pretty good: a tiny pair that you can have pretty much whenever, so you can take advantage of casual/unexpected birdwatching opportunities; and a larger, but still reasonably light and portable, pair that gives more enjoyable views for when you are doing dedicated birdwatching.
Misaligned binoculars are a real problem. Especially with less-expensive bins, it is very easy to knock the barrels out of alignment. In extreme cases that can make them essentially unusable. In subtle cases it can make viewing uncomfortable and lead to eyestrain and headaches with extended use. Ugh! No one needs that.
Cost is always a factor, at least for someone like me. Growing up I used whatever binoculars I could get, hand-me-downs and fairly unsuitable pairs that had the virtue that they were a) available and b) better then nothing. For much of my adult, casual birdwatching “career” I used a pair of Nikon Monarchs, which are probably the bestselling birdwatching binoculars of all time; there are different models but they tend to cost around $200-$300.
Four or five years ago, as I started getting more into it, I invested in a somewhat more expensive pair: Vortex Viper 8x42s, which cost about $550. The difference it made in my enjoyment was very noticeable. At one point when I needed to return them to the manufacturer for a repair (Vortex’s warranty is amazing) and went back to using my old Nikon Monarchs for a few weeks it felt like a dramatic step down.
When I replace them (which I’ll probably do at some point in the next few years) it will probably be for a really nice pair up in the $1k range, assuming I can afford it. It would have sounded ridiculous to me-of-the-past, but at this point my feeling is one should have the best binoculars one can afford. The difference is real and noticeable, and my birdwatching is important enough to me that I won’t regret paying that price.
I’d love to hear more about your experiences with the new bins!
Reposted from https://lies.tumblr.com/post/652160386363211777.
