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Re: Binocular questions

From:

"George M. Jett"

Reply-To:

George M. Jett

Date:

Sun, 20 Jun 2010 15:30:55 -0400

Karen, et. al.

A couple years ago I had (and still do) substantial lose of vision.  I went 
to the Canon Stabilizer binoculars.  They are very heavy 10 X 42 L IS WP. 
They cost about $1500 but are bright and shape, and keep me in the game of 
birding.  They are also great for pelagics.  Canon now makes a much lighter 
pair of 10 X 30 for around $400 (Canon list them for $590).  I suspect the 
cheaper pair is not as shape, but are very serviceable.  I am planning on 
purchasing a pair to take to Argentina because of the weight factor.  The 10 
X 42 might also be too big for your hands.  Since I only need binoculars to 
find the bird so I can put the camera lens on it, sharpness is not as 
important as it use to be.  I think stabilizer binos will become more 
popular as we age.

George



----- Original Message ----- 
From: "pobrien776" <>
To: <>
Sent: Sunday, June 20, 2010 12:13 PM
Subject: Re: [MDOSPREY] Binocular questions


Karen,

I dropped from 10s to 8.5s a long time ago because of stability issues. As 
one , uh, "matures" it becomes harder to hold a binocular steady, and 
stability can give you more detail than magnification. Try this experiment: 
look at a distant object freehand, then look again with the binocular 
steadied on a tree trunk or fence post. You will see much more detail when 
it is steadied. If you have any shakiness in your hands, the difference can 
be significant. In fact I'm beginning to wonder if 7s wouldn't be even 
better than 8s. My bottom line is that 10s are for the young, but maybe not 
for the young at heart.

Paul O'Brien
Rockville, Mont. Co., MD

On Jun 19, 2010, at 8:36:25 PM, "Karen Morley" <> wrote:

From:   "Karen Morley" <>
Subject:    [MDOSPREY] Binocular questions
Date:   June 19, 2010 8:36:25 PM EDT
To: 
Hi everyone,

I am considering a new pair of binocs and have some questions regarding the 
differences between 8x42 and 10x42 (yes, I know they are different 
magnifications). I'm more concerned about stability - but if they weigh the 
same, is there really any difference in stablilty in the field? I tried a 
friend's 10x42s at the convention and found it hard to hold them steady for 
any length of time. I don't have that trouble with my current Swarovski 
8x32s - still great binocs after 17 years - but I expect they are quite a 
bit lighter than the newer hi tech models. Any thoughts? Thanks,

Karen


Karen Morley
kdmorley at yahoo dot com