• 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.

Search results

thxpress_search_the_forum Search Opus
  1. B

    Celestron TrailSeeker ED 8x42 Binocular Review

    I've had these for a while, and they are optically fine, even pretty good. But the focus mechanism is prone to rusting up and becoming difficult to operate over time. They have a strong warranty, so getting them replaced is possible. The company isn't particularly interested in selling...
  2. B

    Zeiss 10x42 SF gray model

    I have the black version of this binocular, and it is fantastic. I can understand your excitement about this binocular and share it.
  3. B

    Zeiss New Product Development and How SF Binoculars Were Created

    Really awesome post. A fascinating insight into the process of bringing a legendary binocular to the market.
  4. B

    Are alpha binos just getting too expensive? (perspective)

    Every time I look through my bins, they are worth it.
  5. B

    What did you see in your binoculars today?

    Today, my wife and I saw some black crowned night herons tucked away in a set of trees near an overpass close to the Mandarin Oriental and Anacostia River. Probably about 30 of them, in the evening near sunset, right there in the the city, and in a part of the world where we seeing one of these...
  6. B

    What I learnt from a trip to GlassParadise(tm)

    If you decide to get "alpha" glass with 42mm objectives, you should definitely try the Zeiss Victory SF. I'd say especially so if you liked the Swaros. Things I like about this model (compared to Swaro): Flat field correction is less extreme, yielding less roller ball effect. HUGE FOV...
  7. B

    Advise on 10x25 binocular?

    I'd take a serious look at the Zeiss Terra ED 10x25. I have both the 8x and 10x model of this binocular and its pretty fantastic. The price isn't bad either, at around $300USD. For compacts, also make sure IPD is not a concern.
  8. B

    Is it me, my eyes, or what?

    How do you stop down a binocular? I would think your f/D would be constant for a given design. I've actually wondered what a typical f/D would be for a set of bins. Someone on the internet seems to have said f/4 is typical. heh.
  9. B

    CA On The Noctivid

    I first looked through a Noctivid in a Leica store under very unchallenging conditions, and the view was phenomenal, compared to a pair of Celestron Trailseekers (one would hope so--although these bins are pretty good when they are working correctly). Reading the marketing material about them...
  10. B

    CA On The Noctivid

    It has been interesting. I knew the question would potentially bring a lot of discussion. Because of my concerns about CA (and my own sensitivity to it), I ended up trying out the Swaro EL and Zeiss SF in a local store. Ended up getting the Zeiss 10x42 SF and I am loving it. The EL, for me, had...
  11. B

    Which roofs are better for their 3D view?

    It is approximated by a parabola. The approximation is the curvature of the earth is assumed to be 0 and the slight variation of the gravitational field is assumed to be constant. An Newtonian dynamics is itself an approximation, neglecting relativistic effects. What does this have to do with...
  12. B

    4th Generation EL

    I'd like to see less pincushion distortion. My wife and I both noticed this effect rather strongly, and did not notice it in another set of field flattening binoculars. As for the range, do people use the range finding when birding?
  13. B

    Which roofs are better for their 3D view?

    But.. the object is flat. It is a photo (or a screen emitting light). So doesn't that make sense? And with a single eye, it would make sense that other cues for depth might be used for perception?
  14. B

    Win Opticron Binoculars answer two questions!

    a) Who is your preferred optics dealer and b) Why do you like buying from them? My preferred optics dealer for binoculars right now is a local shop called "One Good Tern" in Alexandria, VA. The owner is knowledgeable and puts some seed in the grass area across the street so people can go...
  15. B

    Why use objective covers?

    I have the Zeiss SF and the objective covers attach to a small strap, are easy to remove, and they don't get in the way. I put them on when I go indoors or anytime I want a little more protection of the objectives. For example if I'm doing anything unusual such as climbing over a rock or...
  16. B

    Which roofs are better for their 3D view?

    I'll need to read that paper later. Looks interesting.
  17. B

    Which roofs are better for their 3D view?

    This gets debated a lot here. The mathematics of stereopsis are straightforward. The brain, however, uses all sorts of cues to perceive something as having depth, and to see its (yes) three-dimensional shapes. I'd look at contrast and possibly shallow DOF as potential explanations for the...
  18. B

    New Birding Bins

    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...
  19. B

    Backup travel 8x recommendations?

    Although I agree that your bins are probably safe as long as you don't leave them in the car visible or walk around in the city with them, I thought I'd actually answer your question. Celestron Trailseeker 10x42 I don't have fancy binoculars yet and I used these in Costa Rica with no problems.
  20. B

    Binoculars

    You should check out some of the posts on the Binocular sub-forum here on this site. There are a few people that like to bird with 7x and they will likely have some recommendations. You can get a very nice set of optics for not a lot of money. If you don't mind size/weight, I'd consider...
  21. B

    New Viper HD's

    This article is a little old, but its at least an actual researched source regarding quality control in China. http://knowledge.wharton.upenn.edu/article/chinas-manufacturers-and-the-quality-control-conundrum/ Based on this article, and on experiences I've heard about from people working in...
  22. B

    CA On The Noctivid

    This thread is really interesting. I'm still very much on the fence about this binocular. I'll probably need to just find some time and some place to test these next to some other bins.
  23. B

    CA On The Noctivid

    Thank you for your responses about the CA. I know this is a topic that often brings a lot of debate, and there does seem to be some confusion and different perspectives regarding CA, how it is perceived, and how it affects image quality. I'll say this. I really only see CA when I am tracking...
  24. B

    CA On The Noctivid

    Do I need to worry about CA on the Noctivid? I think I am sensitive to this phenomenon--I've noticed it on multiple binoculars, although nothing so high-end as the Noctivids. I like the philosophy of these binoculars a lot. Classic, photographic image without distortion, high contrast, good low...
    • b3rd
    • Thread
    • Replies: 171
    • Forum: Leica
  25. B

    Alpha porros?

    I have the Trailseekers as well in both 8x and 10x (42) and they are optically quite good. However, I've found their build quality to be a bit junk. They got a little salt in them and rusted right out. Still works though. The rust kind of holds that part together. Celestron said they would mail...
Back
Top