• Welcome to BirdForum, the internet's largest birding community with thousands of members from all over the world. The forums are dedicated to wild birds, birding, binoculars and equipment and all that goes with it.

    Please register for an account to take part in the discussions in the forum, post your pictures in the gallery and more.
ZEISS DTI thermal imaging cameras. For more discoveries at night, and during the day.

Want to buy my Dad binoculars (1 Viewer)

P

PleaseAdvise

New member
I'm not entirely sure how to go about finding what I'm looking for & found myself here, thought to ask you fine people for opinions & information.

I'm looking for something that will allow my Dad to look across the water from his front room to a distance roughly 2 miles to 2&1/2 miles away (roughly 3.2 to 4 kilometers)... I have no idea what to look for in a pair of binoculars that would do that for him. I'd like for him to be able to read text on signs, boats & whatnot as well as see people's faces. He'd be looking out onto a pier that's got a fair amount of tourism & activity, along with the goings on in the water between his place & there.

I'd sincerely appreciate any advise, opinions or information that could be shared with me in finding a good pair of binoculars for him. I know this isn't exactly bird watching specific but for all I know he might take to watching the gulls & how they interact with the seals out there. I just know he likes to look out on the water, people watch & this could help him enjoy that.

Thanks for taking the time!
 
For that distance, you really want a spotting scope. But, if you really want a binocular, then it would be helpful to know what your budget is, and if you/he would be willing to use a high-power bino mounted on a tripod.
 
It is nice that you are getting something enjoyable for your dad to allow him to enjoy seeing more of the world.
Optics are wonderful and lasting gifts, really some of the finest precision gear you can buy.
Binoculars are great, but have limitations for useful magnification, because a person has difficulty holding a 12x or higher power glass steady enough to view things through comfortably. For seeing people at 2 miles range, you need higher power optics, something in the 30-50x power range. Otherwise, even with binoculars it will be like watching people further away than in the other end zone.
For observations at 2 miles range, a spotting scope on a tripod is the most practical option.
Note that the main advantage of spotting scopes over telescopes is that they give an image that is right side up and not flipped. Note also that scopes have a much narrower field of view than binoculars, so it is more peering through an opening than surveying the area.
If money is no object, Swarovski offers superb scopes with a binocular viewer for several thousand dollars.
At the other end of the spectrum, Celestron sells decent scopes in the $100+ class, tripod extra. In between are many other suppliers, many of which you can personally check out in your area at Anacortes Outdoors.
http://www.anacortesoutdoor.com

Good luck in your quest!
 
Welcome.

If he is strong a Canon 15x50 IS might be useful, but a spotting scope with a good quality zoom eyepiece would be better. 20x to 60x approx. Sturdy tripod.
 
At that range it needs to be a scope and tripod. Try something like the Opticron MM4 and zoom lens. If your budget it much less that $700 you will not be able to achieve what you want.
 
Actually a Skywatcher astro refractor, 100mm or 120mm aperture with a focal length of 1000mm on a heavy altazimuth tripod will do just what is wanted.
With a 45 deg erect image prism. Either supplied eyepieces or a good zoom eyepiece.

Cost £200 to £400.

Half this price good secondhand.
 
I would agree with Binoastro the cheapest route would be an astro refractor. I took this picture with an Orion 100ED of an overlook on a small mountain I can see from my back porch. 2.8 miles away on a not super clear day.
 

Attachments

  • doe and overlook site 014crop (Large) cloak.jpg
    doe and overlook site 014crop (Large) cloak.jpg
    353.5 KB · Views: 186
Last edited:
Hi mooreorless.
You are showing detail of about 2 inches, perhaps, at 2.8 miles.

With my 120mm f/8.3 David Hinds made objective scope I could see detail of about 1 inch, maybe a touch larger, at 4.7 miles at 3a.m. on many occasions. At 250x. Also tried 330x with Clave (Paris?) eyepiece, but no improvement.
During the day it varied enormously. I could use 30x to 150x depending on the Seeing.

The Dad is observing from his front room over water. This could be very good depending on the season or time of day. I think Seattle may not be very hot?
It could be better with an open window or a closed selected glass window, finding the sweetest spot. With a closed window it is temperature controlled and no air currents. Only the boundary layer outside the window.
There are some astro observatories closed, looking through fine glass windows.
 
Hi, will chip my two pennyworth in, have you a budget in mind ? I would say that a large tripod mounted observation binocular would give great views, I find being old that it is easier to use two eyes, and also angled eyepieces are more comfortable for me, something with 1.25" eye pieces which can be changed to different magnifications, like the Helios Quantum-5 Observation Binocular 20/40x100 or if you want to really splash out the Helios Quantum-7.4 Observation Binocular 25x100.
I have a 20x70 large binocular with angled EPs and a variety of interchangeable EPs and find it better than a scope, maybe not so easy to carry about and set up as a scope for birding, but from a static location thats not a problem.
Anyway, something to consider.
Good luck.
 
Bencw said:
Hi, ... I would say that a large tripod mounted observation binocular would give great views, I find being old that it is easier to use two eyes......
I have a 20x70 large binocular with angled EPs and a variety of interchangeable EPs and find it better than a scope, maybe not so easy to carry about and set up as a scope for birding, but from a static location thats not a problem.
Anyway, something to consider.
Good luck.
Click to expand...

