The question I’m often asked when someone sees an abnormally large or expensive pair of binoculars is “How far can you see with these?” I usually start off by saying, “I can see Jupiter, so about 400 million miles.” That sounds impressive, except I can see Jupiter with any pair of binoculars and even with the naked eye. The question becomes how clear I can see Jupiter, or better still objects on our planet.
For anyone interested in taking a look at Jupiter, near dawn it’s the brightest object, now low in the east and with a reasonable 7-10 power you could see some of it’s moons. There are 63 moons, you might see the 4 largest depending on the arrangement, they will be 4 small dots in a line out from the equator. More important than extra large or expensive binoculars is stability, even the slightest movement will make it impossible to see these moons. If you have a tripod that would be great, but you could arrange pillows to support your binoculars so you don’t have to touch them.
And that folks, is the extent of my knowledge on astronomy and some of that I had to look up.
Most people I come across are looking for binoculars for birding or other earthly viewing. Binoculars specifically meant for astronomy are usually too big to carry around your neck or too powerful to hold without the aid of a tripod. To get the extra power required for identifying distant birds, most people choose a spotting scope which is basically one barrel of a binocular, it’s more compact and cheaper than buying both barrels.
When thinking about an expensive pair of binoculars it’s important to keep in mind what is usually referred to as “the law of diminishing returns”, that is, after a certain point, every time you double the price you may only increase the quality by a few percent. Sometimes it’s hard to justify the price on the most expensive binoculars.
Q. I can’t get used to using my binoculars with my glasses on, is there something I’m doing wrong?
A. When you are wearing your glasses you should fold the rubber cups down, this allows the eyepiece to come that much closer to your eye. Most new binoculars are being made with dial down eyecups. This makes it easier to go back and forth between glasses on or off, a nice feature when sharing binoculars or if you occasionally want to use binoculars with sunglasses; a good idea if you’re viewing over water on a bright day. If you fold the rubber up and down a lot, they eventually crack at the base. I just cut mine off as I’m the only one using them and I wear glasses. Otherwise you could get replacements from the company.
Some binoculars have what is referred to as long eye relief or high eye point, this is the distance you can hold your binoculars from your eyes and still see the full field of view. It’s written as a distance in millimeters, and the longer the distance the more likely they will be good for eyeglass wearers. If you lost the literature, you can usually tell by the length of the eyecups, they are made to hold the binoculars at the optimum distance from your eyes.
FYI: Long eye relief is considered a good feature in a birding binocular, this isn’t because they are easier on the eyes, it’s because most birders are old and therefore must require glasses. Don’t shoot the messenger, it isn’t my idea.
Q. This may sound strange but, my binoculars are floppy. It’s really quite annoying, is there anything I can do to tighten them up?
A. I see Floppy Binocular Syndrome quite often. It can strike any pair of binoculars at any time, no matter the make or model. I agree, it’s a real pain in the eyes, you can never hold your binoculars with one hand and you are constantly aware of keeping them at the correct spacing. The cause is still unknown but there is a cure. Depending on your binocular you may be able to tighten the hinge yourself, keeping in mind you may be voiding a warranty if you screw up, or you may want to send them back to the company. (This has always been a free service, the tightening not the postage.) Usually people will try tightening the screw at the front end of the hinge, this is just a cap and should be removed. Under this you’ll see the quarter inch threaded hole for the tripod adaptor, on the sides of this you may see 2 small holes. So far, so good, no warranty is void. I use a snap ring plier, available at any hardware store, put a prong in each hole and tighten the inside nut, this usually does the trick.
If you can’t get it tightened yourself and don’t want to send them back, there is a new product called the binocular hinge lock that would keep your binoculars at the correct distance. The hinge lock is great if you’re the only one using them (or if your partner has the same eye spacing as you) every time you take them out of your pack they’re at the right setting, and is especially handy if you’re carrying something like a tripod in one hand. The hinge lock is inexpensive and simply screws into the tripod adaptor hole, you find the correct spacing and tighten.
Q. How important is it to have a waterproof binocular?
A. It’s only important if you get them wet. Sorry... it used to be that waterproofing was a very expensive feature. Now it seems most decent models are waterproof/fogproof and the prices are lower than ever, so I would absolutely recommend waterproof. Even if you don’t get them wet they won’t fog internally, I know someone who travelled to Costa Rica on a birding trip and couldn’t use his very expensive binoculars because they fogged up in the rain forest’s humidity.
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