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Binoculars, monoculars & vision (1 Viewer)

P

Peter Fox

Member
I have read with interest the comments on the size advantage of monoculars verses the preference that some people have for using both eyes. My optician tells me that most people naturally tend to have one eye stronger and clearer than the other such that without us even realising it, the good eye automatically takes priority. Maybe its just me but I have to admit that I cannot say that I can truly see the 3D image advantage that binoculars are supposed to give over a monocular, although I can see when binoculars are not collimated precisely.

I am fascinated to know whether I am unusual in this or whether in fact for most people it is just the relaxation of having both eyes open that kids us into thinking that binoculars are better and easier to use. I understand that professional users of microscopes train themselves to keep both eyes open even though there is only one eye looking down the scope !! Peter
 
Hello Peter,

My experience is that being right eye dominant I may be a natural scope user but find a monocular purely a specialist tool for daytime use only. I have a Nikon Laser 800 S 6x21 which I carry for work and is in effect one of my most used optics.

Although it can sometimes be useful to hold a monocular single handed it may be necessary to brace it to obtain an acceptable view.

For many reasons virtually any binocular will provide a better view.

I know that I'm not kidding myself when I pocket the small optic for good and continue with the bigger double-tube light gatherer later in day ; using a 6x21 in falling light doesn't work for me.

Best wishes,
 
Hello Peter,

Welcome to the forum.

An interesting question, but it might have been better to post it in the general section rather than the Leica forum. Someone might come along and put that right.

Generally people have a dominant eye, the one they would instinctively use with a telescope or when aiming a weapon etc. In my case it's my right eye. I don't know if it ever was my stronger eye but it isn't now. My son on the other hand, is completely ambidextrous and will play snooker one way and aim a bow the other. I know for myself from doing acuity tests at home that I get a better result using two eyes than one alone. I also find the 3-D effect very pronounced with two eyes. So using binoculars I get a sharper three dimensional view than with a monocular or telescope.

However, I've read that it is fairly common for individuals to be so dominant in one eye the other plays no practical role in constructing the view. It doesn't sound that you are that extreme, but by checking the distance you can read print with each and then both eyes you might get some idea if there is a sharpness advantage.

In the days I used monocular microscopes I would keep both eyes open, but we did dim the lights in the room when we could.

Cheers,

David



.
 
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I tried using a monocular, but I found it very annoying.
It felt unnatural to use one eye and I experienced eye strain.
For me, it was not a relaxing exercise and I gave the monocular
away.
 
Thanks for the comments and yes, this is indeed more of a general question (I have only just joined this forum and not yet fully familiar with its workings). Perhaps those who vet these comments might be kind enough to move the string to the general section ?
 
Your comments are interesting. I suppose some people find it easier than others to immediately see 3D in all its glory through binoculars. I wear glasses which I normally but not always remove when using binoculars & re-focus the two eyepieces to suit. It is definitely easier when using both eyes and the view seems somehow wider and more complete, but I can't honestly say that the perspective of the image changes when I close my left (weaker) eye. I suppose for some of us there is a certain amount of eye training in order to see 3D properly at all. I remember that it took me about 15 minutes standing in front of the 3D televisions in Currys before it all clicked and things started leaping out of the screen at me. I have also seen a comment elsewhere on bird-forum that viewing through high-end binoculars gets better after you've been using them for a while. Do others find that is the case?
 
I bought Leica monovid before few months and recently i stopped using my Binoculars altogether
after getting used to it (took pretty long time)

Its got smaller FOV and less relaxed view but much better focus due to using only one eye i can pick up so much more small detail, overtime you learn to become more stable and relaxed with it.

I honestly prefer it i got it with me everywhere i go all the time something i could never do with binoculars
i don't think i will be going back to binoculars.

If you are interested in the monovid which is the best monocular currently in the market you have to know few things

You get very elegant thick high quality leather case but its bulky and useless Imo

You get a screw in close up lens very useful you can use the monocular as a microscope

You get very cheap hand strap & plastic lens cap

i ditched them both and got me 2 Swarovski rifle scope flip up aluminium lens cap and also ditched the case i just carry it in my pocket now without having to worry about the lenses picking up dirt

it is also waterproof

the monocular itself is very durable and feel like tank i am pretty sure it is the best monocular on the market
don't really have anything to say about the lenses they are Leica
expensive but you get what paying for
 
Micahe7 said:
I bought Leica monovid before few months and recently i stopped using my Binoculars altogether
after getting used to it (took pretty long time)

Its got smaller FOV and less relaxed view but much better focus due to using only one eye i can pick up so much more small detail, overtime you learn to become more stable and relaxed with it.

I honestly prefer it i got it with me everywhere i go all the time something i could never do with binoculars
i don't think i will be going back to binoculars.

If you are interested in the monovid which is the best monocular currently in the market you have to know few things

You get very elegant thick high quality leather case but its bulky and useless Imo

You get a screw in close up lens very useful you can use the monocular as a microscope

You get very cheap hand strap & plastic lens cap

i ditched them both and got me 2 Swarovski rifle scope flip up aluminium lens cap and also ditched the case i just carry it in my pocket now without having to worry about the lenses picking up dirt

it is also waterproof

the monocular itself is very durable and feel like tank i am pretty sure it is the best monocular on the market
don't really have anything to say about the lenses they are Leica
expensive but you get what paying for
Click to expand...

Hi Micahe7 and welcome to BF!

