poor eyesight & alpha bins

[ingle1970]

hello forum ,

would it be fair to say that alpha bins are wasted on someone with poor vision ?
what do you think ?

[Kevin Purcell]

No.

I think if someone already has poor vision they need all the help they can get if they still have some useful vision say for birding.

The usual places the "top bins" help out is in difficult light situations (close to the sun or in overcast). They can also be brighter (which may help some ... or possibly hinder others).

I'd try out a range of bins and see when they find easier to use.

Picking the right exit pupil size might be important for some (regardless of overall bin quality). Perhaps lower magnification (7x) might help others.

The details depend on the individual user.

[Sancho]

I suppose it also depends on what kind of poor vision we´re talking about. Coincidentally enough, I had an eye-test today...my optician assures me that binoculars will correct for my mild short-sightedness, but not for my astigmatism. (I guessed this to be the case anyway....;)). I usually wear my glasses when birding, and yes, "alpha" bins are well worth the effort. (P.S: By "alpha", I don´t necessarily mean very expensive...there are lots of optically top-performing binoculars out there that don´t cost the earth).

[mooreorless]

With some forms of low vision the higher the power within reason the better, with a decent EP of course. I know someone that needs 10x to see 20/20 chart.
Regards,Steve

[harold9649]

Hi Sancho
What are your recommendations of top performong binos without paying too much i want to upgrade from by Nikon monarchs also i want to purchase a pair of compacts i also have astigmatism.
Thanks
H

[Sancho]

Hi Sancho
What are your recommendations of top performong binos without paying too much i want to upgrade from by Nikon monarchs also i want to purchase a pair of compacts i also have astigmatism.
Thanks
H
Hi Harold, I´m flattered you´ve asked for my advice but I´m no expert, just a fool who´s bought 14 pairs of binoculars in ten years. So I´ll base my answer on that, and try to be brief, and all is IMHO only!

Starting with full-size roofs, the best optically I´ve owned are Nikon SE 8x32 and Swarovski EL 8.5x42. The former are a tiny bit sharper, contrasty, with a pleasant 3D effect. But the sharpness/contrast difference between the two was a fraction of a hair´s breadth. I sold the SE´s and kept the Swaros because when I tested them against each other, I got better resolution from the latter. This may be because of the extra half degree of mag, or something to do with my eyes. The handling of the EL´s is wonderful, although the SE´s are the best-handling porros I´ve ever owned. Ultimately, after all the amateur "testing", the EL´s gave me more of a relaxed, walk-in, comfortable view, and full field with glasses on. (Again, my eyes only!!!)

The problem is that the EL´s are now phenomenally expensive. You might get a good pair secondhand. Or have a look at the Chinese-made similar models, like Hawke Frontier ED 8x43, or the new Zen-Ray ED 8x43, for a quarter of the price. I´ve never seen these, but the reviews are excellent. Peregrine Steiner Discovery 8x44 is also highly praised.

As to compacts, I now have two Opticrons, the Taiga 8x25 and the DBA Oasis 8x21. Both deliver excellent eye-relief for wearing glasses. The Taigas have a narrow FOV, but they´re exceptionally bright and sharp, and cost under a ton. I use them as knockabout bins, or for the kids. The DBA´s are more expensive, waterproof, roof-prism, and although a bit bigger and heavier than, say Leica Ultravid 8x20, they´re a really nice "fit" for my hands and the rubber-armoured "chunkiness" gives them the comfort of a pair of 8x32 (rather than some other compacts which felt a bit "fiddly"). They are very bright and sharp to the edge, and the real winner is that they have a 7.5 degree field of view, and great eye-relief for glasses-wearers, unmatched in any compact I´ve seen. I used to have the little Leicas, which are optically stunning and really, really small, if that´s what you need. Less ER, though.

So now I pack Swaro EL 8.5x42 and Opticron DBA Oasis 8x21. Neither attract any birds, though, or make the Belmullet Snowy Owl any more accessible....;). Both Swaro and Opticron give superb customer service.
If you want to save lots of money, and got a pair of Zen-Ray ED 8x43 and Opticron Taiga 8x25, you wouldn´t notice any difference while out in the field, I reckon.

I hope this helps, and it comes with the caveat that I haven´t tried all models, have never owned a Zeiss, for example. Check the reviews by the real experts in the forums, and best of luck with your choice!

PS - Harold, something else occurs to me. If you like the Nikon Monarchs, check out the Nikon HGL 8x42. I had these in 8x32 format for a while, and they are wonderful...wide, comfortable, contrasty, sharp "Nikon-view". I think they´re going out of production, and there are good deals available. I also think someone is selling a pair in the "Classifieds" section. Another pair of mid-priced bins that I remember fondly (sold them to a work colleague who still loves them) is the Avian F 8x42, sold by Acecameras in Bath. My problem with them was a narrow field of view, but I think they have been "updated" a few time since so check the specs.

[dustyview]

From my limited testing of several different binoculars, I've noticed a general trend: the more I like the image with corrected vision (glasses on) the better they seem to be with my glasses off (I have some astigmatism, which bins won't really correct). However, it may depend on your particular vision problem. Although I generally keep my glasses on when using bins, there are times (e.g., doing long scans), where it is more comfortable to take them off, so when shopping for a pair of regular 10x and a pair of compacts recently, I tested all pairs both ways. My favorites (Zen ZRS; Swaro EL; Bushnell Custom Compacts) all seemed to have less noticeable astigmatic effect when tested on eyecharts / binocular charts in the dim lighting near the ceilings of the bog-box sporting goods stores (I took my ZRS to a Sportsmans Warehouse during the 30-day return period to test under similar conditions). I do have a pair of Vortex Hurricanes which I like w/glasses but which show my left-eye astigmatism more than others, and they've been collimated by Vortex, so I assume they're performing as well as possible. The alpha compacts (20mm) I tried from Swaro and Leica likewise showed more of my left-eye astigmatism w/glasses off. I think you should try several pairs out to see which work best for you.

EDIT: Re-reading my post makes me wonder whether there might be a relationship between smaller objectives and showing the user's astigmatism more distinctly. Anyone have any input on this?

[harold9649]

Thanks sancho for your reply i alwaays enjoy reading your input it is really appreciated also thanks to others.
H