So I have been asking on the forum a lot of questions about the Leica Noctivids, and I wanted to just let people know that I ended up buying a pair of Zeiss Victory SF 10x42 binoculars from my local birding shop, "One Good Tern."
The owner of this establishment had a wide selection of binoculars available, including a few SW and Zeiss alpha bins. I was able to try the Zeiss SF and EL 8x5x42. The view through the Zeiss was so impressive that I bought it on the spot.
For me, the image was just astounding with no hint of rollerball. Bright, comfortable, well-balanced, wide FOV, sharp, no CA, excellent focuser. Wow. This was compared to the EL, which had (to my eyes) extreme pincusion distortion evident when panning (rollerball). I also tried the 'lesser' Zeiss Conquest and it was no contest.
I am very much looking forward to birding with these new bins.
Thanks to everyone who was patient in answering my questions and providing all manners of information and opinion on here.
The owner of this establishment had a wide selection of binoculars available, including a few SW and Zeiss alpha bins. I was able to try the Zeiss SF and EL 8x5x42. The view through the Zeiss was so impressive that I bought it on the spot.
For me, the image was just astounding with no hint of rollerball. Bright, comfortable, well-balanced, wide FOV, sharp, no CA, excellent focuser. Wow. This was compared to the EL, which had (to my eyes) extreme pincusion distortion evident when panning (rollerball). I also tried the 'lesser' Zeiss Conquest and it was no contest.
I am very much looking forward to birding with these new bins.
Thanks to everyone who was patient in answering my questions and providing all manners of information and opinion on here.
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