Thank you for the excellent review of the Monovid, which I can second wholeheartedly.
Your comment about the case, super sturdy but too big to be practical for a minimalist is spot on, just like your appraisal of the lens cap, which is cheap and noisy when it hits the glass.
Like you I ditched both and just carry the Monovid bare in my pocket, works great as long as there are no coins or keys in there as well. It has the 8x20s optical limitations, but is a wonderful carry anywhere glass.
 
Micahe7 said:
I bought Leica monovid before few months and recently i stopped using my Binoculars altogether
after getting used to it (took pretty long time)

Its got smaller FOV and less relaxed view but much better focus due to using only one eye i can pick up so much more small detail, overtime you learn to become more stable and relaxed with it.

I honestly prefer it i got it with me everywhere i go all the time something i could never do with binoculars
i don't think i will be going back to binoculars.

If you are interested in the monovid which is the best monocular currently in the market you have to know few things

You get very elegant thick high quality leather case but its bulky and useless Imo

You get a screw in close up lens very useful you can use the monocular as a microscope

You get very cheap hand strap & plastic lens cap

i ditched them both and got me 2 Swarovski rifle scope flip up aluminium lens cap and also ditched the case i just carry it in my pocket now without having to worry about the lenses picking up dirt

it is also waterproof

the monocular itself is very durable and feel like tank i am pretty sure it is the best monocular on the market
don't really have anything to say about the lenses they are Leica
expensive but you get what paying for
Click to expand...

Hi Micahe7, and welcome to the forum!

You said: " . . .but much better focus due to using only one eye i can pick up so much more small detail."

I don't doubt for a second that this is true. However, if it is, it is most certainly due to factors others than using two telescope. By using both telescopes, you should have more resolution (owing to the fact that there is an averaging factor afoot relative to the lenses looking through a different set of invisible, and constantly changing, thermal cells. And using both eyes should allow an increase of up to 40% more contrast.

I would say that what you have witnessed is from your not being able to just STARE. This is a problem for MANY observers who have never considered what happens when you don't just stare, and let the bino do its thing.

Our brains are impatient and, given a chance, they will squish or elongate the eyeball via the ciliary muscles around the eye. This is unnatural and causes the user to be constantly refocusing.

When we learn to stare, the problem largely goes away.

Bill
 
We are, by and large, experienced binocularists here, and the two eyed view through an optomechanical device seems like the most natural thing in the world to us. But when I first started using binoculars, I had a very hard time even locating the object, and it was not easy to tell if the thing was even focused or not. Now when I try to use a monocular, I have a very hard time even locating the object, and cannot easily tell if it's even focused or not. I imagine perseverance would pay off.

Skulking about with my Brobdinagian 10x56 binocular, it is amusing to consider that somebody somewhere may be just as happy and see about as much with a 10x25 monocular. Even the small world of optics fanaticism is surprisingly wide. Enjoy!

Ron
 
On the subject of difficulty in locating the object, it is interesting to note that the FOV for the monovid is 110 metres at 1000 metres, which is the same as most 10x42s and 10x50s. That would suggest that it may only be the difficulty in adjusting to use only one eye, and not because of a genuinely narrower field of view.
 
I can't conceive of giving up the two-eye advantages, from signal processing in the brain, by carrying and using a monocular. The "inconvenience" of binoculars is far outweighed by this benefit, I think.
 
Binoculars are better because they are easier to hold steady. However a good portable pocket sized monocular can often come in handy in places where one can't carry a binocular.

Bob
 
There is no substitute for viewing birds in the most natural and comfortable way through a binocular with both eyes. The monovid comes into its own for birding out of hours so to speak, when the very high optical specification appears to provide just as much resolution of detail and breadth of view, albeit at the cost of being a little more tricky to use.
 
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I have just purchased a Monovid. It certainly takes a little getting used to but the image resolution is nothing short of amazing. Although the field of view is 110m at 1000m which is as wide as 10x40s and 10x50s, the apparent viewing angle in the tube still seems quite narrow by comparison. It must just be the way the optics are set up because the field is actually as wide as the specs state. It therefore isn't difficult to locate objects once you've got the nack of using it. I have put the cap on a cable-tie so it automatically blocks out my left eye when in use.
 
" . . . which is as wide as 10x40s and 10x50s . . . "

Hi Peter:

That means the monocular is 10 power. The size of the aperture doesn't effect the field of view. That is determined by the magnification and the size and position of the field stop.

Bill
 
Yes, it did seem odd to me but the monovid is 8x20 and the specs say it has FOV 110m at 1000m. By comparison the FOVs of Leica, Zeiss and Zwarovski 10x42s and 10x50s are all pretty much the same as the Monovid at around 110m and 115m at 1000m. The field widens out a bit to 130m to 140m with the 8x32s and 8x42s. It must be something to to do with the combination of lenses.
 
Peter Fox said:
Yes, it did seem odd to me but the monovid is 8x20 and the specs say it has FOV 110m at 1000m. By comparison the FOVs of Leica, Zeiss and Zwarovski 10x42s and 10x50s are all pretty much the same as the Monovid at around 110m and 115m at 1000m. The field widens out a bit to 130m to 140m with the 8x32s and 8x42s. It must be something to to do with the combination of lenses.
Click to expand...

Beware of specs that you haven't proven for yourself. There are binos that are advertised as 50mm, when the clear aperture is really 46mm, and other calculations make the working reality even smaller. I can be pretty geeky, but I only do it for others. These things aren't a hill of beans to me.

Use your monocular; be happy; leave the "A" types to worry about the inconsequential. Some people are always eager to seek solutions to non-existent problems.

Age will cure most of them.

Bill
 
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