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 |