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Where premium quality meets exceptional value. ZEISS Conquest HDX.

I do not like green cast and ham - 10x alpha redux (1 Viewer)

Look Dennis, I know I stand up for Zeiss all the time but I its very rare that I don't like other bins that I try. But having tried other brands in the past like Swift (1), Leica (2) and Swarovski (1) I just prefer Zeiss.

Now Meopta is a new brand for me to try and I am testing an 8x32 right now and although I think I know what you mean by chunky, I find that it handles and functions really sweetly. So actually it is the ergonomics that I found really nice and the optics are great too. Even Troubadoris likes it and normally she just sticks to her Leicas.

Lee
Hmm. I will have to try a Meopta. Troubadoris likes Leica's. For their compact size or optics?
 
3:)
Dennis

You should get this set to music by Andrew Lloyd Webber and turned into a Broadway musical.

And I am only joking a little bit, its quite a poetic evocation of why we try new things.

Lee
I know. After I wrote it I thought it sounded like the prologue in every Star Trek episode as said by Captain Kirk:

"Space: the final frontier. These are the voyages of the starship Enterprise. Its five-year mission: To explore strange new worlds, to seek out new life and new civilizations, to boldly go where no man has gone before."

Except replace some of the words:

"Bird Forum: the final frontier. These are the voyages of the binocular fanatic Dennis. His ten-year mission: To explore strange new binoculars, to seek out new bargains on optics and test new models , to boldly go where no man has gone before or would want to go and sometimes irritate people on Bird Forum doing it."
 
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This is so true. The Seiko watch I am wearing just now was a cheap one and it is so scratched you wouldn't believe, but those scratches we all made when we have been rock-pooling and taking photos of inter-tidal marine life. When we are back home I like to look at the scratches and remember how they got there.

This last week I had to replace my DSLR camera and the new one (same model) came with a new strap but I put the strap on from my old camera. Its the same design but its been places and we've seen stuff and photo'd it so I figure the old strap has a bit of my life invested in it and will bring me a bit of luck down the line with the new camera. OK its crazy voodoo but its just a bit of sentimental foolishness.

Lee
Seiko! Seiko! Those are expensive. I wear a Casio G-Shock.
 
Not everyone, I'm perfectly happy with the Conquest HD, drive a 10 year old Toyota Tacoma, and drink cheap beer, I carry a 20 year old Spyderco pocket knife given to me by a friend, I have better knives, but they rarely leave the shoebox. Because when I look at the Spyderco, I think of my compadre. I find something that works well for me, and then go about making memories with it. I can look at dings, worn paint and scratches on everything I own, and I can tell you what I was doing when it happened.

The objects are tools to do what I want to, or need to. Good tools are really great, but I have found the very best in anything is only a slight improvement from very good.
A Conquest HD is a great binocular and a great bargain. The Toyota Tacoma is a great truck. You are right in that oftentimes it is not worth the cost for that last 5% of improvement.
 
3:)
I know. After I wrote it I thought it sounded like the prologue in every Star Trek episode as said by Captain Kirk:

"Space: the final frontier. These are the voyages of the starship Enterprise. Its five-year mission: To explore strange new worlds, to seek out new life and new civilizations, to boldly go where no man has gone before."

Except replace some of the words:

"Space: the final frontier. These are the voyages of the binocular fanatic Dennis. Its five-year mission: To explore strange new binoculars, to seek out new bargain on optics and new models , to boldly go where no man has gone before or would want to go and sometimes irritate people on Bird Forum doing it."

OK Dennis thats enough of that thankyou. If you are not careful you will be dancing on tables in bars next. :eek!:

Lee
 
OK, here’s one last contribution to this thread from me: three binoculars with three different color biases photographed in front of the same piece of sunlit white paper in the usual way.

Left is a Swarovski Habicht 8x30 from around 1989 with “Transmax” 2-layer coating. Visually, it has the strongest color bias of any binocular in my collection.

Middle is a CZJ 8x50 Octarem with T3M multicoating from about the same time.

Right is a Nikon 8x30 EII from about 2004.

I also decided to throw in one more comparison photo. This was a quick and dirty effort with the window light the just happened to be there. The bottom binocular is a Zeiss 8x42 HT and the top is a Sightron 8x32 Blue Sky II. On my monitor it’s quite apparent which one has a strong red bias.