The point about it being easier to use two eyes is important.
Clearly the OPs dad would enjoy his sea watch sessions a lot more if he can just observe normally, rather than needing to squint looking through a single eye piece. Kowa and Docter offer very high quality high power binoculars, sadly both in the multi thousand dollar range.
http://www.kowa-prominar.com/product/binoculars/highlander.html

http://www.docter-germany.de/en/products/prod/cat/observation-spyglass/prod/aspectem-80-500-ed.html

Both these glasses have had expert reviews here on BF. I think there are much less costly offerings available, but have not seen any reviews.
 
Hi,

first of all, welcome to birdforum!

Frankly, I'm not sure if the o.p. overestimates what optics can do - one of the deliverables was to "see peoples faces" which I understand as recognize peoples faces. With the unaided eye 20m is about the limit for identifying faces - nota bene, just the face, not a whole person, which might give a lot more clues.

https://faculty.washington.edu/gloftus/Downloads/LoftusHarleyDistance.pdf

So to do this at 3.2km we need 160x magnification (possibly more since this is a best case scenario with a quite optimistic 20m for recognizing faces and the lowest estimate of distance given by the o.p), which is not going to happen with binoculars or even a spotting scope.

Even with an astro scope this needs a good instrument and good seeing (the water should help with that if it's not too hot).

The Synta ED 100/900 mentioned above would be a good bet for trying this - I happen to own one too and when not used for stargazing, it's behind my bedroom window overlooking the river and the bird sanctuary at the far bank - this is around 170m according to google maps.
When using a 5mm Nagler this gives 180x and I'm eye to eye with the birds over there, but often the less than optimal seeing results in a blurry image. Also the image is not very bright with an exit pupil of a bit over 0.5mm - good light is needed and floaters in my eyes are clearly visible.

I also can put that same scope on the balcony and watch people sitting on their balconies in a highrise building about 1km away at 180x - faces are easily recognizable then.
I'm not sure though, if I could do it at three times the distance with that scope... the spatial resolution of a 100mm instrument at 3200m is 23mm...

Joachim
 
Last edited:
I read the paper with interest. Well at least some of it.

Witness evidence is notoriously unreliable.

An acquaintance of mine used the transport system for a very long time with a photo I.D. He deliberately stuck a photo of a pig over his photo to find out when this would be spotted. He was never challenged.
 
I watched the Manchester concert on BBC i player last night.
A man being interviewed recognised his daughter in the crowd, probably at 80m or more.
I think there were about 50,000 people there.

A six at cricket there is probably 90m plus.
He probably saw her head and shoulders rather than just her face.
 
Binastro said:
He probably saw her head and shoulders rather than just her face.
Click to expand...

Hi,

this is the crucial part - he knows she must be there and maybe even the block.

And he searches for the hair and clothes and bingo, there she is. But that has nothing to do with recognizing a face...

Joachim
 
Binastro said:
Hi mooreorless.
You are showing detail of about 2 inches, perhaps, at 2.8 miles.

With my 120mm f/8.3 David Hinds made objective scope I could see detail of about 1 inch, maybe a touch larger, at 4.7 miles at 3a.m. on many occasions. At 250x. Also tried 330x with Clave (Paris?) eyepiece, but no improvement.
During the day it varied enormously. I could use 30x to 150x depending on the Seeing.

The Dad is observing from his front room over water. This could be very good depending on the season or time of day. I think Seattle may not be very hot?
It could be better with an open window or a closed selected glass window, finding the sweetest spot. With a closed window it is temperature controlled and no air currents. Only the boundary layer outside the window.
There are some astro observatories closed, looking through fine glass windows.
Click to expand...

Binastro,

I tried my Nikon 82 ED Nikon with the zoom at 82x and had a very good view of the same area as my picture link I posted. It is quite a bit better with this scope and these condition, also w/o trying to take pictures. I don't have any area that I can see from my place at 2 miles instead of the almost 3 miles of the picture and what I am seeing. I think the OP should try to rent a big spotter etc. to try.
 
Hi mooreorless.

Which is normally better visually, terrestrially and astro, the Orion 100ED or the Nikon 82D?

What range of magnifications do you use terrestrially and visually?

When are the best conditions terrestrially and how many really good days a year do you get?

Are you near sea level or quite high up?

I hope not too many questions, and fine if a short answer.

I am interested in what conditions people experience in different locations.
 
Binastro I only got this Nikon 82 ED recently so can not really tell you. I would think the 100ED refractor would spank this 82ED. Elevation here 741 ft. the overlook [the picture]on Stone Mt. is about 2060ft. high. It seems the Fall and Spring are the best for viewing here. Winter is ok, but it does get cold here.
 
Thanks.
I think that spring and fall (autumn) are best most places with more stable temperatures.

You are not at high elevation.

So it seems the astro scope is better, or at least more capable at revealing detail, as I would expect, but less compact and probably not waterproof.
 
Warning! This thread is more than 7 years ago old.
It's likely that no further discussion is required, in which case we recommend starting a new thread. If however you feel your response is required you can still do so.

Similar threads

J
Which binoculars to buy?
Replies
5
Views
922
exup
E
G
Binocular recommendations???
Replies
14
Views
2K
Marina Foster
M
J
New birder in GA trying to figure out where to buy binoculars where I can try them out.
Replies
11
Views
481
Trinovid
T
L
Upgrade to mid-range price binoculars
2
Replies
26
Views
3K
Rufus1401
R
M
The best binoculars
3 4 5
Replies
90
Views
6K
Trinovid
T

Users who are viewing this thread

Total: 2 (members: 0, guests: 2)
Back
Top