I hope the biases in these particular binoculars are strong enough to be obvious on everyone’s computer screens. I know this method doesn’t achieve laboratory grade accuracy, but so far it has never failed to sensibly duplicate the color biases of binoculars as my eyes see them. It seems to be robust enough to deliver the goods even when only a feeble effort is made to control conditions, as in the Sightron photo.

Henry
 

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Q1: what is the perceived color (to the naked eye) of a reference white tile on an overcast day?

Q2: On 4pm of a sunny Appalachian July day,
what is the perceived color of a reference flat black tile 150yds away,
in smog from distant cars or nearby pines?

Hint: White and Black are the wrong answers.
 
;)
OK, here’s one last contribution to this thread from me: three binoculars with three different color biases photographed in front of the same piece of sunlit white paper in the usual way.

Left is a Swarovski Habicht 8x30 from around 1989 with “Transmax” 2-layer coating. Visually, it has the strongest color bias of any binocular in my collection.

Middle is a CZJ 8x50 Octarem with T3M multicoating from about the same time.

Right is a Nikon 8x30 EII from about 2004.

I also decided to throw in one more comparison photo. This was a quick and dirty effort with the window light the just happened to be there. The bottom binocular is a Zeiss 8x42 HT and the top is a Sightron 8x32 Blue Sky II. On my monitor it’s quite apparent which is dimmer and has a strong red bias.

I hope the biases in these particular binoculars are strong enough to be obvious on everyone’s computer screens. I know this method doesn’t achieve laboratory grade accuracy, but so far it has never failed to largely duplicate the color biases of binoculars as my eyes see them. It seems to be robust enough to deliver the goods even when only a feeble attempt is made to control conditions, as in the Sightron photo.

Henry
Wow! The older Habicht has a STRONG yellow bias and the Sightron has a STRONG red bias. The Nikon EII has a slight red bias about what I normally see through Nikon's. The Octarem has a pretty strong green bias. The Zeiss HT is pretty much neutral but it does have a VERY slight green bias but nowhere near the SF. If you don't like the green bias it would be a better choice than the SF. Henry, I feel your photo's are accurate because these color biases are what I have seen through these binoculars with my eyes. Good representation and really nice photos..:t:
 
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OK, here’s one last contribution to this thread from me: three binoculars with three different color biases photographed in front of the same piece of sunlit white paper in the usual way.

Left is a Swarovski Habicht 8x30 from around 1989 with “Transmax” 2-layer coating. Visually, it has the strongest color bias of any binocular in my collection.

Middle is a CZJ 8x50 Octarem with T3M multicoating from about the same time.

Right is a Nikon 8x30 EII from about 2004.

I also decided to throw in one more comparison photo. This was a quick and dirty effort with the window light the just happened to be there. The bottom binocular is a Zeiss 8x42 HT and the top is a Sightron 8x32 Blue Sky II. On my monitor it’s quite apparent which one has a strong red bias.

I hope the biases in these particular binoculars are strong enough to be obvious on everyone’s computer screens. I know this method doesn’t achieve laboratory grade accuracy, but so far it has never failed to sensibly duplicate the color biases of binoculars as my eyes see them. It seems to be robust enough to deliver the goods even when only a feeble effort is made to control conditions, as in the Sightron photo.

Henry

Henry:

Thanks for your efforts, this time it really shows some differences that
anyone can clearly see. All 3 photo groups are well done, and this was
worth the effort.

The earlier examples were very close to call, by adding the older Swaro.
it does help to see the color bias.

Jerry
 
3:)

"Bird Forum: the final frontier. These are the voyages of the binocular fanatic Dennis. His ten-year mission: To explore strange new binoculars, to seek out new bargains on optics and test new models , to boldly go where no man has gone before or would want to go and sometimes irritate people on Bird Forum doing it."

Quite true Denis. I found one of your little gems from some years back http://www.birdforum.net/showpost.php?p=928986&postcount=4

I would sell my dog before I would sell my Leica 7x42 BN's!

Dennis

Did you sell both the Leica and the dog to the same buyer? :cat:
 
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2005. That dog died but I have a new one. The Leica 7x42 BN's are gone too. New dog and new binoculars. I am surprised you found that old post. Wow!:clap:

Sorry about your dog. I stumbled across your post searching 7x42 bins. I recently ended up buying a 7x42 Bausch & Lomb Discoverer. I really like the 7x42 format even though the Discoverers have significant edge distortion. The positives are steady image and DOF. I would love to try the Zeiss FL 7x42 which by all accounts is amazing.
 
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